When comparing the underwhelming performance of Justice League to the commercial smash that is Aquaman, one might think the DCEU might be decidedly distancing themselves from a previously-planned interconnected universe. While the studio’s upcoming lineup indicates a move in that direction, it looks like Shazam! won’t be completely ignoring the other DC heroes. In past trailers, we’ve seen a few sprinkles here and there referencing the DCEU, such as Freddy Freeman’s authentic Batman Batarang and when Shazam yelled “Get ‘em, Batman!” when throwing a big doll of the Caped Crusader. The new trailer for China mixes familiar footage with new and hilarious DCEU jokes, and man, do they get us excited for the upcoming release. Check it out:
Well, aren’t these are perfect!! The new trailer was released in anticipation for China’s upcoming release of Shazam! on April 5, which coincides with the domestic opening day as well. While most of the clips aren’t new, the few that are win big at taking a jab at other superheroes in DC’s film universe.
The footage reveals a bit more of Shazam’s face-off with Dr. Sivana in the city, showcasing more stunning action and a hilarious exchange between them. Amidst their big fight, Dr. Sivana proceeds to threaten the hero, but the superpowered Billy Batson points out, they are a mile apart and he can’t hear his "bad guy evil speech." Within the scene, it looks like the movie will cut to a child humming the iconic “Superman Theme” while playing with Batman and Superman action figures, which mirror the actions of Shazam and Dr. Sivana’s fight.
The new China trailer also shows a clip of Shazam looking into a fish bowl and quipping – “I can’t talk to fish, what could we do with that that’s cool?” Freddy responds with, “Maybe command an army of billions in the Ocean!” while gesturing to his Aquaman t-shirt. It’s a funny poke at the underwater hero often being the butt of jokes, well, before the naysayers saw how badass he can be in the recent blockbuster, that is.
These are some amusing jokes to get fans excited for Shazam! which show the franchise isn’t completely abandoning its roots. This is also probably somewhat of a business move for Warner Bros. to market the new hero to Chinese audiences because movies such as Justice League and Aquaman made some good money there – more so with Aquaman, which topped Wonder Woman’s entire box office total of $93 million in just three days in China, before making over $298 million total in the big movie market.
Time will tell where Shazam! stacks up alongside its fellow DCEU heroes at the China box office, but early tracking on the domestic front has the superhero flick making around $45 million during its first weekend. The early positive reactions could certainly help propel Shazam! forward when it comes to theaters on April 5.
