Early last year, when directorDavid Sandberg’sShazam!was still filming in Toronto, I got to visit the set with a few other reporters. At the time of our visit,Justice Leaguehad only recently been released, and except forPatty Jenkins’Wonder Woman, the DC films were dark and not exactly fun.
But that was about to change.
If you’ve seenJames Wan’sAquamanand the trailers forShazam!, you know DC movies have been going through a bit of a reinvention, with more focus on having a good time in the cinema and less on having every movie connect towards some big event. While some might want DC to mimic the Marvel way of doing things, I’m incredibly excited with the direction of DC, and especially future films likeShazam!andTodd Phillipsstandalone Joker movie.
Anyway, while on theShazam!set, I learned a ton about the next DC movie and I’m incredibly confident when I say it’s going to be a huge hit for all involved. Not only do you haveZachary Levilooking like he’s having the time of his life playing a 14-year-old superhero, you’ve got the ultimate wish fulfillment of every kid as the storyline: what would you do if you were given superpowers? On set everyone kept comparingShazam!toBigwith superheroes, which sounded great to me.
WithShazam!arriving in theaters April 5th, I’m finally allowed to talk about what I learned…sort of. I’m still under embargo about a few key things they told us, and it’s due to everyone on set revealing most of the key twists and turns of the movie. It’s one of those tough situations where I want to be able to tell you about more of the movie, but if I did, you might feel like there are no big reveals when you’re in the theater. Just trust me when I sayShazam!looks great and you should definitely be excited to check it out.
If you want to know more, I’ve got almost twenty things to know about the movie below that won’t spoil the film. Saying that, if you want to go in spoiler-free, I’d stop reading know.
Scripted byHenry Gayden(Earth to Echo) from a story by Gayden andDarren Lemk(Goosebumps),Shazam!tells the story of a 14-year-old boy named Billy who, when he shouts the word “SHAZAM!”, can turn into an adult superhero.Asher Angelplays Billy, while Zachary Levi plays the adult Shazam.ItbreakoutJack Dylan Grazerplays Billy’s best friend Freddy Freeman.Shazam!also starsDjimon Hounsou,Mark Strong,Grace Fulton,Faithe Herman,Ian Chen,Jovan Armand,Cooper Andrews, andMarta Milans.
18 Things to Know:
For more onShazam!, check out the links below:
Here’s the official synopsis forShazam!:
We all have a superhero inside us, it just takes a bit of magic to bring it out. In Billy Batson’s (Angel) case, by shouting out one word—SHAZAM!—this streetwise 14-year-old foster kid can turn into the adult Super Hero Shazam (Levi), courtesy of an ancient wizard. Still a kid at heart—inside a ripped, godlike body—Shazam revels in this adult version of himself by doing what any teen would do with superpowers: have fun with them! Can he fly? Does he have X-ray vision? Can he shoot lightning out of his hands? Can he skip his social studies test? Shazam sets out to test the limits of his abilities with the joyful recklessness of a child. But he’ll need to master these powers quickly to fight the deadly forces of evil controlled by Dr. Thaddeus Sivana (Strong).
