The inherent dark and grim aesthetic of Zack Snyder’s DCEU was offset by a pair of big, bold and colorful blockbusters released within a few months of each other, and James Wan’s Aquaman became the highest-grossing DC Comics adaptation in history, while David F. Sandberg’s Shazam! scored some of the best reviews and ultimately ended up as one of the franchise’s most profitable effort to date, so it worked out pretty well.
For a filmmaker who had largely worked in the horror genre up until that point, Sandberg surprised a lot of people when he delivered a candy colored blast of superhero escapism, buoyed by a charming lead performance from Zachary Levi. Naturally, expectations have significantly increased for sequel Fury of the Gods, which is already in the midst of production even though it won’t arrive in theaters until June 2023.
Despite adding some big names to the cast including Helen Mirren as primary villain Hespera, with Lucy Liu filling the role of secondary antagonist Kalypso, a lot of talk has focused on the potential involvement of Henry Cavill’s Superman, who was famously set to make a cameo in the first installment before he ultimately ended up being replaced by a faceless stunt double, and Sandberg even trolled fans on social media by revealing the ‘original’ version of the scene.
The Lights Out and Annabelle: Creation director recently conducted an Instagram Q&A in his native Swedish, and he was asked about another Man of Steel guest spot in Shazam! Fury of the Gods, this time with Cavill under the costume. And while it wasn’t an outright confirmation or denial, Sandberg’s response was “you will be so disappointed when you translate this,” which more than likely indicates that the DCEU’s canonical Superman will continue his lengthy exile for at least a little longer.