Shazam: Fury Of The Gods Footage Reaction: It's All About Family [CinemaCon 2022]

The last time we saw Billy Batson (Asher Angel), he was the superhero Shazam (Zachary Levi), and his entire adopted family had turned into superheroes as well. /Film's own Ben Pearson is on the ground at CinemaCon, gathering info after seeing footage from more movies than we can count! He got to check out some from the upcoming superhero sequel "Shazam! Fury of the Gods," which comes out at the end of 2022. This puts it opposite "Avatar 2," meaning you all have to promise to go out and see this one as well. Perhaps Warner Bros. will rethink this decision? Please?

"Shazam! Fury of the Gods" is directed by David F. Sandberg, and stars Angel, Levi, Jack Dylan Grazer, Lucy Liu, Adam Brody, Faithe Herman, Meagan Good, Grace Fulton, Ian Chen, Ross Butler, Jovan Armand, D.J. Cotrona, Marta Milans, and Rachel Zegler, who just wowed the world with her debut in Steven Spielberg's remake of "West Side Story." Joining the cast as well is acting legend Dame Helen Mirren. You should see it for that alone. For now, check out the reaction to the new footage from "Shazam! Fury of the Gods."

CinemaCon was buzzing with excitement as the cast of "Shazam! Fury of the Gods" assembled to talk about the film. Levi said it was "super dreamy" to get the band back together, and Helen Mirren lovingly called her co-stars "absolute children." How any of them are still alive after being so delightfully roasted by Dame Hellen f****** Mirren is a miracle. Nevertheless, she seemed to have had a great time on the film, saying her villainous character Hespera "believes she's right," and that like most villains, "she's convinced of her righteousness."

As for Asher Angel's version of Billy Batson, "He's grown up a lot," he said. He's unsure of what's going to happen when he turns 18, and with adulthood just on the horizon, and that while he's grown up a lot, "They've been doing the superhero thing for a while." Jack Dylan Grazer, who plays Freddy Freeman, rightfully says that his character "is still super excited about his powers."

I mean, who wouldn't be stoked about getting super powers? Levi knows there's a lot at stake diving into a sequel, and said they "don't want to veer from the magic they found in the first movie." There's a lot going on in Billy's heart and mind, Levi said, and teased that the adult versions of the characters will have a much bigger role in the sequel. After the discussion, exclusive footage from the movie was shown, and there's a lot to be excited about.

The clip exclusively shown at CinemaCon opens in Paris, with Shazam and Wonder Woman on a date. Don't get too excited about a potential crossover, because it turns out to be a dream sequence, with Djimon Honsou's face revealed to be on Wonder Woman's body. Shortly after, the clip show that the Daughter of Atlas has broken the barrier between the realms, and everything has gone absolutely bananas. There's a gigantic brown dragon in the city streets! There's a world seemingly made completely of books that come to life! Sounds like the last laugh of "The Pagemaster" but what do I know? Eventually, Shazam sits down opposite Hespera and says, "I've seen all the 'Fast and Furious' movies, lady, and they're all about FAMILY!" This is clearly Shazam setting up for a dramatic reveal of his super family, but they miss their cue and show up late, which sends him into a comically big expression of his frustration. Oh, Shazam!

We don't have a synopsis yet for "Shazam! Fury of the Gods," but we'll bring it to you as soon as it's released. The film opens in theaters on December 16, 2022.