According to an inside source posting on Reddit, the proposed Shazam! film looks like it’s off the table, and Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam villain (and Captain Marvel nemesis) will instead square off against Superman in Man of Steel 2. Here is the post:
Firstly, Black Adam will be the main villain in Man of Steel 2. The idea was tossed around of possibly making an appearance in the sequel, even if it was only brief. This later evolved into Adam becoming the villain due to the fact WB did not feel confident in the early drafts of the Shazam script and felt as if Dwayne Johnson deserved a bigger project (may be linked to how much they’re paying him).
Second, Matthew Vaughn is still talking to Warner about directing the film, however Warner are talking to other directors as well, which may be an attempt to increase pressure on Vaughn’s agent.
Lastly, some bad news, Shazam is practically off the table at this point. Warner did not feel confident in the first drafts of the script and is much more interested in Black Adam, as I said earlier.
Despite this, it is likely that Billy Batson will appear in a film. To what degree? I don’t know.
“We’ve had great discussions with Geoff Johns over at DC. This is a really fun, cool time for DC right now because they’re world-building. We’re seeing that with Wonder Woman and Aquaman. We have a few surprises down the line. So what we decided to do was to create a scenario where Black Adam has his stand-alone movie, and Captain Marvel, Shazam, has his stand-alone movie. We’re building our world that way, and then we can come together at some point.”
This seems a bit suspect. Supes has a rogue gallery that has not really been explored yet on screen, so it wouldn’t make sense to dip into another character’s, even with an A list actor attached. Although, from a story point of view, pitting Superman against a magic based villain would be a wise move, as he’s vulnerable to magic.
It would be a shame if Warner Bros. ditched the Shazam! film altogether. Given how dark the DC films have been, a slightly more wholesome Captain Marvel film would be a nice change of pace.