We may not have believed that Shazam! was actually in the cards a couple of years ago when it was announced as part of the DC Extended Universe slate of movies, but it’s now in preproduction. This means that director David F. Sandberg has begun the search for actors, shooting locations, and so on.
And now, thanks to That Hashtag Show, we may have discovered who’s in the running to play Shazam!
THS also provided us with a new character description for Billy Batson, the young kid who transforms into the superhero Shazam! Check it out below:
Male, 12-15 years old. A teenager who becomes Captain Marvel, the world's mightiest mortal. Granted access to incredible powers by the wizard Shazam, he speaks the wizard's name and is struck by a lightning bolt that gives him the powers of the gods.
As you can see, the description is consistent with the previously released film synopsis:
Based on the DC Comics character Shazam, Billy Batson becomes Captain Marvel, the world's mightiest mortal, when he says the magic word Shazam. The name is an acronym for six gods and heroes of the ancient world, as well as their attributes. The wisdom of Solomon, strength of Hercules, stamina of Atlas, power of Zeus, courage of Achilles and speed of Mercury.
Frontrunners for the role include John Cena and Joshua Sasse. Sasse, a relatively unknown actor, has appeared in TV shows that include Galavant and Rogue.
On the other hand, Cena has a large, well-established fan base. If we can depend on THS’ report, this probably isn’t going to be a difficult choice for the studio.
If John Cena wins the role of Shazam!, it’s almost guaranteed that he’ll clash with Dwayne Johnson's Black Adam sometime in the near future. That would certainly make for an extremely special DCEU event!
