It’s official: Shazam! Fury of the Gods is the biggest box office flop in the history of the DCEU. The sequel recently finished its rather disappointing run in theaters around the world. Next up, it will have a second shot at life on home video. The film will be streaming on Max, the new streaming service replacing HBO Max, as well as on Blu-ray, DVD and 4K Ultra HD. But the home video release will never be able to make up for the disappointment this film suffered.
Director David F. Sandberg’s Fury of the Gods finished its run with just $133.4 million worldwide. That includes $57.6 million domestically and $75.8 million internationally. Many big superhero movies make more than that on opening weekend, so this was a crushing blow for Warner Bros. Particularly because the first Shazam! was a pleasant surprise, taking in $363 million against a $90 million budget.
What’s worse is that no other DCEU movie has made less money since the franchise launched with Man of Steel in 2013. Even Wonder Woman 1984 ($166.3 million) and The Suicide Squad ($167 million), made more. They were released during the pandemic and hit HBO Max the same day they hit theaters. It’s a bad situation. All the more reason for Warner Bros. to move ahead with a DC Universe reboot under the leadership of James Gunn and Peter Safran.
Here is the synopsis for Shazam! Fury of the Gods.
“Bestowed with the powers of the gods, Billy Batson and his fellow foster kids are still learning how to juggle teenage life with having adult Super Hero alter-egos. But when the Daughters of Atlas, a vengeful trio of ancient gods, arrive on Earth in search of the magic stolen from them long ago, Billy—aka Shazam—and his family are thrust into a battle for their superpowers, their lives, and the fate of their world.”
The cast includes Zachary Levi as Shazam, Asher Angel as Billy Batson, Jack Dylan Grazer as Freddy Freeman, Adam Brody as Super Hero Freddy, Ross Butler as Super Hero Eugene, Meagan Good as Super Hero Darla, D.J. Cotrona as Super Hero Pedro, Grace Caroline Currey as Mary Bromfield, Faithe Herman as Darla Dudley, Ian Chen as Eugene Choi, Jovan Armand as Pedro Pena, Marta Milans as Rosa Vasquez, Cooper Andrews as Victor Vasquez and Djimon Hounsou as Wizard. Newcomers include Rachel Zegler, Lucy Liu and Helen Mirren.
Meanwhile, DC still has Blue Beetle, The Flash and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom set to come out later this year before Gunn and Safran launch their reboot. The Flash is expected to help them hit the reset button. Whether or not Blue Beetle or Jason Momoa’s Aquaman make it to the new DCU remains to be seen. Though it seems fair to guess that Levi’s Shazam is getting left behind.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods arrives on Max an Blu-ray on May 23.
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