After John August announced the death of the Captain Marvel movie, things were looking bleak for our hero. But the Shazam! movie has resurrected, with a new screenwriter and some help from DC's Geoff Johns.
August, who had been tapped as the screenwriter on Shazam!, announced in January that the film was dead and buried, citing the sense that movie executives want more superhero movies like The Dark Knight. But producer Michael Uslan quickly assured us that a Captain Marvel movie was still in the works, and it looks like he was telling the truth.
Warner Bros. has announced that Bill Birch (now being affectionately called "Billy" Birch by media outlets to make him sound more like Marvel's alter ego Billy Batson) is on board to write the script. Otherwise, the movie's lineup remains the same, with Get Smart director Peter Segal set to direct.
This may be Birch's first foray into writing for a feature film, having spent most of his Hollywood career as an actor, but he'll have some help along the way. Geoff Johns, who most recently brought the Shazam! family of characters back into DC's limelight with the Justice Society of America arc "Black Adam and Isis," will be co-writing the story with Birch.