While attending a screening of exclusive footage of Shazam! and talking to director David F. Sandberg and producer Peter Safran, ComicBook.com wanted to know if Superman is going to appear in the film.
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While recent rumors are swirling claiming that the Man of Steel will appear in the upcoming Shazam! movie, the team behind the film wasn’t ready to admit anything of the sort just yet. Instead, they are enthusiastically priding themselves on pulling off a feat similar to Aquaman in the sense that it will be both connected to the larger DC movie world but isolated and independent of any necessity to include other heroes.
“The focus was always, ‘This is Shazam’s story,’” Sandberg said when asked how he decided whether or not he would include other DC Comics heroes. “He is front and center. We have fun with all the things around but first and foremost, it’s Shazam’s story.”
In fact, the film had originally considered having Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson play Black Adam and foil to Shazam in the hero’s first outing but decided it could be even more isolated. “I think they sort of played with the idea of having the first movie be both Shazam and Black Adam but it needs more set up than you want to spend in the first movie with Shazam,” Sandberg explained.
“Shazam’s origin story is big enough to merit its own film,” Safran added. “I think that’s what everybody discovered early on. When you see the movie, you’ll see that that’s what it deserved and what it got.”
When outright asked if audiences are going to see Superman, Safran dodged with a fun response. “Yeah, when DC makes that movie, it’s gonna be great,” the producer joked. “You’ll definitely get to see it then! You guys will love it, it’ll be great!”
So, the conversation of whether or not Superman will be popping up in Shazam! remains unanswered. While Sandberg and Safran were not eager to spoil any surprise appearances, the outside rumors seem to be consistently claiming he will be there.
Do you think Superman will show up in the Shazam! movie? Would you prefer Shazam! take the Aquaman approach and leave the other DC Comics heroes sidelined in order to focus on one charcter’s origin story? Share your thoughts and questions in the comment section or send them my way on Twitter, @BrandonDavisBD.
Shazam! is set to hit theaters on April 5.
