At the Heroes & Villains convention in San Jose, SHAZAM! star Zachary Levi talked a bit about his new role as The Big Red Cheese (real nickname) himself, Shazam. First, he talked a bit about the tone, and what to expect from the DCEU film in that regard:
James Gunn and the gang killed it. It brought so much heart and humor and I think it was kind of this dark horse that took everyone by storm. I think Shazam kind of has the possibility to do that, because Shazam is not, for all intents and purposes, it’s not Supes (Superman), it’s not Batman, it’s not Wonder Woman. If you look at most Justice League montages or Justice League posts, Shazam is not necessarily one of the characters you put on there, except he is in the Justice League, so if we do well enough…
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“I think Shazam can be that” @ZacharyLevi on if he thinks Shazam could be like Guardians of the Galaxy #HVFF San Jose pic.twitter.com/3sDgn7vY6G
— Heroes & Villains (@heroesfanfest) December 4, 2017
He then talked a bit about the character himself:
Shazam gets to be a fun, jovial, because he is, he’s Billy Batson, he’s 13. It’s the movie BIG but with superpowers, which I’m beyond stoked about. By the way, for those Shazam purists out there, and I know there are many of you out there, I understand that the S in his name stands for the Wisdom of Solomon, and that’s a difficult thing to believe when you’re playing the 13-year old in you who’s not as wise as Solomon.
Honestly, I’ve never liked Shazam, and was actually hoping this project would either stay stuck in development hell, or at least never become part of the DCEU. Just always felt too much like a Superman rip-off, even if you take into consideration his vastly different origin. But, since it’s going to happen whether I like it or not, I do hope it’s good. Not only does DCEU need more wins, but – barring his similarities to Superman aside – the idea of a kid gaining superpowers is a fun concept, and there’s no reason it can’t be at least entertaining. Here’s hoping.
Meanwhile, SHAZAM! will strike lightning into theaters April 5th, 2019.
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