'Shazam!' Director Throws Shade at Disney's 'Aladdin'

When Disney released an extended first look at Aladdin, fans were quick to take to social media [...]

By Adam Barnhardt

When Disney released an extended first look at Aladdin, fans were quick to take to social media criticizing Will Smith's take on the blue-skinned Genie. Now, Shazam! director David F. Sandberg has gotten in on the fun, poking fun at the remake of the classic animated feature.

Earlier today on Twitter, Sandberg shared a doctored image of Doctor Sivana (Mark Strong) painted blue with a high ponytail, a clear spoof of the Genie.

Sandberg tweeted the image in response to a fan questioning why Warner Brothers has spent little time marketing the movie. When the fan suggested that Shazam! was in an Aladdin-like situation, Sandberg was quick putting his Photoshop skills to use.

"I guess it was just a matter of time before someone figured it out," Sandberg tweeted.

Shazam! marks the biggest budget Sandberg's ever had for a movie, after directing horror budget flicks like Annabelle: Creation. On a visit to the set of Shazam! last year, Sandberg discussed what it was like to make the jump to a blockbuster-level film.

"It's quite a marathon -- like, it's a lot of work," Sandberg admitted. "It's a very different way of working, just because you have to do all these pre-bits and plan everything months in advance. Then when you're shooting it, it's not always as fun as shooting a small movie, cause like you have to shoot...like today, we're shooting this little piece, and this little piece, because this piece is like a unit, this is on blue screen, this is CGI, and it's a lot of things to keep track of. So the shooting is not always fun but the result is so much more awesome than when you have these kinds of resources."

What have you thought about the Shazam! marketing so far? Have you noticed it less than other movies or aren't you quite worried yet? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

Shazam! is out April 5th while Aladdin floats into theaters May 24th. Other upcoming DC films include Joker on October 4th, Birds of Prey on February 7th, 2020, Wonder Woman 1984 on June 5th, 2020, and The Batman on June 25th, 2021.

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