After a bumpy start, it looks like Warner Bros. has finally hit their stride when it comes to adapting their library of DC Comics. Though Justice League was a critical and commercial failure, the studio's experienced quite a bit of success in recent years. Both Wonder Woman and Aquaman were well-received by audiences and critics, becoming box office smashes in the process. Aquaman currently ranks as the highest-grossing DC film of all-time.
Everyone is hopeful Shazam! can continue this upwards trajectory. Taking influence from classic films like Big, the movie hopes to be a fun, heartfelt superhero romp. Trailers for Shazam! were quite promising, and word after the first screenings is that it delivers on its potential. Critics were certainly impressed by what they saw, which is great news for Sandberg and company.
In the aftermath of Justice League falling short of expectations, WB changed up their strategy. There's now more of an emphasis on standalone films rather than shared universe crossovers and team-ups, which is an approach that's yielded strong results so far. It's no coincidence Wonder Woman and Aquaman, two installments with minimal connections to the larger overarching franchise, are the clear highlights of DC's recent output. And while Shazam! definitely has Easter eggs peppered throughout, it seems to be cut from the same cloth. Fortunately for the studio, people seem to be responding strongly to their latest endeavor, which gives them yet another character to build a franchise around. With Wonder Woman 1984 and Aquaman 2 coming through the pipeline, it wouldn't be surprising if a Shazam! sequel was announced in the near future.
Of course, it remains to be seen how the full written reviews pan out and how Shazam! performs at the box office, but it should be in great shape there. Compared to most comic book adaptations, it has a small budget of "only" $90 million, meaning it'll need to gross approximately $180 million worldwide to break even. Even as Shazam! deals with films like Dumbo and Pet Sematary at the multiplex, that sounds like a figure it should be able to easily pass - especially if it continues to garner positive word-of-mouth. This all has to feel great for Sandberg, who had a great deal of fun making Shazam! and now knows his target audience loves it.
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