The first Shazam film, made in 2019, was a surprise success for the DC Extended Universe (then known as the DC Cinematic Universe), pulling in $363.5 million in the worldwide box office on an $85 million dollar budget. It was also a hit among fans due to its fun premise and a more light-hearted, heartfelt nature that juxtaposed it well with previous, overly-somber DC Cinematic efforts like Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice.
While the sequel to Shazam, 2023’s Shazam! Fury of the Gods didn’t fare as well financially (it grossed only $133.8 million worldwide on a $125 million production budget) or critically, it still managed a very respectable 86% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, which suggests that fans of the first film enjoyed the second outing as well.
Zachary Levi, who played the titular role of Shazam/Billy Baston in both Shazam films, hasn’t been confirmed for a third Shazam film yet under new DC Cinematic heads James Gunn and Peter Safran — but he hasn’t been outright ruled out for a return either.
Levi recently sat down with Screen Rant for his thoughts on what he’d like to see in a hypothetical third outing for Shazam and which DC Universe superhero he’d like to see his character team-up with.
“With the third iteration, obviously, he’d be a little bit older… and so kind of incorporating whatever that extra bit of growth and maturation and wisdom would be and, hopefully, just go on some really cool adventures with some other cool DC characters,” Levi said. “Nathan Fillion and I have been buddies for a really long time, and I think a Green Lantern/Shazam buddy-comedy would be so much fun. So, I don’t know, something like that.”
Levi has also been vocal about the negative reception to Shazam! Fury of the Gods in the past.
“The first [Shazam film] did well enough where they said, ‘Hey, let’s look into making a second one.’ And then they pitched me the idea on it. I thought it was really fun,” Levi said on an episode of IGN’s TheFilmUp Podcast. “I really enjoyed making that movie, and I really enjoyed playing that part. I don’t know what the future holds for it all because, unfortunately, the second movie was not as well received. The audience score is still quite good, but the critics’ score was very oddly and perplexingly low, and people were insanely unkind.”
Levi added, “I’ve been a part of things, and as much as I wish they were good, I know they’re okay,” he shared. “I know that they miss a lot. And I’m not saying Shazam: Fury of the Gods is some perfect… Orson Welles-like masterpiece, but it’s a good darn movie.”
Would you want to see Zachary Levi reprise his role as Shazam in the future? Do you think that a “buddy-comedy” with Shazam and Nathan Fillion’s Green Lantern would be worth watching? Let us know in the future.
