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Considering Dwayne The Rock Johnsons status as one of the worlds biggest action stars many find it surprising that hes waited this long to star in a comic book movie franchise While the former wrestler likely could have had his pick of superhero parts in the past he has always had his eye on one particular role Black Adam Johnson was first linked to the role a decade ago when he entered talks to play the villain in the movie that eventually became 2019s Shazam!
Black Adam and Shazam have always been foes in the comic books having received their superpowers from the same wizard To many a movie with the two of them facing off seemed like a natural fit But Johnson eventually backed out of that project encouraging Warner Bros executives to develop a standalone movie to introduce the villain in a separate filmJohnson got his wish and Black Adam is scheduled to hit theaters this fall In a new interview with Vanity Fair Johnson explained why he held out to ensure Black Adam got his own movieWhen the first draft of the movie came to us it was a combination of Black Adam and Shazam Two origin stories in one movie Johnson said Now that was the goal — so it wasnt a complete surprise But when I read that I just knew in my gut We cant make this movie like this We would be doing Black Adam an incredible disservice It wouldve been fine for Shazam having two origin stories converge in one movie but not good for Black Adam
That sentiment prompted Johnson to make a phone call voicing discomfort with the idea He explained that Black Adam and Shazam are fundamentally different characters and introducing them both in the same movie would be a disservice to both of them He believed that in the end any potential showdown between the two characters would be richer if they were both introduced in separate films
I said I have to share my thoughts here Its very unpopular because everybody thought Hey this script is great lets go make this movie I said I really think that you should make Shazam! make that movie on its own in the tone that you want And I think we should separate this as well
