Shazam! Fury of the Godsstar Zachary Levi has seemingly confirmed a report thatBlack Adamheadliner Dwayne Johnson was the reason planned cameos between the two properties fell apart. The report on the cameos' fate came in light of the recent underwhelming premiere ofShazam 2in the twilight of the old DCEU.
Shazam! Fury of the Godsis the sequel to 2019’sShazam!,an origin story for the eponymous hero that shows how the orphaned Billy Batson is chosen by an ancient and powerful wizard to become his champion and endowed with the abilities of six gods, transforming him into a hero when he says the magic word. The film was well received, a sequel was quickly confirmed, and work was undertaken, with delays and rescheduling leading to the film releasing months afterDwayne Johnson’sBlack Adamdebuted to mixed reviewsfrom critics.
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While the news was still making the rounds as speculation,Shazam!Leading man Levi seemingly confirms Johnson nixed cameos betweenBlack AdamandShazam 2. On Instagram, Levi reposted the report with the added caption, “The truck shall set you free." The report alleges that Johnson held back all efforts to tie the two comic book rivals and vetoed more than one planned cameo. For instance, whenShazam 2attempted to include the Justice Society of America in a post-credits scene where they recruit Shazam (a similar scene forBlack Adamwas nixed by Johnson), Johnson reportedly stepped in to stop the cameos, resulting inPeacemaker characters making an appearance instead.
The confirmation from Levi essentially validated reports that had thrownJohnson under the bus forShazam 2’s box office failure. Johnson was likely the previously unspecified hand behind the film’s last-minute changes. David F. Sandberg, the filmmaker behind theShazammovies, had previously eluded to this in response to a fan query on Twitter about the cameos. “…It was supposed to be other characters, but that fell apart at the last minute, so Peter Safran (also produced Peacemaker) pulled some favors," Sandberg wrote. “As a fan, I was happy to have them in the movie (even though it’s perhaps a bit weird that they’re the ones recruiting for JS).”
It has long since been public knowledge that Johnson was not interested in having Shazam and Black Adam meet, having lobbied for his character to be kept out of the firstShazam!film, with many noting that he seemed todislike Shazam just as much as his Black Adamcharacter does in the comics. The situation is made all the more ironic because Johnson was only given his far-reaching and final authority because he was seen as a final great hope for the DCEU, only for Black Adam to fail that charge.
While the original plans to connect theBlack AdamandShazam 2films would have certainly gone a long way to boost the incentive for both, it is possible that too much flak is being thrown at Johnson. One reason is that while it made it into the movie unhindered, the high-profileWonder Woman cameo inShazam! Fury of the Godscreated a massive DCEU plothole that would have retroactively applied to and adversely affectedBlack Adam.Additionally, the announcement of the Gunn/Safran slate for the first phase of their rebooted DCU rendered all unaffiliated projects exceptThe Flashpointless, linkingBlack AdamandShazam!meaningless inthe grand scheme of things. Ultimately, both films seem to be victims of the DCEU’s long and messy path to a new vision.
