‘Shazam 2’ Moves To Christmas As ‘Aquaman 2’ Avoids Showdown With ‘Avatar 2’

In a kind of “good news/bad news” scenario, Black Adam is getting pushed out of the summer but we’re seeing Shazam: Fury of the Gods a lot sooner. Due to Covid-specific post-production delays (nothing catastrophic, but enough to move the needle), Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam will no longer open on July 29, instead opting for October 21, 2022 with an IMAX engagement thrown in for good measure. Meanwhile, DC League of Super-Pets (starring Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart with John Krasinski as Superman and Keanu Reeves as Batman) will open not on May 20 but on July 29. Most importantly, the most absurd box office showdown of the year has been canceled. Aquaman: The Lost Kingdom has moved to March 17, 2023, while Shazam: Fury of the Gods will now open December 16, 2022 against Avatar 2.

James Wan’s underwater sequel about a stranger in a strange fantasy land who becomes the de-facto ruler of a people whom he barely understands will no longer open on the same day as James Cameron’s underwater sequel about a stranger in a strange fantasy land who becomes the de-facto ruler of a people whom he barely understands. I’m not thrilled about the underdog sequel to DC Films’ best movie being pitted against Avatar 2. But WB seems high on the David F. Sandberg-directed and Zachari Levi-starring sequel (which adds Rachel Zegler, Lucy Liu and Helen Mirren to the fun) and it won’t be as dependent on overseas box office as James Wan’s “outrageous” adventure. Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana’s Avatar 2 and Jason Momoa and Amber Heard’s Aquaman 2 are both expected to be huge in China. Shazam! earned $43 million in China.

Avatar earned $205 million in China in 2010 (playing on 10% of the theaters available by the time Avengers: Endgame earned $620 million) and another $55 million in 2021. Aquaman earned $298 million in 2018. It makes sense to let the smaller Shazam (which can play like Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, which earned $390 million against Aquaman, and be a hit) face the year-ending juggernaut. My two most anticipated films of 2022 were Avatar 2 and Aquaman 2, and they were fated to open on the same day. Now my two most anticipated films of 2022, Shazam 2 and Avatar 2, will… dammit. C’mon David, pull a Rogue Nation and get Fury of the Gods ready by July 29!! Otherwise, total speculation, but if Batgirl can avoid tripping over the events of The Flash…

Speaking of which, The Flash is heading to June 23, 2023. The return of Michael Keaton’s Batman (who also co-stars in Batgirl, which was intended to go to HBO Max but I’d argue would score theatrically) will occur on the 34th anniversary of Michael Keaton’s Batman. This will make sure that DC doesn’t overdose on Batman since Robert Pattinson can rule 2022 while Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton can offer support to Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen (getting that solo movie almost nine years after he was cast in the role) in summer 2023. Anyway, Black Adam is clearly seen as a “mythology” episode, as it’s a backdoor Justice Society pilot with a stacked cast (Aldis Hodge, Sarah Shahi, etc.) and a well-liked genre director (Jaume Collet-Serra, still on loan from Liam Neeson).

In non-DC news, Paul King and Simon Farnaby’s Wonka (starring Timothée Chalamet as a “W.I.L.F.” in a prequel to the original Roald Dahl books) will now open on December 15, 2023, a week before the theoretical Star Trek 4 and the theoretical Star Wars: Rogue Squadron. Ben Wheatley’s The Meg 2 will now open August 4, 2023, just over five years after The Meg shocked us all by A) being pretty damn good and B) earning $144 million domestic, $155 million in China and $530 million worldwide. We’ll see if the Jason Statham/Wu Jing sequel can make lightning strike twice. I’m still waiting for updates on Patty Jenkins and Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman 3. This schedule means that they can wait until summer 2024, presuming the announcement (on the opening weekend of Wonder Woman 1984) wasn’t a bluff.