Buried in our archives is a story I wrote in 2003, when I was but a young journalistic tyke, breaking the scoop that The Rock was being considered to star in a movie version of the DC Comic Shazam! (the character is Captain Marvel, Shazam is his catchphrase). That archived story is not available through the site, so let me reprint what I wrote four years ago. Mind you, I’m not wildly proud of this…
A scooper who I shall hereby name Peppermint Patty has sent us a tidbit about Warner Bros further attempting to fuck up a potential superhero franchise with piss poor casting. The scooper tells us that there has been an increase in interest in the Warners halls of power in regards to a possible SHAZAM! movie, including talk about a script and a possible star. In this case the star they are looking at is wrestling superstar The Rock, who couldn’t be more wrong for this part.
In case you aren’t familiar with the SHAZAM! (Captain Marvel) mythos, our hero is Billy Batson, a 12 year old paperboy who shouts the word "Shazam" to become the heavily muscled adult superhero Captain Marvel. The thing about Marvel is that he retains Batson’s 12 year old mind, and so is naïve, innocent and goodnatured. It’s hard to imagine The Rock as anything other than cocky, snotty and wooden. He would make for a decent Black Adam, Captain Marvel’s centuries old foe, who looks pretty much just like him but with pointy ears and a black costume.
Of course this is only a rumor at this point, and even if it’s true that these talks are going on at the studio, our scooper tells us that the execs are worried about stealing the thunder from the ever in development Superman film, worried that the two characters are too alike. There’s some truth to that as, back in the prehistory of superhero comics, DC sued the shit out of Captain Marvel publisher Fawcett comics for infringing on their Superman trademarks with the character.
Jesus Christ, who ever let me get ahold of a keyboard? Also, look how angry I was about casting for Shazam!, for the love of God.
Anyway, four years later The Rock is still up for the role, although he tells MTV Movie Blog that he could be taking my advice and playing Black Adam. "Shazam, of course, I would love to play. They approached me about [Captain Marvel] and [villain] Black Adam as well," he told MTV. "We’ve been meeting for months. We’re toying with either one. I think it’s up to the fans. Without question… We went to Comic-Con a couple of months ago, and after coming back, we came to the conclusion that this particular role is not up to me, not up to Pete [Segal, the director], and not up to the studio. I think it’s up to the fans, very specifically because they are passionate about the comic book, about the history and mythology [of the character]. They will be very vocal."
So be vocal and tell this guy that he should play Black Adam already. Sheesh.