At long last, we have a firm production start-date forDwayne Johnson’s superhero debut. The actor has been attached to the DC Comics movieBlack Adamsince 2007, but was waiting for the right time and way to make his entrance. Initially presented with the choice to play either the villain Black Adam or the hero Shazam!, Johnson chose the former, and after a lengthy search for a director it was announced earlier this year thatJaume Collet-Serra—who recently directed Johnson in Disney’s upcomingJungle Cruisemovie—will be shepherding this one to the finish line.
And now Johnson has taken to Twitter to reveal thatBlack Adamfilming will commence in July 2020, almost 13 years after he first signed onto the project. Now that’s commitment.
Johnson is one of the most in-demand actors in Hollywood right now so fittingBlack Adaminto his schedule was always a challenge. But he’s producing the film alongsideHiram Garciathrough their Seven Bucks Productions, so they were able to keep a close eye on the movie throughout development. Initially, the film was to feature both Black Adam and Shazam!, but it was eventually decided to split those characters off into their own movies.Garcia previously explained why:
“So as we were developing an actual Black Adam and Shazam movie, we were just realizing that both characters are so special that we didn’t want to compromise either of them by cramming them both into the same movie. So that’s why we made the decision to let Shazam have his own standalone movie and kind of launch him properly, and then we’ll do the same for Black Adam. And so that kind of really freed things up. It allowed us to develop the right version of both.”
Shazam!hit theaters earlier this year and received a warm reception from DC fans and general audiences alike, but no doubtBlack Adamwill carry a bit of a different tone. Collet-Serra made a name for himself helming stylishLiam Neesonthrillers likeRun All NightandThe Commuter, but he stretched his chops on theBlake Lively-frontedThe Shallowsand the upcomingJungle Cruise, which is a supernatural-tinged family film.
What willBlack Adamhave in store, and who will star alongside Johnson? We’ll likely find out more in the coming months, as Johnson prepares to shoot the Netflix thrillerRed NoticewithGal Gadotand then moves into shootingBlack Adamnext summer. Stay tuned, folks.
For more on the DC slate, check outour rundown of all the upcoming DC moviescurrently in the works.
