The DC Extended Universe is moving ahead with the Movie Shazam! This Superman type character is different because he is really just a teenager who changes into an adult hero with the heart of a child. This movie promises to do things a little differently when it comes to the superhero genre. Mark Strong is playing the villain in this film and he recently spoke to Contact Music about his character and coming back to work with DC Films.
“I’m playing an evil bastard called Doctor Sivana, they are always the best characters to play, the most fun. I was Sinestro in Green Lantern which I thought was a rather good film but it didn’t do what they wanted so I feel like I’ve got unfinished business in the DC world, I played a pretty evil character in that and he was meant to get even worse in the second one but that never happened but I think I’m going to get the chance to do that in ‘Shazam!’, I hope so.”
The comics have treated the character with sometimes lighthearted humor and the Justice League animated version of Shazam has been played as a little naive. With Zachary Levi as Shazam people wonder if the tone of the movie might take itself too seriously, Strong, however, assures fans that it is funny and keeps to the tone of the original comic.
“It’s a funny film, it’s about a young boy who can become a superhero but still remains a young boy so there are elements of ‘Big’ there are elements of ‘Stranger Things’. I think originally the comic outsold ‘Superman’ in the 1940s.”
You don’t take the role in a superhero movie without having to go to the gym. While Strong is no stranger to the genre he still has to hit the gym with everyone else to get in shape for the role.
“I’ve been training like a madman, I’m about to go over and see the stunt guys, I’ve been trying all of these harnesses on and I think I’m going to be doing lots of flying around and firing electricity out of my hands.”
Shazam!, directed by David F. Sandberg, stars Zachary Levi, Mark Strong, Grace Fulton, Faithe Herman, Jack Dylan Grazer, and Asher Angel, and will be written by Henry Gayden and Darren Lemke.
Shazam! will be released on April 5th, 2019.