Sandwiched between the other Captain Marvel and potentially the biggest superhero movie ever in Avengers: Endgame, DC adapted Shazam! into a quirky action-comedy starring Zachary Levi as a muscular teenager turned superhero. Although borrowing heavily from 80s comedies like Big, David F. Sandberg's film feels like a breath of fresh air after the slew of fun albeit safe superhero flicks 🍷released ov🐻er the last decade.
Following Aquaman and Wonder Woman, Shazam! marks another success story in the DC Extended Universe. The days of mocking Superman and Batman's parent company have come and gone! Combined with Sony's brilliant Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,𒁏 the superhero subgenre is no longer a one-horse race.
Who exactly is Billy Batson? Why did this strange character earn a solo film adaptation before the Flash or technically Batman? Going through various name changes, Shazam has been around for nearly a century. Originating in the early 1940s, Billy has been protecting Philadelphia from wicked evildoers for longer than most people have been alive. Although only appearing for an episode, Billy goes toe to toe with Superman in , which still ranks among the best DC adaptat🐈ions of all time. The friendly hero has quite an impressive track record and deserves to be respected!
Shazam! is filled to the brim with little references to the DC Extended Universe and the comics. Some are obvious, some require close examinations, and a few are for those two fans intimately familiar with Billy's entire history. Here are 30 things everyone completely missed in Shazam!
Please Note: Spoilers for Shazam! will be included!
30 𓄧 Gee Whiz (Comics) 🏅
Although the majority of the narrative takes place in the present day, Billy drops a couple of old-timey phrases harboring back to the character's innocent beginnings. At one point, Batson pulls out the classic "Gee Whiz," a term that practically screams the 1950s. Besides complimenting the movie's comedic tone and fondness for nostalgia, this saying is also a shoutout to , the first comic to feature Shazam!
At the time, Billy fought under a different pseudonym; however, his personality has largely remained intact since the 1940s. There is no point improving ꦉupon perfection♕.
29 🥃 ဣShazam's Co-Creator
Superhero movies love to show admiration for comic book artists responsible for paving the road to 2019. Stan Lee is the obvious example, but Marvel's iconic creator is far from the only important name in comics. A cartoonist primarily recognized for his work with💝 Fawcett Publications, , drew the original Shazam and essentially established the character's style. Considering Billy's design has barely changed over the years, Beck clearly was a master of his craft.
In the movie, Billy's father is named C.C. Batson. Putting aside the fact the dude is in prison, Shazam! includes a respe🧸ctful nod to an influential contributor꧑.
28 Captain (Not⛄) Marvel ཧ
Carol Danvers is far from the original Captain Marvel; in fact, Marvel cannot even claim to be the first to employ this particular moniker. Prior to assuming the name of Shazam, Billy fought under Captain Marvel. 's title is "Introducing Captain Marvel."
Annoyed by the fact was outperforming Su🐲perman, DC took Fawcett to court in an attempt to squash the competition. DC won out and Captain Marvel disappeared f🅘or a few decades. Later on, Marvel bought the rights to the name to ensure nobody else could employ the Captain.
27 ꦰ Tawky Tawny, The Tiger 🍎
One of Billy's first scenes consists of a flashback to a carnival fair weꦑre the kid asks his mother to win a tiger from a booth. During the final 🌃fight, Shazam hands a stuffed tiger to calm down a frightened girl. If superhero movies have thought us anything, there is no way something will be mentioned multiple times without a reason.
started life as the Marvel Family's doll before magic happened and transformed the inanimate o🐬bject into a stylishly dressed anthropomorphic tiger. The DC Extended Universe is unlikely to properly introduce Tawky as a character, therefore a reference is better than nothing!
26 👍 Black Adam 🦩
Black Adam scoring a mention was almost expected. Along with being Billy's greatest rival and worst enemy, Black Adam is rumored to be portrayed by in future films. Permitting Shazam! does not flop at the box office, Warner Bros. is likely to pursue other projects featuring Billy Batson. Aඣt one pointꦡ or another, Black Adam has to make an appearance.
Djimon Hounsou's the Wizard references a former champ⛎ion who turned rogue and left the Circle of Eternity in tatters. Although not cited by name, this brief history lesson is undoubtedly about Black Adam.
25 ꧙ A Date To Remember ಌ
Now, in truth, this entry is likely a coincidence rather than a deliberate callback. However, sometimes the sound of hooves signals the arrival of zebras rather than horses. Focusing on Dr. Thaddeus Sivana's childhood, Shazam! opens with a scene set in 1974 before jumping🤡 forward t🍌o the present day.
Does this specific year hold any significance for Fawcett's superhero? 1974 coincided with the launch of the TV series, which lasted for three seasꦿons. Was this intentional? Probably not, but it is a fun coincidence♋ anyway.
24 The (Sort Of) Sinfulꦗ Old Champion
Shazam credits Black A🤡dam with the formation of the Seven Deadly Sins. In the comics, the Circle of Eternity's original champion joinsไ the dark side following the untimely passing of his family. Manipulated by Blaze into becoming the thing he once fought, Black Adam is eventually trapped in the Amulet of Greed.
Billy fights Black Adam's ancestor, who gains the villain's powers after obtaining the amulet. Neither Adams are responsible for the group,💟 although the former champion does occasionally free the monsters. The Ne🔯w 52 altered 's backstory.
23 Power Boy
Power Boy is one of the many aliases proposed by Freddy. ꩲBilly rejects basically every name but objects profusely to this specific recommendation. Now, in all fairness, Power Boy is more befitting of a side-kick than the main hero. Perhaps, Billy's resistance is solely a byproduct of this train of thought.
is also a common name in DC. Focusing solely on the comics, there have been at least three Power Boys, with the last temporarily joining the Teen Titans duri🏅ng the mid-2000s. Power Boys tend to not l🌌ast long or leave much of a lasting impression.
22 Jebediah Of Can🦋𒆙aan
Shazam does not refer to a single hero. Sort of like Captain Marvel, various people have assumed the pseudonym across history. Billy Batson merely happens to be the one featured in a comic series. Born thousands of y𝓰ears prior to the events of the movie, the Wizard bestows his powers to Billy out of💧 desperation.
Before he accepted the title of Shazam, the Wizard was a simple shepherd named . Like 95% of heroes and villains, Jebedia♓h's road to godho♈od began with the unfortunate demise of his parents. Bruce Wayne turned to bats, Jebediah sought out the gods. Long story short, the deities answered the shepherd's prayers.
21 Theℱ Circl🥀e Of Eternity
Shazam! sticks quite close to the source material. Billy Batson's superpowers are tied to the Circle of Eternity, seven powerful beings in charge of protecting a specific region of Earth. In order to cr♛eate the ultimate hero, they decide to transfer their powers into a solitary vessel. Unfortunately, Black Adam proves to be a pretty terrible pick.
Shazam! accurately depicts the Circle of Eternity. In the comics, the Wizard is the only one to really receive𝄹 a significant amount 🐠of page time and the same can be said about the movie.