Shazam!
Shazam! is a 2019 American superhero comedy film based on the DC Comics character of the same name. Produced by New Line Cinema, DC Films, the Safran Company, and Seven Bucks Productions, and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, it is the seventh installment in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). It was directed by David F. Sandberg from a screenplay by Henry Gayden who co-wrote the story with Darren Lemke, and stars Zachary Levi, Mark Strong, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer, and Djimon Hounsou. The film follows teenager Billy Batson (Angel) as he is chosen by the ancient wizard Shazam (Hounsou) to be his new champion by saying the name "Shazam", allowing him to transform into an adult superhero (Levi) with various superpowers. Billy and his foster brother Freddy Freeman (Grazer) must discover Billy's new powers in order to stop the evil Dr. Thaddeus Sivana (Strong) and the Seven Deadly Sins. Development of a live-action Shazam! film began at New Line in the early 2000s, but was delayed for several years. The film went into pre-production in 2009, with Peter Segal as director, John August as writer and Dwayne Johnson being considered to star as the villain Black Adam, but the project fell through; Johnson acts as an executive producer on Shazam! William Goldman, Alec Sokolow, Joel Cohen, Bill Birch, and Geoff Johns, among others, were all attached to the project as writers at various points. The film was officially announced in 2014, with Johnson attached to star as either Shazam or Black Adam. In January 2017, he was cast to lead a solo Black Adam development project. Sandberg signed on to direct Shazam! in February 2017, and Levi was cast that October, with Angel joining the following month. Principal photography began in Toronto on January 29, 2018, with most of the film shot at Pinewood Toronto Studios, and wrapped on May 11. Shazam! was released in the United States on April 5, 2019. The film was a box office success, grossing over $367 million worldwide, and received positive reviews from critics, who praised Sandberg's direction and the performances of Levi, Angel and Grazer, as well as its generally light tone and sense of fun. It was followed by the spin-off film Black Adam (2022) and a sequel titled Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023), both of which failed to meet the critical and financial success of the first film.
- Thank you very much. - Oh, of course, yeah. Dude! Dude, dude! Dude, did you see that? Yeah. You electrocuted a bus and almost killed these people. And then I caught it! Freddy, I caught a bus with my bare hands, man! I caught a bus like people catch fly balls. Like, who does that? I do that! Billy! You do nothing. You take selfies and make people pay you. You know, forget it. I can't really talk to you when you look like this. You just wish it was you. No shit! You think? I would kill to have what you have. Because everything I do is, like, some desperate attempt to get people to notice me. To not feel sorry for me. I mean, look at me! Look at me. Do you even see me? 'Cause most people don't. 'Cause they don't want to. And now you don't either. I mean, you think this is who you are? I mean, Billy, you're 14, and now you're no better than the Breyers. All this power, and all you did was turn into a show-off and a bully. Whatever, kid! I do what I want! And I'm, like, mid-20s probably! Maybe even, like, 30.
Shazam!
Chosen one. The so-called perfect man. Pure of heart. Flawless in every way. What made you so worthy? I'm sorry, can I help... Do you want an autograph or something? Give me your power. Or die. Oh, snap! You're, like, a bad guy, right? Okay. Okay, okay, okay. Before this gets really stupid for you, you should know that I'm basically invincible. The weapons of man draw no blood from our kind. I said, stop right there! The only thing that extinguishes magic... is magic.
Shazam!
Time to transfer your power to me. Oh, you did not see that one coming, did you, grandpa? Them's street rules. Okay, okay, okay. I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I never should've punched you in the nuts like that. That was totally my bad. We can talk about this. You grovel like a child. That's because I am one. I'm a kid! You don't wanna hurt a kid, do you? I believe I can fly! I believe I can fly, I can fly! Freddy said if I believe I can fly, then I can fly. So I believe! I believe! I believe! Okay. Superman! Superman! What arm is it? Why am I not flying? Please, I don't wanna die! I'm floating!
Shazam!