Mark Strong recently confirmed his involvement in Shazam!, which immediately gave rise to numerous online rumors about his villainous character.
That Hashtag Show shared several new character breakdowns from the upcoming David F. Sandberg venture that might help clear things up. When first introduced, Thaddeus Bodog Sivana, aka Doctor Sivana, was a genius and a top-notch inventor. The more recent breakdown described him as an "evil sorcerer":
THADDEUS BODOG SIVANA
Evil sorcerer who regenerates from death with world domination on his mind.
Supporting Lead Male
In the comic books – particularly the New 52 titles – Doctor Sivana used magic, but he was always a scientist first. Interestingly, Mark Strong avoided the words scientist and sorcerer as he made his announcement. Instead, he said his character was "an evil bastard called Doctor Sivana".
The Marvel Family will provide support for Captain Marvel (Zachary Levi), and Doctor Sivana will apparently have a support system, as well. DC Comics’ Doctor Sivana had four children, and the two eldest will appear in the April 5, 2019 release.
Apparently, the villain’s offspring aren’t equally loyal. We can expect that Magnificus Sivana will remain loyal to his father. As she did in the source material, Beautia Sivana will switch allegiances to befriend Billy Batson (Asher Angel). The siblings’ descriptions:
BEAUTIA SIVANA
Sivana's devoted daughter. When he does not return her love, she changes loyalties and helps Billy out.
Supporting Lead Female
MAGNIFICUS SIVANA
Sivana's incredibly giant and strong son, who has a huge battle with Shazam.
Supporting Lead Male
THS also shared character breakdowns for the Wizard Shazam and his mysterious underling:
SHAZAM
Elderly wizard who is forced to give his powers to a young boy before the boy is ready.
Supporting Lead Male
MYSTERIOUS MAN
Shazam's underling.
Cameo Male
THS speculated that the unspecified character could be Black Adam (Dwayne Johnson), but that’s not likely. Two reasons: One, Geoff Johns made it clear at San Diego Comic-Con International 2017 that the character wouldn't be in Shazam! because he’s going to have his own solo movie. Two, Johnson’s literally been associated with the role for literally a decade, and there's really no point in including the character in a casting call.
UPDATE: David F. Sandberg has debunked the rumored character breakdowns by calling them “bullshit”! Here’s his tweets for you:
Those character breakdowns are bullshit. Sivana is definitely not a reanimated sorcerer.
"” David F. Sandberg (@ponysmasher) January 16, 2018
Well there's a first time for everything.
Sincerely,
The director of the film in question ?"” David F. Sandberg (@ponysmasher) January 16, 2018
Check out the following video report on the character descriptions. In addition, we have fresh fan art of Mark Strong as Doctor Sivana, plus a new photo of a Shazam! table read in Toronto that was shared – and deleted – by Asher Angel!
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