As David F. Sandberg’s Shazam! continues to flesh-out its cast, the upcoming DCEU effort has moved to bring in Ron Cephas Jones.

The Wrap broke the news, with the Emmy-nommed actor set to play the mysterious Wizard in the hotly-anticipated movie. Jones is likely best known to genre fans for Mr. Robot and Marvel’s Luge Cage. For those not familiar with Shazam lore, the more recent iterations of the hero’s story feature the Wizard – at times referred to by the Shazam moniker himself, not to mention known as Marmaragan – giving young Billy Batson the mystical powers of Shazam. The Wizard is depicted as the last surviving member of an ancient council, and he has to find a new champion to battle the nefarious Black Adam. In his infinite wisdom, he’d bestow these all-powerful abilities upon Billy.

Already on board for Shazam! are Asher Angel as Billy Batson, Zachary Levi as the titular Shazam, Mark Strong as the ‘big bad’ of the picture, Doctor Sivana, and then roles for Jack Dylan Grazer, Grace Fulton, Ian Chen and Jovan Armand as pals of Billy’s.

The early blurb on Shazam! reads:

Based on the DC Comics character Shazam, Billy Batson becomes Captain Marvel, the world’s mightiest mortal, when he says the magic word “Shazam!” The name is an acronym for six gods and heroes of the ancient world as well as their attributes. The wisdom of Solomon, strength of Hercules, stamina of Atlas, power of Zeus, courage of Achilles and speed of Mercury.

Shazam! is currently set for an April 5th, 2019 release.

Recommended Posts