Breaking: Dwayne Johnson Confirmed To Play Black Adam In SHAZAM Film; Writer Hired

For months, Dwayne Johnson has been teasing a role in a DC Comics film adaptation. Early speculation suggested that The Rock could be playing anyone from Lobo and Darkseid to Green Lantern and Martian Manhunter. More recently, he confirmed that he was involved with the Shazam movie, but he wouldn’t specify if he was either the titular hero or the villain Black Adam. Now, we finally have an answer.

Johnson took to his Twitter page today to announce that he is playing Black Adam in New Line Cinema and DC Entertainment’s Shazam, saying, “‘Kneel at his feet or get crushed by his boot.’ My honor to become.. #BlackAdam #TheAntiHero #DCComics.” The actor has been a fan-favorite for the role for years, ever since a film starring the formerly named Captain Marvel was in consideration. Johnson has particularly been vocal concerning his love for Black Adam for a long time, which makes this casting entirely unsurprising. This is the second time in recent history that Johnson has finally landed a dream role of his, the first being Hercules for this summer’s action epic.

Meanwhile, Shazam has also secured a screenwriter. According to Variety, Jack the Giant Slayer and Turbo scribe Darren Lemke has been set to write the script for the DC film. The project is being produced by New Line Cinema and is expected to be distributed by Warner Bros. The role of Billy Batson/Shazam has yet to be cast. Since Lemke has just closed his deal, a production date is unknown. However, it is expected to be one of the nine DC movie release dates recently announced by WB. Personally, I’m predicting that the August 5th, 2016 date is for Shazam, but that could easily change.

Stay tuned for more Shazam news as we have it.