Given all of the other superhero movies coming out in the next few years, it’s easy to forget that a live-action version of Shazam is on the way and that Dwayne Johnson will be playing the antagonist Black Adam. Speaking with Total Film (via Games Radar), Johnson opened up about what he hopes to achieve with the character in the film.
“I think Black Adam is going to grow into becoming an anti-hero,” Johnson said. “It’s all written within the spirit of respecting and paying homage to the comics. As we know, Black Adam started out as a slave. When he’s given the powers, he utilised them. Then in the wake of his powers, tragedy strikes, which turns his sentiment and tone in terms of psychology.”
And as if there was any doubt, Johnson confirmed that the Shazam feature will be tied into the larger DC Cinematic Universe, and that we may see him go up against Henry Cavill’s Superman and Ben Affleck’s Batman.
“It was all agreed that the worlds are all interconnected… One day you will see Black Adam go at it with Superman or Batman or any of the DC characters. But that said, there’s a great independence to Black Adam from the DC world, allowing us to inject, not only viciousness, but also winking humour.”
Jack the Giant Slayer scribe Darren Lemke is currently penning the script for Shazam, which is set to be released April 5, 2019, just a month before Marvel’s Avengers: Infinity War Part II. The film tells the story of teenager Billy Batson, who transforms into the superhero when he says the magic word “Shazam!”
