Shazam! Fury of the Gods director David F. Sandberg reassured fans Gal Gadot does feature in the film amid reports that the actor's appearance was deepfaked onto her body double Taylor Cahill.
Following the DC Universe film's release in theaters, many fans began to question the nature of Wonder Woman's cameo when a Twitter user posted a behind-the-scenes photo of Cahill in costume, asking whether Gadot's face was digitally rendered onto the stand-in actor. Sandberg quickly debunked this notion, explaining that Cahill was on set to help set up the moment. "We shot the scene with Taylor to figure out what coverage we then needed to get with Gal since she couldn’t make it to Atlanta," the filmmaker said. "It’s also Taylor’s body with the wizards head on it. There is absolutely no deepfaking going on. When you see Gal it’s 100% her."
Sandberg elaborates that this method was also used in the original Shazam! for Superman's cameo in the film's final scene. While the creative team intended to have Cavill appear, this ultimately never transpired. The result was a depiction of Clark Kent whose face was cut out of the shot.
Shazam! Fury at the Gods Doesn't Stick the Box Office Landing
While Shazam! Fury of the Gods earned mixed-to-positive reviews, the project is disappointing at the box office. Over its opening weekend, the Zachary Levi-led superhero movie earned $30.5 million USD across 4,071 theaters, significantly less than its predicted $35-40 million taking. Given the sequel's budget of $125 million, analysts predict the latest DC blockbuster will ultimately prove to be a failure in the long run. Sandberg has explained that while the lower-than-expected box office is disappointing, he had already braced himself for the possibility. "It’s not like this comes as a surprise. I saw where this was heading a long time ago," he said. "I’ll be alright though. I got paid all my money upfront," the director said.
As for Shazam's future in the DCU, his fate has seemingly yet to be decided. Sandberg has stated that Fury of the Gods' performance will largely dictate whether the electrifying hero will return since the stories in the films don't contradict any future plotlines. "What I’ve been told is that there’s nothing in the Shazam films that contradict the future plans for DC," he said. "So the possibility for more Shazam is there and if that’s what you want your best bet is to go see the film."
Shazam! Fury of the Gods is now in theaters.
Source: Twitter