It’s no secret that the DCEU is in bad shape nowadays. In 2020 and 2021, Birds of Prey, Wonder Woman 1984, and The Suicide Squad flopped at the box office. Even the franchise’s hits weren’t really hits. While last year’s Black Adam opened at the top of the box office and eventually grossed nearly $400 million worldwide, the Dwayne Johnson action pick cost a lot of money (some say the budget alone was over $200 million).
In an attempt to maximize profits for that Shazam! spinoff, Warner Bros. Discovery didn’t hide the fact that a certain Man of Steel appeared in an end credits scene at the end of Black Adam. Henry Cavill returned to the role that made him famous a decade ago, and fans were excited enough to watch a movie that received tepid reviews and didn’t much excite dedicated DC fanboys.
It shouldn’t be surprising that with the sequel to Shazam!, called Shazam! Fury of the Gods, just around the corner, WBD would hope lightning would strike twice. [Excuse the pun there.] With the Zachary Levi movie on track to make an anemic $35-$45 million in its opening weekend, the beleaguered studio has to do something to goose ticket sales.
And that something is bringing back another member of the DC Trinity. Normally, it would be a spoiler to reveal it’s Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman, but since WBD is advertising her appearance in a nationwide commercial, I think the cat is safely out of the bag. Many people were caught by surprise at the reveal, none more so than the sequel’s director, David F. Sandberg, who Tweeted out this response.
The director claims he’s happy if the cameo gets more people to see the movie. We’re pretty sure that’s what WBD is counting on to make as much money as possible.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods opens nationwide on March 17.
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