Shazam was one of the initial films Warner Bros revealed as part of its post-Man of Steel DC film universe slate back in late 2014, and was a most welcome update for fans of the World's Mightiest Mortal after the project spent years being in development hell. But a lot has changed in this franchise since that announcement, and while we've known since earlier this year that Shazam will be the next movie to shoot following Aquaman, it's been unclear if Billy Batson's solo movie would still keep its previously-slated April 2019 release date. Well according to director David F. Sandberg, that's still the plan, as he said the following when asked when Shazam will be released in theaters:
April 2019. It takes a long time to make vfx heavy movies.
David. F Sandberg didn't clarify in his Reddit AMA if Shazam is still intended to be released specifically on April 5, 2019 or if it will be moved to another Friday that same month, but for right now, DC fans can look forward to it screening just four months after Aquaman hits the big screen. Shazam will begin principal photography early next year, but as Sandberg noted, there will still be plenty of time after the shoot has concluded to work on the visual effects, such as how the juvenile Billy Batson will transform into the adult, superpowered Shazam. Of course, let's not forget that a lot of unexpected things can happen in a movie's creative development, so until Warner Bros and DC officially announce Shazam's release date, it's best to pencil the blockbuster in for April 2019 rather than put it in ink. Currently the only other movies scheduled to come out in April 2019 are The Voyage of Doctor Dolittle and an untitled space movie from Disney, both of which will be released on the 12th.
Shazam is expected to tell Billy Batson's origin story for the first time in a feature-length theatrical setting, but other than that, no concrete plot details for the movie have been revealed yet. While Black Adam was originally intended to be Shazam's main villain, now Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's version of the Kahndaqian anti-hero will instead make his live action debut in his own movie, and his conflict with the formerly-named Captain Marvel is being saved for a later movie. Shazam's replacement baddie still hasn't been announced yet, though my money's on Doctor Sivana, the mad scientist who has antagonized the Big Red Cheese since they were both introduced in 1940's Whiz Comics #2. As for who will play Shazam, some of the most recent rumored frontrunners for the role include John Cena and Joshua Sasse.
Keep checking back with CinemaBlend for more news on how Shazam is coming along. You can also look through our DC movies guide to find out what other DCEU entries are coming down the pipeline.
