Dwayne Johnson Explains Why He’s Playing Black Adam Rather than Shazam

Dwayne Johnson had been sharing his desire to play DC Comics villain/antihero Black Adam for years – a decision backed by most fans – and in 2019’s Shazam, his wish will finally be fulfilled. However, some had hoped that Johnson would instead play Shazam himself, due to his extreme charisma and starpower. That obviously isn’t happening now, but why? “The Rock” has now weighed in.

Speaking with Digital Spy (transcription via Comic Book Movie), Johnson revealed why he wanted to play Black Adam rather than the titular hero in Shazam. “Because I felt ultimately, and this is with all due respect to Shazam/Billy Batson, it’s a mythology that I love; it’s been with me for almost ten years now; what made me choose Black Adam? I just felt Black Adam was inherently more interesting to me because I felt there were more layers to Black Adam starting out as a slave and then ultimately becoming the anti-hero who we enjoy today.” So, it looks like Johnson did have a choice in whether to play Shazam or Black Adam, and his decision to play the latter is more than understandable.

Shazam is currently being written by Darren Lemke, and it has yet to secure a director or an actor to play Shazam. The movie is scheduled to hit theaters April 5th, 2019.