Zachary Levi, best known for NBC’s Chuck and a small role in Marvel’s Thor films, has just been cast as Shazam.
David F. Sandberg (Lights Out) is directing the film, which will be the next DC film to go into production. No release date has been set, but 2019 is likely.
Shazam is about a young boy named Billy Batson who can turn into an adult superhero by saying the word “Shazam.” The characters was created in the late 1930s and went under the DC banner in the 1970s.
Henry Gayden and Darren Lemke wrote the script for the film which is expected to tie into the larger DC universe which already includes Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Cyborg and Aquaman.
And though he won’t be in the film, Shazam’s greatest adversary is Black Adam and that part has already been cast. He’ll be played by Dwayne Johnson. However, the plan is for each character to get their own movie before facing off with each other.
Levi can next be seen in Thor: Ragnarok, which we now assume will be his last Marvel film.