The 'Chuck' alum has been tapped to play Earth's mightiest mortal in the upcoming DC Comics film adaptation.
- Oct 28, 2017
AceShowbiz - DC's "Shazam" has found its main hero in Zachary Levi. The Hollywood Reporter first broke the news, confirming that the 37-year-old actor, best known for playing Chuck Bartowski on "Chuck", has been tapped to play Earth's mightiest mortal in the upcoming DC Comics film adaptation.
This is not the first time Levi will appear in a big-screen adaptation of comics. The Flynn Rider of "Tangled" has played Fandral of the Warriors Three in Marvel's "Thor" sequels, "Thor: The Dark World" and "Thor: Ragnarok", the latter of which is coming to U.S. theaters on November 3.
THR has also revealed that Jake McDorman ("Limitless") and John Cena ("Daddy's Home 2") were also in the mix to play Shazam. Besides them, "Arrow" actor Parker Young and former "Galavant" star Joshua Sasse were previously reported to be in contention to play the titular character.
Based on the DC Comics character Shazam, the film follows Billy Batson who becomes Captain Marvel, the world's mightiest mortal, when he says the magic word "Shazam!" The name is an acronym for six gods and heroes of the ancient world as well as their attributes. The wisdom of Solomon, strength of Hercules, stamina of Atlas, power of Zeus, courage of Achilles and speed of Mercury.
"Shazam" will be directed by David F. Sandberg ("Lights Out", "Annabelle: Creation") from a script by Henry Gayden ("Earth to Echo"). Back in August, the director confirmed that the script for the film's complete. The project is expected to begin production in Toronto this coming February.
The film is set for an April 5, 2019 release by Warner Bros. Pictures. Serving as producers will be Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Hiram Garcia, Michael Uslan, Peter Segal and Michael Ewing. It's being developed concurrently with another DC movie focusing on Shazam villain Black Adam and starring The Rock which is also expected to arrive sometime in 2019.
