Shazam Director Jokes About BvS Knightmare Connection

Shazam! director David F. Sandberg continues to show his humorous side on social media, posting a video spoofing Batman v Superman’s “Knightmare” sequence. There’s still very little known about the actual story of Shazam, but Sandberg has previously said it will be much more lighthearted than the rest of the DC Extended Universe, with Shazam actor Zachary Levi comparing it to Tom Hanks’ “Big, but with superpowers.” Despite a little bit of confusion with the casting and narrative of the movie with Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam initially expected, the project is moving forward with a complete set of principal cast and a set timeline of production.

With Aquaman already wrapping up production, DC Films is on the verge of starting filming their brand new project. After locking the Annabelle: Creation director to helm the project, it appears that things are moving pretty progressively for the film. Principal photography is scheduled to officially begin sometime in February of next year with an April 2019 release date. Despite the hectic load of pre-production, Sandberg has had a lot of time to post humorous pictures and videos to social media, most recently mashing up an animated Batman vs Shazam fight with Bruce waking up from the Knightmare in Batman v Superman, twisting the movie’s initial dark Superman dream/premonition to incorporate his movie’s titular character.

Sandberg posted the clip to his Instagram showing Batman approaching a downed Billy Batson, but when the Dark Knight asks the kid to say something, he utters the word “Shazam,” and lo and behold his superhero counterpart suddenly appears. The video then cuts to Ben Affleck’s Batman waking up in BvS. Obviously, this is not any sort of confirmation whatsoever of an actual connection to Batman or BvS, but with Justice League having seemingly excised many BvS events such as the Knightmare, Zack Snyder fans are sure to be onboard with Sandberg’s nod to the controversial scene.



Whether it’s a silly joke or a tease of something he’s actually working on for the movie, it’s encouraging to see Sandberg is able to lightheartedly acknowledge previous DCEU continuity despite its polarizing nature. There has been some confusion as to whether or not Shazam will even take place in the same universe as other DCEU films, and while this humorous post doesn’t indicate one way or another, Sandberg has specified that Shazam is a DCEU film, meaning easter eggs or references of this nature (although probably less overt) are not off the table.

With a problematic launch for Justice League, Warner Bros. is going to need to figure out how to move forward with the divisive franchise, and that could mean some changes to future and in-production films, but if Sandberg’s fun-loving attitude on social media is any indicator, his movie could be some of the most fun this universe has seen yet.

KEY RELEASE DATES
Aquaman release date: Dec 21, 2018
Shazam! release date: Apr 5, 2019
Wonder Woman 2 release date: Nov 1, 2019