Black Adam Star Sarah Shahi Praises Co-Star Dwayne Johnson, Hopes Film Defies Stereotypes

DC’s Black Adam movie has officially entered its final week of filming, meaning that fans are one step closer to seeing the DC Comics blockbuster in all of its glory. The highly-anticipated film will bring Dwayne Johnson’s long-awaited take on Black Adam to the big screen, and will see him joined by an ensemble cast that includes members of the Justice Society of America. Also appearing in the film is Adrianna Tomaz, who will be portrayed by The L Word and Sex/Life‘s Sarah Shahi. In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Shahi spoke about the personal significance of her appearing in the film — both for the opportunity to work alongside Johnson, and for the significance of the film with regards to Middle Eastern representation.

“Well, it’s a big deal for a lot of reasons,” Shahi explained. “I’m getting the chance to work with Dwayne, who happens to be one of the kindest humans ever. And it’s admirable to watch him be the businessman and the actor that he is. He treats everybody on set so well. When he speaks to you, it’s like you’re the only person in the room. Everyone should take a lesson from his book because he’s quite remarkable to witness and to be on set with. He’s the real deal, through and through.”

“So not only is it cool for that, but I’m Middle Eastern; I’m Persian,” Shai continued. “And there’s not a lot of Middle Eastern representation out there, so being in a movie like this really helps make a statement for my culture and where I come from. There are other Middle Eastern actors that I know who are either getting cast in terrorist roles or they’re really being stereotyped by how they look. So I’m hoping that, on some level, Black Adam will help break open that stereotype. And hopefully, Hollywood will become more colorblind in a way, and will open itself up to more Middle Eastern actors and storylines. And on top of that, this is the first thing I’ve been a part of that my kids can actually watch. So that’s nice.”

Joining Johnson and Shahi in the film are Aldis Hodge (Underground, The Invisible Man) as Hawkman, Noah Centineo (To All the Boys I Love Before, Charlie’s Angels) as Atom Smasher, Quintessa Swindell (Trinkets, Euphoria) as Cyclone, and Pierce Brosnan (GoldenEye, Mamma Mia!) as Doctor Fate. Uli Latukefu (Young Rock), Marwan Kenzari (The Old Guard, Aladdin) Mohammed Amer (Ramy), James Cusati-Moyer (Prodigal Son), Bodhi Sabongui (Legends of Tomorrow) have also been cast in currently unknown roles.

Black Adam will be released in theaters on July 29, 2022.