Black Adam Shazam

Dwayne Johnson, who played the supervillain Black Adam in DC Studios' 2022 movie, reportedly didn't want to appear on a post-credits scene in Shazam 2.

[shake-up](https://www.nytimes.com/article/wga-writers-strike-hollywood.html) in power dynamics. [Sign up today](https://mynewsletters.fortune.com/well-adjusted?utm_source=plea&utm_medium=website&utm_campaign=wa). [DC Studios](https://fortune.com/2022/12/15/henry-cavill-sacked-as-superman-by-new-dc-studios-chiefs-james-gunn-peter-safran/). [was canceled](https://www.vulture.com/2022/12/upcoming-dc-universe-movies-wonder-woman-3-canceled.html#:~:text=Warner%20Bros.%20would%20not%20be,the%20studio's%20DC%20Extended%20Universe.), leaving many loose ends for her character in the franchise. Part of why that’s unsettling is because the characters of Shazam and Black Adam went head-to-head multiple times [in DC’s comics](https://www.cbr.com/black-adam-vs-shazam-best-battles-comics/). Fury Of The Gods, debuted last week and [underperformed](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2023-03-19/shazam-2-fury-of-the-gods-box-office-reviews-zachary-levi) at the box office, with disastrous reviews—and no sign of the original Black Adam. [meant to co-star](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/08/who-is-black-adam) in it. When promoting Black Adam, Johnson promoted his face-off with Superman, played by Cavill, undermining “Shazam” in the public eye. The movie only made an estimated [$30.5 million](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2023-03-19/shazam-2-fury-of-the-gods-box-office-reviews-zachary-levi) in the opening weekend—far below $53.5 million earned by the first installment in the series in its first week. [film bombed](https://variety.com/2022/film/box-office/black-adam-box-office-100-million-loss-1235449487/) in 2022 and which curiously didn’t feature Levi at all. But Shazam is the traditional rival to Johnson’s Black Adam character, whose own The DC Comics superheroes Black Adam, Superman, and Shazam were always meant to clash, but not quite this way.

Zachary Levi adds his thoughts to reports that Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson tried to beat down Shazam to lift up Black Adam.

He even orchestrated [Henry Cavill](https://www.denofgeek.com/henry-cavill)‘s return to the Man of Steel’s blue tights, hoping to harness the passion of [Zack Snyder](https://www.denofgeek.com/zack-snyder) fans. So inconsequential are both Fury of the Gods and Black Adam that Henry Cavill has ignored the fruror, proving that for all of Johnson’s cape-tugging, he cannot even get the attention of Superman. While Shazam has been a member of the Justice Society in the comics (though not as prominently as Black Adam, it must be said), the innocent Billy is a strange fit for anything involving Waller. [Shazam!](https://www.denofgeek.com/shazam), but it also shows that the Rock wanted to ignore the Big Red Cheese altogether. While Black Adam and Superman have certainly tussled in the past, the most hyped clashes were between Superman and Shazam/Captain Marvel. In it, unnamed sources describe Johnson as a person who “thinks he’s bigger than the movie,” who wants only “to extend his brand and make a brand centered on himself.” That includes demanding that [Black Adam](https://www.denofgeek.com/black-adam) cut out the character’s traditional rival, Billy Batson aka Shazam aka Captain Marvel, going for the more flashy Superman.

DC Comics sequel 'Shazam! Fury of the Gods' bombed at the box office.

[Zachary Levi](/topic/zachary-levi) has reposted an article suggesting that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson “kneecapped” [Shazam](/topic/shazam)! “I think the biggest issue we’re having is marketing,” he wrote. [DC Comics](/topic/dc-comics)’s sequel starring Levi as the titular superhero has been a critical and financial bomb following its 17 March release. [defended the sequel against “senselessly mean” criticisms.](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/shazam-2-cameos-reviews-rachel-zegler-b2304134.html) [two-star review for The Independent](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/shazam-2-sequel-review-release-b2301405.html), Clarrise Loughrey described Fury of the Gods as “a film that isn’t without promise, but feels far too messy and corporatised to have any real affection for”. [vowed to leave the world of superheroes behind for a while.](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/shazam-2-plot-david-f-sandberg-b2304817.html)

Not only was Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's Black Adam ultimately unsuccessful, but at least according to Shazam star Zachary Levi, Johnson's failed attempt to ...

While the character of Black Adam is canonically a foil of Levi’s red-suited hero, Johnson refused to appear as the heavy in 2019’s Shazam and publicly set his sights on an Adam/Superman matchup instead. He even lured Henry Cavill out of superhero retirement to play the latter in an Adam after-credits, only to have the entire thing blow up in his face when the movie underperformed, and James Gunn and Peter Safran made new superhero plans for Warner Bros. He also reportedly ordered a last-minute nixing of a Shazam sequel after-credits scene in which Levi’s character would be recruited into Black Adam‘s Justice Society of America.

In a matter of months, he went from having a highly-anticipated sequel to a breakout superhero film with “Shazam! Fury of the Gods.” Then, it was revealed that ...

And when you combine the aftermath of the subpar “Black Adam” box office results (with [we shared yesterday](https://theplaylist.net/dwayne-johnson-reportedly-nixed-post-credits-scenes-in-black-adam-shazam-2-that-would-have-linked-the-franchises-20230321/), news broke that Dwayne Johnson, the star and producer of “Black Adam,” killed the idea of having Levi show up as Shazam in a post-credits scene in the film, which would have had the character join the Justice Society. The scene was then reworked and expected to show up in ‘Fury of the Gods,’ but Johnson nixed that idea too by saying no Justice Society actors from “Black Adam” could show up in the scene. [READ MORE: Dwayne Johnson Reportedly Nixed Post-Credits Scenes In ‘Black Adam’ & ‘Shazam 2’ That Would Have Linked The Franchises](https://theplaylist.net/dwayne-johnson-reportedly-nixed-post-credits-scenes-in-black-adam-shazam-2-that-would-have-linked-the-franchises-20230321/) In a matter of months, he went from having a highly-anticipated sequel to a breakout superhero film with “Shazam! So, it definitely makes sense that he seems to be expressing a bit of frustration on social media.