'Shazam!' trivia and fun facts
'Big' & 'Stranger Things'
The filmmakers cite the teen fantasies 'Big' (1988) and 'Stranger Things' (2016) as an influence on the film.
Director David F. Sandberg
'Shazam!' is the first blockbuster for director David F. Sandberg. As well as his directorial debut outside of the horror genre.
Evil bastard
Mark Strong has been openly enthusiastic about playing Sivana, describing him as an "evil bastard" and saying how those roles are always fun to play.
Black Adam
Originally, 'Shazam' was gonna tell the origin of the superhero and his nemesis Black Adam (played by The Rock), however, producers decided to separate both origin stories into to different movies.
The meaning behind Shazam's name
"Shazam" is the magic word that turns Billy Batson into a superhero. Shazam is an acronym of the names of all the Greek gods that give him his powers: the "s" of Solomon (wisdon), the "h" of Hercules (strength), the "a" of Atlas (stamina), the "z" of Zeus (the power of creating lighting), the "a" of Achilles (will) and the "m" of Mercury (speed).
Captain Marvel
Both DC Comics and Marvel Comics have a hero called Captain Marvel, whose films star Djimon Hounsou and release in 2019. DC's Captain Marvel is the original, first hitting stands in 1939. DC renamed their New 52/Rebirth version of "Captain Marvel" to "Shazam" in 2012, due in part to Marvel holding the trademark on the name. However, DC still produces versions named Captain Marvel in print and animation.