Henry Gayden Writing Sequel To Zachary Levi’s ‘Shazam!’

David F. Sandberg’s Shazam! hit theaters this past Friday, but a sequel to the Zachary Levi starrer is already in the works.

According to The Wrap, Henry Gayden has been tapped to write a sequel to the Shazam! movie. Gayden is the writer behind Zachary Levi’s first cinematic solo outing as Shazam as well as the 2014 found footage sci-fi flick Earth to Echo.

Disney star Asher Angel is playing the young Billy Batson in the Shazam! movie, with Zachary Levi as the titular superhero. Grace Fulton, Cooper Andrews, Jack Dylan Grazer, Ian Chen, Jovan Armand, Faithe Herman and Djimon Hounsou are also on board, with Mark Strong as the villainous Doctor Sivana, a frequent foe of Shazam who first appeared opposite the superhero in the pages of Whiz Comics back in 1940.

Shazam! is the first entry in the DC Extended Universe since Aquaman. Birds of Prey (And The Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) is up next, hitting theaters on February 7, 2020, followed by Wonder Woman 1984 on June 5, 2020. A standalone Joker film set outside of the DC Films universe starring Joaquin Phoenix as the Clown Prince of Crime is also set to hit theaters October 4, 2019.

Details on the film’s plot are currently unknown. Most tellings of the comic book story depict Billy Batson as an orphan child who is granted the ability to become an adult hero with godlike powers by an ancient Wizard. Here’s the official synopsis for the Zachary Levi movie:

“We all have a superhero inside us, it just takes a bit of magic to bring it out.  In Billy Batson’s (Angel) case, by shouting out one word—SHAZAM!—this streetwise 14-year-old foster kid can turn into the adult Super Hero Shazam (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 (Strong).”

Zachary Levi’s Shazam! is now playing in theaters. Keep an eye on Heroic Hollywood for the latest news from the DC Extended Universe.

Source: The Wrap