With great superpowers comes a great moral debate: To use them, or not to use them?
Warner Bros. Discovery unveiled the trailer for DC’s “Black Adam” starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as the titular anti-hero and arch-nemesis of Shazam.
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“Black Adam” also stars Noah Centineo and Quintessa Swindell, who both were in attendance at CinemaCon in Las Vegas on April 26 for the trailer premiere. Aldis Hodge plays hero Hawkman, the leader of the Justice Society of America, while Pierce Brosnan taps into the morally ambiguous Doctor Fate, a member of the Justice Society imparted with the powers of sorcery.
“Black Adam, what have your powers ever given to you?” Brosnan as Fate asks in the trailer, adding that Black Adam can either be a savior or a destroyer depending on what he chooses.
Later, Black Adam (Johnson) muses, “There’s black, there’s white, and there’s a little bit of grey.”
The release date for “Black Adam” was previously pushed back until October 21, 2023 along with fellow DC tentpoles “Aquaman 2” and “The Flash.”
Johnson shared on Instagram to announce the new premiere date, writing, “The hierarchy of power in the DC is about to change.”
DC titles “Aquaman 2” and “The Flash” are both pushed to 2023, with the “Aquaman” sequel set for a March 17, 2023, release date (from December 16, 2022), followed by “The Flash” on June 23, 2023 (from November 4, 2022).
Meanwhile, “Shazam! Fury of the Gods” is the only Warner Bros. title in the announcement to get an earlier release date, moving from mid-2023 to December 16, 2022. CinemaCon audiences also received a first look at the sequel film, which belongs to the same universe as “Black Adam.”
“Shazam!” stars Zachary Levi as the adult version of a foster tween who is chosen to protect the universe. For the follow-up to the critically-acclaimed 2019 flick, Lucy Liu and Helen Mirren join the cast. Liu plays Kalypso while Mirren is Hespera.
Mirren, who was on site for CinemaCon, explained that her character Hespera isn’t quite a villain because she “believes she’s right” in her mission.
“Of course, most villains and villainesses believe they’re right,” Mirren added. “[But] she’s convinced of her righteousness.”
Fellow Warner Bros. DC films “The Flash” and “Aquaman 2” also revealed new footage, with respective stars Michael Keaton and Jason Momoa making special appearances.
Additional reporting by Tony Maglio and Chris Lindahl.
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