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Shazam Director Peter Segal Addresses Comedy Rumors

by Alex Billington
March 15, 2008
Source: FirstShowing.net

Last week we had the chance to interview Get Smart director Peter Segal, who's next project just happens to be Billy Batson and the Legend of Shazam, a movie about the DC's Captain Marvel. Although the project is currently still in pre-production and awaiting a new script, Segal updated us on the latest and quelled rumors regarding the comedy in it. Unfortunately it sounds like we've still got to wait a while for the adaptation, but at least he clears up any speculation there is regarding how the movie is going to be handled and how he, as a comedic director, will tackle it.

After mentioning the name Shazam quite a bit as his next project, Segal goes on to say that he "literally just got a new draft a couple of days ago" and is planning to take a look at it in the next few days. John August is the writer who has been attached since the start and we can expect that this is another version of his script, since he was on hiatus during the strike and just finished working on this latest draft.

In regards to comedic elements of the story and how it will play, Segal confirms that they're NOT going to turn it into a light-hearted comedy. He mentions that they "really want to pay attention to the roots of the comic" and that there is an "innate humanity" in it and they "can't handle that strictly dramatically." Of course, when the story is about a 13 year old boy who becomes a 28 year old superhero but is still 13 on the inside, that needs to be comedic in some way or it just won't work. Segal says that he wouldn't want to even see Captain Marvel if they try and treat it entirely dramatically (neither would I), and "that's why I think there's room for [Shazam] in a crowded comic book marketplace right now, because there is no story like it."

As a final statement regarding the comic, Segal wants to make sure he sets the record straight on Shazam for all of the fans:

"A lot of people were asking which, is fine, but I just want to sort of set the record straight as you know, it's not - it's going to be something you resemble, it's not going to be something that people are shocked and have no idea where it came from. I'm not trying to turn this into something it isn't."

Pete couldn't have said it better than that. As much as it's hard to settle the fears of fans until there is footage and a cast, I hope everyone else will gain some confidence in Segal based on some of what he said in our interview. Shazam is a project that I really want to turn out well, just because it sounds like such a cool and such a fun concept, and I think Segal is more than capable of pulling it off. I hope for the best and I'm anxious to hear whether August's latest draft is good enough to finally start moving this project into production.

We mentioned back in November that Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, who is also in Segal's Get Smart, was officially attached to Shazam as the character Black Adam. No other cast have been announced yet. Captain Marvel is a DC character that was created in 1939 and earned the nickname "The World's Mightiest Mortal". He is the alter ego of Billy Batson, a kid who works as a radio news reporter and was chosen to be a champion of good by the wizard Shazam. Whenever Billy speaks the word Shazam!, he is struck by lightning and is transformed into an adult superhero empowered with the abilities of six mythical figures.

If we hear any more on this project, we'll be sure to update you. For now, Captain Marvel and Shazam fans will have to keep waiting until a final draft of a script is approved and the project actually heads into production.

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