Remember when the DC Extended Universe was a joyless slog? “I do,” responds everyone who paid to see Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Suicide Squad. Those days are no more (give or take a Justice League): Wonder Woman was a blast, Aquaman had an octopus drummer and Patrick Wilson screaming about being the Ocean Master, and even the official plot summary for Shazam! notes that it’s set within the DC Universe, but has its own “own distinctly fun, family-centric tone.” That’s apparent in the new trailer above, which can’t even get through an origin story without cracking a smile.
But don’t worry, Batman still makes a brief cameo. Sort of (as a toy).
Here’s the Shazam! synopsis:
We all have a superhero inside us, it just takes a bit of magic to bring it out. In Billy Batson’s case, by shouting out one word — SHAZAM! — this streetwise 14-year-old foster kid can turn into the adult Super Hero Shazam, courtesy of an ancient wizard. Still a kid at heart — inside a ripped, godlike body — Shazam revels in this adult version of himself by doing what any teen would do with superpowers: have fun with them! Can he fly? Does he have X-ray vision? Can he shoot lightning out of his hands? Can he skip his social studies test? Shazam sets out to test the limits of his abilities with the joyful recklessness of a child. But he’ll need to master these powers quickly in order to fight the deadly forces of evil controlled by Dr. Thaddeus Sivana.
Shazam!, which stars Zachary Levi, Asher Angel, Mark Strong, Jack Dylan Grazer, and Djimon Hounsou, opens on April 5.
