Something DC really wants to get across in the marketing is that Shazam! is moving away from the general view of the DC universe as dark and gritty (never mind that it hasn’t been like that since 2016’s Batman V Superman). The tagline for the recent trailer was even “He’s not so serious.”
Now, this new promo continues the fun as it features stars Zachary Levi, Asher Angel and Jack Dylan Grazer battling to decide who’s the real star of the movie by taking a Shazam trivia quiz. Like the clip says, Levi and Angel both have a claim as the film’s true star as they each play one version of the main character. When granted powers by an ancient magician (Djimon Hounsou), teenage Billy Batson – that’s Angel – transforms into an adult superhero – that’s Levi – when he says the magician’s name, which is “Shazam!” Grazer, meanwhile, plays Billy’s best friend Freddy Freeman, who happens to be a massive superhero nerd.
As well as proving that Levi’s really done his research – he clearly knows the Shazam acronym off by heart – this promo should also serve to introduce the hero and his history a little to Nickelodeon viewers. Despite being around since the 1940s, the former Captain Marvel hasn’t had a movie adaptation yet, so he isn’t a hugely well-known character in the DC pantheon.
Not seen in this promo is Shazam‘s nemesis, who’ll be be Dr. Sivana, as played by Mark Strong. Dwayne Johnson was linked to the project for years as Black Adam but the star’s busy schedule has kept him out of the DCEU so far and director David F. Sandberg has already revealed that he won’t turn up for a cameo. Fingers crossed for the sequel, though.