Warner Brothers has been… well, let’s be honest, kind of scrambling with its DC Universe movies since neither ‘Batman V Superman’ nor ‘Suicide Squad’ were widely embraced. But this whole time, the studio has had one of the biggest stars in Hollywood attached to one of its DC films, ‘Shazam!’ since 2008– Dwayne Johnson, who is slated to play anti-hero/villain Black Adam.
‘Shazam!’ is due to hit theaters on April 5, 2019, but so far, Johnson is the only star attached and there isn’t even a director attached. There is a screenplay in the works, from Henry Gayden, although it has passed through the hands of Bill Birch and Darren Lanke with input from DC’s Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns, who penned a lot of Black Adam’s modern comic appearances in ‘Justice Society of America’ and ’52’.
Now comes word that WB is giving ‘Black Adam’ his own solo movie. Even though Black Adam isn’t a major player in the comics, Dwayne Johnson is a HUGE star with a lot of draw at the box office. It’s not shocking that WB wants to cash in on that and put him front and center in his own movie.
Nothing else has been announced regarding the ‘Black Adam’ solo movie, including whether or not it will come before ‘Shazam!’.
In the comics, Black Adam was the first beneficiary of the powers of the ancient wizard Shazam, in order to be a champion of good, but the power drove him to the dark side. He debuted in 1945 and was the main villain of the hero Captain Marvel, who now goes by the name Shazam. Under Johns’ tenure, Black Adam became the ruler of the fictional middle eastern nation Kandaq and has been shown as more of an anti-hero in recent times.
Are you excited that Dwayne Johnson will be headlining his own DC movie?
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
