Shazam! Fury of the Gods director David F. Sandberg promises the sequel to the superhero action-comedy will definitely include an element missing from the first film: the DC Extended Universe fanfare.
Sandberg posted a short clip on Instagram of a TV set showing the animated opening sequence, which appears in most DCEU films as part of the opening credit sequence. "People freaked out when I forgot to put this intro in the first Shazam," he wrote in the caption. "Well it's currently in the sequel."
The animated sequence presents Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg, The Flash and Green Lantern in shadow, wielding their weapons or posing, before zooming out to show dozens of heroes shrouded in fog, concluding with the DC Bullet. However, it was not included in 2019's Shazam!. At the time of the film's release, Sandberg debunked the "various theories about why we didn't have the typical DC logo with characters" with a simple admission: "Truth is I forgot. A lot to think about when making a movie." He added that there was no objection to the lapse from New Line Cinema, DC Films or Warner Bros. Pictures.
This time around though, Sandberg says the fanfare is definitely in Fury of the Gods, at least for now. "Let's see if it stays," he wrote. "I mean who knows, by 2023 they could have a new logo or something."
Shazam! stars Zachary Levi, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer, Adam Brody, Faithe Herman, Meagan Good, Grace Fulton, Ian Chen, Ross Butler, Jovan Armand, D.J. Cotrona, Marta Milans, Cooper Andrews and Djimon Hounsou. The cast members from the first film are all slated to return for Fury of the Gods. The sequel also features some newcomers in Rachel Zegler, Helen Mirren and Lucy Liu.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods is scheduled to arrive in theaters on June 2, 2023.
Source: Instagram