[Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for Shazam! Fury of the Gods] Shazam! Fury of the Gods star Zachary Levi confirmed the DC sequel intended to use the Justice Society heroes for its end-credit scene cameo. As reported earlier this week, Fury of the Gods’ cameo plans were derailed by Dwayne Johnson due to his Black Adam project, as the actor wanted his antihero to fight Henry Cavill’s Superman, not Billy Batson (Asher Angel/Levi).
In one of the end-credits scenes of Shazam! Fury of the Gods, Billy Batson gets invited to join the Justice Society by Emilia Harcourt (Jennifer Holland) and John Economos (Steve Agee). The two characters previously appeared as agents working for Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) in James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker. And, as Black Adam revealed, Waller has a direct line to the Justice Society heroes. In addition, Harcourt also showed up in Black Adam as the agent responsible for locking down Johnson’s Teth-Adam in a secret facility.
After the release of Shazam! Fury of the Gods, DC fans displeased with Gunn and Safran rebooting the DC cinematic universe complained on social media about Harcourt’s presence in the sequel. Since Holland is married to Gunn, fans accused the co-head of DC Studios of casting his wife in every DC project. Of course, that’s a nonsense complaint since both Black Adam and Fury of the Gods were produced before Gunn and Safran took control over the DCU. And as Levi now confirms, the team behind Fury of the Gods only used Agent Harcourt in the end-credits scenes because they were barred from inviting the actual heroes of the Justice Society.
In a video posted by Levi on Instagram, and which is now being shared by fans, the star underlines how “We used Jennifer and Steve in that scene, in the mid-credit scene” because both characters are part of the bigger DC universe and are “connected to the Justice Society,” as Black Adam proves. However, as Levi puts it, “That was not the original intent.” Instead, “The original intent was to have Hawkman [Aldis Hodge] and Cyclone [Quintessa Swindell] be there to invite me [to join the super team].” Levi also tells fans that “[former DCU head] Walter Hamada, Peter Safran, [director] David Sandberg, myself, everybody, we had an awesome scene that would have tied me into the JSA with Hawkman and with Cyclone, and we were thwarted.”
How Shazam! Fury of the Gods Connects to the New DCU?
Gunn and Safran already announced they would keep some stars and characters from the current DCU when rebooting the universe, thanks to The Flash‘s upcoming time-traveling shenanigans. However, there’s no official information on whether Levi’s Shazam will make the cut. Shazam! Fury of the Gods is struggling with box-office numbers, with diminishes the possibility of the character returning anytime soon. But, as Levi underlines, there was once a plan to connect the Shazam franchise to the bigger DCU and make him part of the Justice Society.
Levi doesn’t reveal who foiled the planned end-credits scene in his video. The star also emphasizes he’s not trying to blame anyone else for the Shazam! Fury of the Gods’ commercial failure. Still, the fact remains someone pulled the strings behind the curtains to sabotage Shazam’s ambitions.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods is currently screening in theaters. The movie will be available on digital on April 17.
via Collider