Deadline reports that two more roles have been filled for the upcoming Shazam! movie with Ian Chen (Fresh Off the Boat) and Jovan Armand (Bella and the Bulldogs) set to appear as two of Billy Batson’s friends, Eugene and Pedro. They join IT star Jack Dylan Grazer and Grace Fulton as Billy’s other friends that live in a group home with him.
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Asher Angel is set to star in the film as Billy Batson with Zachary Levi taking on the titular hero and his alter ego. Mark Strong (Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, Sherlock Holmes) is also set to star and will appear as the villain, Doctor Sivana.
David F. Sandberg is directing for New Line Cinema. He recently confirmed that the target release date for the film is April 2019. The Lights Out and Annabelle: Creation director will step behind the camera with Peter Safran producing. Henry Gayden and Darren Lemke wrote the script for Shazam!, which is scheduled to shoot in Vancouver next year.
Dwayne Johnson will not appear as the villain Black Adam in the film and is developing a solo film for the anti-hero as a separate project.
Created in 1939 by artist C. C. Beck and writer Bill Parker, Shazam first appeared in Fawcett Comics’ Whiz Comics #2. By saying the world “Shazam,” teenager Billy Batson was transformed into the “world’s mightiest mortal” and given extraordinary abilities by ancient gods.
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