The following contains spoilers for Black Adam, now playing in theaters.
The third act of Black Adam sees the unfortunate and tragic death of Kent Nelson, aka Doctor Fate, at the hands of Sabbac. However, with his end, the door opens for another hero to take up the mantle, just like in the comics. And one potential candidate is Zatanna, who has a rumored project in development and became Doctor Fate in Young Justice.
Zatanna is a powerful magic user who is the daughter of Giovanni Zatara, a famous stage magician who learned real magic and served in the Justice League. When on a mission with several other young protégés of the Justice League, she ended up becoming the host of the Lord of Order, Nabu, through the magical artifact the Helmet of Fate. While Giovanni volunteered to become the next Doctor Fate in his daughter's stead, this leaves the possibility of Zatanna becoming the next Doctor Fate all the more plausible in the DC Extended Universe.
Black Adam Teases a New Doctor Fate
Kent Nelson is perhaps the most well-known Doctor Fate to have donned the Helmet of Fate. Through the helmet, Nabu taught him the ways of magic, and eventually, Nelson became a member of the Justice Society of America. During the runtime of the DCEU's Black Adam, Nelson sees visions of his colleague and friend Carter Hall, aka Hawkman, dying in the battle against Sabbac.
To prevent this vision from coming true, Nelson decides to sacrifice himself to spare Hawkman from his fate. As he dies, the Helmet of Fate seemingly disintegrates, although not before forming eyes when briefly used by Hawkman. Earlier in Black Adam, Cyclone tells Atom Smasher that the helmet chooses who can touch and wear it, with an unworthy person being driven to madness should they touch the helmet. After Nelson's death, Nabu needs a new Doctor Fate, and there happens to be one certain magic user within the DCEU that fits the mold.
Zatanna Can Become the DCEU's Next Doctor Fate
Warner Bros. planned for a Zatanna film to be released in the DCEU franchise back in March 2021. Although the film was originally going to be released on HBO Max, this later changed, with the movie now searching for a new home. Despite no release date being announced, the fact that there may be a Zatanna movie opens the door for her to become the next Doctor Fate.
Zatanna is a magician powerful enough to rival the likes of John Constantine and Kent Nelson, to name a few. Additionally, in Young Justice, she was very close with Kent Nelson growing up. Although there has so far been no connection established between the two characters in the DCEU, Zatanna's solo film could address their relationship. While there could be an identity problem with Zatanna being her own character and also the new Doctor Fate, Young Justice solves this problem by having her rotate with her father as the Agent of the Lords of Order. Contrary to what some fans may speculate, Zatanna likely won't become the new Doctor Fate in her solo outing but rather grow into it as time goes by.
To see Doctor Fate's DCEU debut, Black Adam is now in theaters.