Dwayne Johnson's their original slate. When confirmation that a Shazam movie was on the way first came though, it was expected to have one major difference from the movie that is now playing in theaters.
WB had hired Johnson suggested the best decision would be to split them up and get a Black Adam solo movie in development.
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Although fans were still holding out hope that Johnson would make a brief cameo in Shazam to set up their future clash (especially since he was an executive producer on the film), this does not happen in the film. The movie largely keeps the focus on Billy and Sivana's origins, but that doesn't mean that Shazam completely ignored the one-time Egyptian king. In fact, there's actually a fair amount of set up done for Black Adam in just a few pivotal scenes.
- This Page: Shazam Reveals Black Adam Was The Prior Champion
- Page 2: Black Adam's Solo Movie Could Be A Prequel
The Previous Champion Destroyed The Council Of Wizards
When Billy Batson first enters the Rock of Eternity, he meets the last Wizard remaining from the Council of Wizards. The seven wizards are in charge of protecting all forms of magic across the world, using the wisdom of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Atlas, the power of Zeus, the courage of Achilles, and the speed of Mercury to do so. While the Wizard (played by Djimon Hounsou) wants to these abilities on to Billy, he first explains why he is the last remaining wizard and being so careful to find someone pure of heart to take over.
The Wizard explains that the Council chose a predecessor in the past "recklessly" and not doing their due diligence came back to haunt them. The selected champion took advantage of these powers for his own gain and wreaked havoc across the world. He released the Seven Deadly Sins upon the world, and through their combined powers erased entire civilizations from the face of the Earth. When the Council confronted the champion about these actions, he killed every member except the wizard known as Shazam.
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It is not known what happened to the champion after this, but it would appear that he was subdued in some fashion. While Shazam shows enough restraint to not actually name drop who this prior evil champion is, his evil tendencies and back story sure sound a lot like a certain Kahndaq native.
Black Adam Was The Last Champion
That's right, all of this backstory given to the Council of Wizards was actually Shazam's way of establishing Black Adam in the DC universe. In the comics, Teth-Adam aka Black Adam is an Egyptian slave who has seen the dictators of the country slaughter most of his family. Adam helped save his last living nephew Aman from captivity, but Adam was severely injured during their attempted escape. The two were magically transported to the Rock of Eternity at this point, where the wizard Shazam chose Aman to be the next champion and healed Adam in the process.
Aman was tasked with freeing Kahndaq from its rulers, but the kid envisioned a world where they would not be punished for their crimes. Adam did not believe this was the rightful outcome for these men after spending years of his life being mistreated as one of their slaves. Their differences results in Adam killing his nephew and taking the powers for himself.
Page 2 of 2: Black Adam's Solo Movie Could Be A Prequel
The DCEU's Black Adam Movie Might Be A Prequel
Based on the information Shazam was willing to share, it appears the movie version of Black Adam has been set up to loosely resemble this origin but also give Black Adam the freedom to make some changes. The solo movie is still a work in progress at this point as there is no director attached. Adam Sztykiel was hired over a year ago Black Adam will be a prequel film that explores his origin in depth, and this looks all the more likely after what Shazam quickly mentions.
This would be the smart move for not only Black Adam but also the larger DC universe, and even give Shazam more weight in the future. This one scene between Billy and the Wizard gives viewers a lot of important information but doesn't have the time to truly explain everything that happened or what it all means. A prequel Black Adam film would allow for just this. The movie could make Teth-Adam a somewhat sympathetic character, but also show his tragic fall as he's consumed by the power and his own vengeance. But, what it also has the ability to do in a prequel setting is show the creation of the Seven Deadly Sins, the destruction of the Council of Wizards, and ultimately what fate befell Black Adam.
Related: Shazam's After Credits Scenes Explained
If Black Adam does wind up being a prequel film, it would make some recent rumors about the movie even more fascinating. According to one report, Hawkman and fellow JSA Stargirl and Atom Smasher will appear in Black Adam. While all of them are tied together through the JSA, Hawkman and Black Adam's history dates back to centuries of old in Egypt. If they do indeed appear in Black Adam and the solo film is a prequel, we could learn that the JSA helped the last Wizard defeat Black Adam.
What Black Adam's Origin Means For A Shazam Sequel
As exciting as Black Adam's future (and past) in the DC universe appears to be, it will also likely mean that Mister Mind and Sivana teaming up in the sequel, it would appear that there is once again no room for the ultra-power villain already.
That said, this does not mean that Shazam 2 will be completely without any references or further set up for Black Adam. Depending on what happened to Black Adam all those years ago, there's a few different ways that a sequel could tease an eventual fight between Shazam and Black Adam. For starters, it may very well be Mr. Mind and Sivana's plan to find Black Adam and awaken him. The sequel could show Shazam and the Shazam Family stopping them from doing so, without realizing that something happened where Black Adam could now be freed. They could even learn more about the history of the Council and Black Adam as they learn more about their magic.
But, we also don't know that Black Adam is necessarily locked away somewhere, so the strength of a reformed Council of Wizards could potentially draw him out if he is still around. Either way, hopefully, the success of the first film will give the studios some extra incentive to move quicker on Black Adam.
