New Line‘s Shazam! Fury of the Gods is struggling to impact the box office despite positive word of mouth (in some circles) and featuring an all-star cast including Zachary Levi, Helen Mirren, and Lucy Liu. According to Box Office Mojo, the superhero sequel is at $64.7M worldwide, far from DC’s expectations for a film that reportedly cost $110-$125 million. While the upcoming sunsetting of the DCU could explain the film’s poor performance, a new report from The Wrap says Dwayne Johnson is partially to blame for Shazam! Fury of the Gods failing at the box office.
According to The Wrap, Johnson reportedly vetoed ideas that would have seen Zachary Levi’s Shazam cameo in a post-credits scene for Black Adam. There’s also talk about the Justice Society appearing in a scrapped post-credits sequence for Shazam! Fury of the Gods. The Wrap says Johnson wanted the DCU to go all-in on Black Adam and Henry Cavill’s Superman, leaving other heroes out of the equation. Johnson’s idea left no room for Shazam or his extended family of heroes. The school of thought is that Johnson’s interference with Shazam’s exposure in the DCU placed the character’s solo sequel at a disadvantage.
The outlet says that when Shazam! 2 producer Peter Safran tried to include the defunct Black Adam idea, Johnson swooped in and threw the idea out. This altercation is why characters from Peacemaker show up instead of members of the Justice Society.
For reasons we can speculate about all day, Johnson’s repeated stonewalling of Shazam is viewed by many as an attempt to take the boy-turned-superhero away from the spotlight. While Johnson may have sabotaged Shazam’s chances at the box office, Black Adam is also hitting the bench for DC’s reboot plans. According to DC Studios heads James Gunn and Peter Safran, there is no room for Black Adam to return now. Johnson says he’s been in touch with Gunn and that they’re keeping the door open for Black Adam’s eventual return, but that remains to be seen.
Are you disappointed Black Adam and Shazam won’t cross paths in the DCU? Do you think Johnson deliberately kneecapped Shazam to increase Black Adam’s chances of changing the hierarchy of the DCU? With Black Adam, Shazam, and Henry Cavill’s Superman no longer a part of the DCU’s plans, was bringing Johnson into the fold a mistake? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
The comment section exists to allow readers to discuss the article constructively and respectfully, focused on the topic at hand.
What’s Not Allowed