Fresh off the news that talks have broken down for Matt Reeves to direct The Batman, at least there’s some more positive news on another of Warner Brothers’ DCEU pictures: Shazam.

The Wrap is reporting that David F. Sandberg is now in talks to direct the film, which is the first solid news on Shazam since Dwayne Johnson was announced as playing the villainous Black Adam what feels like an age ago.

Sandberg impressed many last year with Lights Out, and he’s already got a working relationship with Warner Brothers as he’s the director of the upcoming Annabelle 2.

While the likes of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and Co. get the big press, some casual fans are maybe not all that familiar with the Shazam character. Debuting back in 1939, young Billy Batson can transform into a superpowered hero by uttering the word “Shazam!”. Initially the hero himself was known as Captain Marvel, although a legal issue between DC and Marvel Comics saw Captain Marvel officially known as simply Shazam from 2011.

As mentioned, Dwayne Johnson has already been cast as Shazam’s greatest foe, Black Adam, but that’s as far as the film has got until now. There’s nobody cast as either Billy Batson or Shazam at this stage, so it’s good to see that Warner Brothers is at least looking to lock in a director for the film. And even though he’s not been mentioned or referenced at this point, the Shazam picture will exist in the greater DC Extended Universe that’s so far been inhabited by Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad.

Jack the Giant Slayer’s Darren Lemke is currently working on the Shazam screenplay, with the film penciled in for an April 5th, 2019 release.