Dwayne Johnson Says ‘Black Adam’ Should Start Filming “in About a Year”

Shazam! is only a few days into its theatrical run, but fans are already eager to see what other projects it ushers into the DC Extended Universe. Luckily, it sounds like one spinoff will be getting off of the ground sooner than later.

Dwayne Johnson, who serves as a producer on Shazam!, recently took to Instagram to thank fans for the film’s box office success. In the process, Johnson addressed his long-awaited portrayal of Black Adam, and hinted that his solo film should begin production in a year.

“For those who know the comic books and who know the mythology of Shazam, Shazam is connected to Black Adam.” Johnson explains in the video. “Black Adam is an antihero or villain, who I can not wait to play. I’ve been developing this, and it’s been with me in my DNA, for over ten years now. We should start shooting that in about a year. I’m very excited about that.”

Johnson also reiterated how excited he is to play the role, hinting that his portrayal of black Adam won’t be pulling any punches.

“I can’t wait to play Black Adam,” Johnson revealed, “because they’re all getting their asses kicked when I play Black Adam. That day of reckoning is coming for everyone.”

The possibility of Johnson playing Black Adam has predated most of the DCEU, with fans eager to see which way the character makes his debut. While Black Adam does factor into Shazam! in a surprising way, his solo endeavor is expected to be something else entirely, with the latest version of the script rumored to also include characters like Hawkman and Stargirl.

“Black Adam is definitely happening,” producer Hiram Garcia said last year. “We’re actually very deep into a script on it right now, which is coming along really well. I’m really excited with the story we’ve crafted. Look, I’ve always been a huge comic book fan. I’ve always had this dream, I’ve always wanted to—You know, you kind of have like these goals of like, ‘One day I’d love to be able to do this and this,’ and making a superhero movie was definitely always one of my dreams. For the longest time, you know you kind of have this living superhero in Dwayne Johnson, so I was always trying to figure out what’s the perfect character that will kind of fit him and his look and his build and his kind of edge and the attitude he’s got.”

“So where we are now with Black Adam is we just got our latest script [from Adam Sztykiel]. We’re doing some revisions on it.” Garcia continued. “We’re extremely excited about it, the studio’s very excited about it. And I’m telling you man, as a comic book fan, when this thing comes out, it is going to be amazing. This is the fanboy in me talking to you, it’s going to deliver on the goods of everything you’d want to see Black Adam do, he’s going to be doing in this film.”

Are you excited to see Black Adam take flight sometime soon? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

Shazam! is in theaters now. Other upcoming DC movies include Joker on October 10th, Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) on February 7, 2020, Wonder Woman 1984 on June 5, 2020, The Batman on June 25, 2021, The Suicide Squad on August 6, 2021, and Aquaman 2 on December 16, 2022.