Thanks to success of Zack Snyder’s Man Of Steel – now gearing up for an all-star Batman Vs Superman sequel – DC Comics’ troubled ‘other Superman’, Shazam! – better known as the original Captain Marvel – finds his film hopes dashed.
“I’ve always loved Shazam,” Get Smart director Peter Segal told Coming Soon, “but I don’t know if it’s going to see the light of day any time soon.
“The thing is, Shazam has always live this tortured life going against Superman. This dates back to the 1930s. Because Captain Marvel had similar powers to Superman, the DC folks back then sued what was the most popular comic book on the stands at that time.
“Years later, they bought it and it became a DC property but, as long as Superman stays hot in the market place, there seems like a little bit of a crossover between the two characters.”
The last time talk of a Shazam movie came up, DC superstar and Arrow and Smallville writer Geoff Johns was working on a script along with Billy Birch.
“After Bryan Singer’s Superman Returns, it seemed like there was a moment in time where Shazam was going to see the light of day. That’s when you heard those stories,” continued Segal.
“Now that Superman is being invigorated and going up against Batman, I think it’s difficult for DC to figure out how to launch this character in the wake of Superman’s resurgence.”
Read our review of Man Of Steel here and our defence of Ben Affleck’s casting here and of Gal Gadot’s casting here. Man Of Steel is out now, get it on Blu-ray for £18.50, DVD for £12.75 or 3D Blu-ray for £20.50 from Amazon.co.uk
