David F. Sandberg, the director of Shazam! has revealed details about the film’s villain Doctor Sivana and if the movie will reference Captain Marvel.
A film is only as good as its villain and this is doubly true for superhero movies. The trailer for Shazam! has got a lot of people excited but what do we know about Mark Strong’s villain Doctor Sivana?
Those familiar with the comics will have a head start but regarding the movie version of the character, director David. F Sandberg has discussed some details with EW. Sandberg told them that Sivana was approached by the same wizard as Billy Batson but was ultimately rejected and has been searching ever since for the same abilities.
“Mark Strong loves being a bad guy. And it’s not just him, really, it’s … something else … that lent him his powers … he can do some things that Shazam can’t. The danger in some films is the bad guy has the same powers as the good guy. [Sivana] has an extra thing, extra dynamic, that takes care of that….”
What that extra dynamic will be will remain to be seen but fans will be hoping that Sivana turns out to be a suitable adversary to Shazam. Speaking of our hero, in the comics, the character originally went by the name Captain Marvel but changed this to Shazam after Marvel trademarked it.
Will the film reference the character’s original name at all? Sandberg says there might be something in the movie for fans: “Let’s just say we’re going to have a bit of fun with that in the movie. But he’s basically known as Shazam, which makes sense because of the confusion.”
SEE ALSO: First trailer for Shazam! lightens up the DC Extended Universe
We all have a superhero inside us, it just takes a bit of magic to bring it out. In Billy Batson’s (Asher Angel) case, by shouting out one word—SHAZAM!—this streetwise 14-year-old foster kid can turn into the adult Super Hero Shazam (Zachary Levi), courtesy of an ancient wizard. Still a kid at heart—inside a ripped, godlike body—Shazam revels in this adult version of himself by doing what any teen would do with superpowers: have fun with them! Can he fly? Does he have X-ray vision? Can he shoot lightning out of his hands? Can he skip his social studies test? Shazam sets out to test the limits of his abilities with the joyful recklessness of a child. But he’ll need to master these powers quickly in order to fight the deadly forces of evil controlled by Dr. Thaddeus Sivana (Mark Strong).”
Shazam will see Zachary Levi starring as the titular superhero, with Asher Angel as his young alter-ego Billy Batson, Jack Dylan Grazer as Freddy Freeman, Ian Chen as Eugene Choi, Jovan Armand as Pedro Peña, Grace Fulton as Mary Marvel, Cooper Andrews as Victor Vasquez, Faithe Herman as Darla Dudley, Mark Strong as Dr. Thaddeus Sivana, Djimon Hounsou as the Wizard, Adam Brody as Freddie Freeman, Ross Butler as Eugene Choi, D. J. Cotrona as Pedro Pena, Meagan Good as Darla Dudley, and Michelle Borth as Mary Bromfield. The film is set for release on April 5th 2019.
Originally published July 25, 2018. Updated December 4, 2022.
