Shazam! Fury of the Gods was released in theaters in March 2023 to mixed reception, with the cast and crew of the DC Universe film since defending the movie from the various criticisms it received. Upon Shazam! 2's early reactions, it seemed DC had struck gold again with a sequel that matches the heights of the first film. However, the wider release of the film allowed more critics to publish their reviews, leading to less-than-stellar critical reception as a whole.
The first Shazam! movie - released in 2019 - holds a Rotten Tomatoes score of 90% from critics, indicating its critical acclaim. In contrast, Shazam! Fury of the Gods sits at a critical approval rating of 49%. While the audience score of 86% for the sequel proves general moviegoers enjoyed the film overall, critics ratings almost certainly disappointed the cast and crew, as did the low box-office returns of the sequel that all but doom a potential Shazam! 3 story for the DCU. This is evident by the lengths that the different actors and crew involved in Shazam! 2 have gone to in order to defend the film since its release.
6 David F. Sandberg Justifies Shazam! 2’s New Suits
One of the more minor criticisms of the film was aimed at the new superhero suits for the Shazam family. The first film had very vibrant, pulpy suits that emulated the cheesy fun of both the film's tone and the Golden Age of DC Comics on which the story was based, leading many to praise the look of the titular superhero in his first outing. Shazam! Fury of the Gods, however, drastically changed up the suits by giving them a much more modern look, akin to the superhero suits seen in the DCEU and MCU of late.
This caused some controversy online, with many fans criticizing the modernized suits, stating their preference for the old ones. Since then, David F. Sandberg - the director of both Shazam! films - has taken to social media to justify the decision to change the suits. Sandberg simply stated that, while he loved the old suits, they had an opportunity to try something new with Shazam! 2. Rather than reuse the old suits, Sandberg and his team designed new ones, removing unnecessary elements like the hooded cape on the original Shazam costume.
5 Shazam! Director Addresses Cut Mary Marvel Scenes
Due to Shazam! Fury of the Gods' poor box office performance, the film was released on digital less than a month after its theatrical release. This saw the film's multiple deleted scenes and bonus content released online, which caused many fans to lash out over cut scenes that would have benefited the film's ing characters. These criticisms were often attributed to the character of Mary, and how many scenes that would have helped define her character arc were left on the cutting room floor.
When asked on Twitter about the deleted scenes, Sandberg responded and addressed why those scenes were left out of the film's theatrical cut. Sandberg explained his rather pragmatic way of thinking, simply stating that at one point the film contained more character scenes than plot scenes. He explained that when a director needs to shorten a movie, the character scenes are the first to go as the plot-heavy elements are important to the film making sense overall. Despite cutting these scenes, Sandberg also stated that he loves Mary's actress Grace Caroline Currey and that those scenes would be the first to be added back in if possible.
4 Shazam! 2’s Director Cut Scenes To Avoid Criticisms That Shazam Is Too Goofy
A more prominent criticism of Shazam! 2 from fans rather than critics is that Zachary Levi portrays the hero as too goofy in comparison to Asher Angel's more stoic performance as the younger version of Billy. In another of the deleted scenes that surfaced online, Sandberg was asked why a scene of Shazam singing as a crowd cheers him on during the final battle of the film was removed. The director itted that the scene was cut due to these criticisms of Shazam being too goofy, instead changing the scene to be more conventionally heroic rather than the singing which would have ed these critiques.
3 David F. Sandberg Mocks Criticism Of Billy/Shazam In Fury Of The Gods
Stemming from the criticism of the dual performances of Shazam, Sandberg more directly addressed them in a mock Letterboxd review. Taking to his Letterboxd , the director left a 0.5-star review of the film, with the tagline: "Billy and Shazam have different personalities. I wish someone would point this out to the director. Unwatchable!" This is Sandberg's way of humorously firing back at the many complaints about Levi and Angel's differing performances in the film. Since Shazam!'s release, fans took to social media to state the difference in performances was the director's fault, with Sandberg proving it was an intentional choice in an incredibly meta way.
2 Shazam! Actor Marta Milans Says Fury Of The Gods Wasn’t Pushing Any Agendas
One of Shazam! 2's many actors, Marta Milans, was interviewed by The Direct shortly after the film's release. In the interview, Milans was asked about her thoughts on Shazam! Fury of the Gods' poor critical reaction. Milans had this to say:
"I know that there is a lot of politics involved and a lot of hardcore fans of one side, on the other side, a lot of haters on the internet. A lot of critics feel like they have a political agenda rather than actually sitting and watching the film and enjoying it... We're not trying to push any agenda. We're not trying to prove any point."
This is more a way of Milans addressing the overall poor reception of the film, rather than defending any individual criticism. Regardless, Milans is clear in her views that Shazam! 2 is not attempting to tell a story with deep political, ethical, or moral values and is simply trying to be a fun, enjoyable superhero film. Milans later goes on to say that Shazam! 2 is a film audiences should watch in order to feel good.
1 Zachary Levi & Rachel Zegler Both Addressed Shazam! 2's Poor Critical Reception
Similar to Milans, two of Shazam! 2's other stars have taken to social media to address the film's mixed reactions. One of these is the star of the film himself, Zachary Levi. In an Instagram post made by Levi after the film was released in theaters, the actor expressed similar sentiments to Milans. Levi explains that the film was intended to be a throwback to films of the 80s and 90s, giving The Goonies as an example of inspiration for Shazam! 2. While stating that it is not a perfect film, Levi sings the praises of some of Shazam! 2's elements such as its heart, humor, and action.
Echoing these opinions was Shazam! newcomer Rachel Zegler, who took to Twitter to state people are being "senselessly mean" about Fury of the Gods. Similar to Levi and Milans, Zegler states that she believes the film is great, and that audiences and critics alike must think it is "cool to hate on fun". If anything, the many responses from the stars and director of Shazam! Fury of the Gods just goes to show how modern online discourse can affect filmmakers to the point where they feel the need to defend their film, a sentiment shared by Sandberg who has recently revealed his desire to distance himself from superhero fans online.
