Shazam!
Short description
Billy Batson is a fourteen-year-old foster kid who has spent years moving between homes. After an ancient wizard chooses him as his champion, Billy only has to say one word to turn into an adult superhero with powers drawn from six gods. As Shazam, he has a grown man's body and a teenager's instincts, and he and his foster brother Freddy set about testing what he can do. Mastering those abilities becomes urgent once Dr. Thaddeus Sivana, who wants the same power for himself, comes after him.
David F. Sandberg directed the film, working from a screenplay by Henry Gayden, with Peter Safran producing. It followed Sandberg's two Lights Out films and Annabelle: Creation, and it came before Shazam! Fury of the Gods and Until Dawn in his filmography. Zachary Levi plays the adult hero, Asher Angel plays Billy, Mark Strong plays Dr. Sivana, Jack Dylan Grazer plays Freddy Freeman, Adam Brody plays the adult Freddy, and Djimon Hounsou plays the Wizard. The production involved 97 credited cast members and 71 credited crew members.
Made for 80 million USD, the film took in 368 million USD worldwide, a strong return on its budget. On IMDb it holds 7 out of 10 from 412,000 votes, on TMDB 7 out of 10 from 10,453 votes, and it has a critics' rating of 7.3 out of 10 from 419 reviews, so critics rated it slightly higher than the large audiences who saw it.
What's left behind the scenes
- As the Wizard mentioned, SHAZAM is an acronym for the first letters of the English names of the gods who grant power – Solomon's wisdom, Hercules' strength, Atlas' stamina, Zeus' power, Achilles' courage, and Mercury's speed. Of these six, only two are gods – Zeus from Greek mythology and Mercury from Roman mythology. Solomon was a king of mortals, Hercules and Achilles were demigods (half human, half god), and Atlas was a Titan.
- Zachary Levi gained 9 kg of muscle mass for filming, bringing his weight to 100 kg.
- In the early stages of production, the film was titled "Billy Batson and the Legend of Shazam!"
- In the scene where Shazam catches a falling bus from the bridge, it is clearly visible that he catches it by bracing his hands against the windshield. Given that the windshield was cracking from falling objects just seconds before, the rescue seems highly questionable.
- Charles Clarence Beck based the appearance of the original Captain Marvel (originally named Shazam) on Fred MacMurray.
- On the ninth minute of the film, in Bishop's pawn shop, a Annabelle doll can be seen on one of the shelves. David F. Sandberg directed the second part, "Annabelle: Creation of Evil".
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