Billy Batson was naturally the star of Shazam!, but by the time the movie ended, he wasn’t the only new superhero on the DC Extended Universe block. During the climactic showdown with Doctor Thaddeus Sivana, Billy used the Wizard Shazam’s staff to share his powers with his foster siblings, resulting in them being Shazam-ified.
Rest assured, Mary Bromfield, Freddy Freeman, Eugene Choi, Pedro Peña and Darla Dudley becoming superheroes wasn’t temporary. In fact, director David F. Sandberg plans on having the Shazam family (or Shazamily, if you prefer) play a bigger role in Shazam! 2. In Sandberg’s words:
It feels like we could do more with the Shazam family. We just introduced them, but you could explore how they work as a family of heroes.
Family, be it biological or through different bonds, has always been an important part of the Shazam mythos. While Eugene, Pedro and Darla have only been around for a little under a decade, Mary and Freddy been fighting the forces of evil with Shazam, previously known as Captain Marvel, for almost as long as he’s been around. Billy may go on his own adventures here and there or serve on a team like the Justice League, but barring any unusual circumstances, he always has family to turn back to.
In the case of the Shazam! movie, it pulled from the New 52 source material by having Billy Batson bring his foster siblings into the superhero life not too long after he was drawn in, only this time it was Doctor Sivana controlling the Seven Deadly Sins rather than Black Adam. Billy snapped the Wizard Shazam’s staff afterwards to prevent Sivana from harnessing its power, but the abilities the other kids received beforehand are permanent.
While some longtime Shazam fans might have thought the entire Shazam family would be saved for another installment, David F. Sandberg decided to bring them in right out the gate in order to help make Shazam! the best it could be. As he put it:
I saw a lot of speculating online about the kids turning into their adult counterparts. But people thought there was no way we’d do that in the first film, that we’d save it for the sequel or somewhere down the line. But for us, it was like, no, let’s do the best we can right now. I think that’s a better way to go. You never know if later is going to happen, so you shouldn’t hold back for no reason. Plus, the movie builds on this family theme, and the big payoff is that anyone can become a superhero, no matter your background.
As for who the Shazam Family will battle in Shazam! 2, that’s unclear. Granted, the Shazam! mid-credits scene set up an alliance between Sivana and Mr. Mind, but during his interview with Comicbook.com, David F. Sandberg also posited that another villain could be introduced. Probably not Black Adam though, as it sounds like that conflict is being saved for even later down the line.
Regardless, Shazam! 2 is being put on the fast-track, namely because the kids are getting older. The main appeal of the Shazam mythos is how a regular kid can turn into a superhero with just a word, and if you wait too long and they start to look more like adults, then part of the charm is gone. That’s a problem that will need to be solved eventually, but as long as Shazam! 2 gets underway relatively soon, it shouldn’t be too big a deal.
Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for all the latest and greatest updates concerning Shazam! 2, but for now, look through our DC movies guide to learn what else is in development for this superhero franchise.
