Shazam Zachary Levi Is Shazam

[KRYPTON INC.]

Well, once he bulks up, he will be very imposing. He's about 6'4" so he'll tower over Henry Cavill. I don't see why he can't add muscle. The only thing is that once he does so, he probably won't be able to go back to playing Chuck-type roles anymore because then he'll look like an action hero. He stood taller than Lou Ferrigno when he guest-starred on Chuck (and Lou was meant to be 6'5" - I don't know what happened to his height).

BTW, is he going to be called Shazam in this movie or is that just the name of the movie and he'll be called Captain Marvel? But I can't imagine that will fly at all with Marvel's Captain Marvel coming out the same year.

Three inches is "towering"?

 

[Hypestyle]

Well good luck to him. I hope that the film is made into something fun. No need to go super-dark with this.

the "villain" doesn't have to be something that gets blown up in the end. Maybe Cap/Shazam prevents a series of disasters and conducts rescues.

 

[Micromind]

Well, once he bulks up, he will be very imposing. He's about 6'4" so he'll tower over Henry Cavill. I don't see why he can't add muscle. The only thing is that once he does so, he probably won't be able to go back to playing Chuck-type roles anymore because then he'll look like an action hero. He stood taller than Lou Ferrigno when he guest-starred on Chuck (and Lou was meant to be 6'5" - I don't know what happened to his height).

BTW, is he going to be called Shazam in this movie or is that just the name of the movie and he'll be called Captain Marvel? But I can't imagine that will fly at all with Marvel's Captain Marvel coming out the same year.

Levi is 6'3" same height as Routh and Stephen Amell is about same height as Cavill (actually, Cavill is just a tiny bit taller) So just imagine Levi in this pic instead of Routh and Cavill in place of Stephen Amell, the difference is not that much.

 

[KRYPTON INC.]

Levi is 6'3" same height as Routh and Stephen Amell is about same height as Cavill (actually, Cavill is just a tiny bit taller) So just imagine Levi in this pic instead of Routh and Cavill in place of Stephen Amell, the difference is not that much.

It's Chinatown Jake... I expect DR to mention how Levi will "Tower" over Cavill in any post referring to the two together. Gotta get the digs into anything from the pre-WW DCEU don't ya'know?

 

[TheRedWraith]

They already solved that a few years back. He can only transform if he says "Shazam!" with the actual mental intent to change. If he's just saying "My name is Shazam," or "Call me Shazam," it doesn't work.

That doesn't sound like something that'd be very hard to explain. "If you want to transform, say 'Shazam' while thinking about transforming. That's the only way it works." "Okay."

Wizard: You have shown yourself worthy to wield the power of Shazam, to use it you simply focus on changing and speak the magic word: Shazam.

There I solved it off the top of my head, now add in a professional screenwriter who'd put more time into it than I did, and you'd have a perfectly suitable explanation.

 

[Brian Braddock]

I said Harbour got into shape not that he got buff. I know he is wearing a muscle suit but Harbour still worked out and lost weight for the role.

[YT]/xriv9EFmxCU[/YT]

Thats not even in shape though, CM. Yes, he lost a little weight but thats just dieting, in that he ate slightly less doughnuts than usual. t: but yeah, I get what you are sayiing.

 

[Dark Raven]

It's Chinatown Jake... I expect DR to mention how Levi will "Tower" over Cavill in any post referring to the two together. Gotta get the digs into anything from the pre-WW DCEU don't ya'know?

What's it got to do with making digs at pre-WW DCEU? So no-one can say anything about any of the actors without being perceived as a pre-WW dig?

And the main point of my post above was to do with Levi standing taller than Lou Ferrigno, who was supposedly 6'5" but was clearly shorter than Levi. If Levi is only 6'3", then Ferrigno can only be about 6'2" at most rather than the alleged 6'5" which was always his official listed height before.

 

[Micromind]

And the main point of my post above was to do with Levi standing taller than Lou Ferrigno, who was supposedly 6'5" but was clearly shorter than Levi. If Levi is only 6'3", then Ferrigno can only be about 6'2" at most rather than the alleged 6'5" which was always his official listed height before.

You mean this image ?

Spoiler

Lou Ferrigno is not 6'5", never was.. he's more likely in 6'3" to 6' 2" range.

 

[elgaz]

What's it got to do with making digs at pre-WW DCEU? So no-one can say anything about any of the actors without being perceived as a pre-WW dig?

And the main point of my post above was to do with Levi standing taller than Lou Ferrigno, who was supposedly 6'5" but was clearly shorter than Levi. If Levi is only 6'3", then Ferrigno can only be about 6'2" at most rather than the alleged 6'5" which was always his official listed height before.

Ferrigo is 65yrs old. It's common knowledge that as we grow older, we lose height because the discs between the vertebrae in the spine dehydrate and compress, and it's often been said this is more common in bodybuilders due to the increased stresses they have put on their backs with regular weightlifting. I've no doubt he was 6"5 in his day (look at the pic below) but he's probably lost a few inches, just like how Arnie appears shorter now than when he was in his 20s-30s.

I've seen pics of Arnold pretty much nose-to-nose with 6ft Barack Obama and he was at least 6ft, if not the full 6"2 he claimed in his prime - and Ferrigno was a good bit bigger.

 

[BH/HHH]

Hulk Hogan was 6 foot 7 and he shrunk. He lost inches as he got older from spinal injuries aswell as age.

 

[Tg11]

Zachary Levi yeah he was in the MCU but as a minor character in the Thor series so to see him as Captain Marvel I can actually get behind this choice

 

[Blitzkrieg]

https://***********/EricBlackmon/status/925199133840834562

Eric Blackmon
@EricBlackmon

Apparently I’ll be getting ripped for Shazam! as well, since @ZacharyLevi is kicking my ass in the gym. I need protein. Now.

 

[KRYPTON INC.]

What's it got to do with making digs at pre-WW DCEU? So no-one can say anything about any of the actors without being perceived as a pre-WW dig?

And the main point of my post above was to do with Levi standing taller than Lou Ferrigno, who was supposedly 6'5" but was clearly shorter than Levi. If Levi is only 6'3", then Ferrigno can only be about 6'2" at most rather than the alleged 6'5" which was always his official listed height before.

You mean like you posted about this supposed "towering" in another thread with no mention of Lou at all?

Those three inches in no way make one "tower" over another. It's just a silly opinion to have.

 

[Breogan]

Surprising choice, although now I can totally see it. Captain Marvel/Shazam was based on Fred MacMurray, Zachary Levi actually somewhat looks like him.
He can act, and he has that necessary boyish-charm, is probably the best way to put it.
He now just needs to bulk up, which we already know he is doing. https://www.cbr.com/dc-shazam-zachary-levi-training/

Great choice!

LOL!

...I'll be in the gym for the rest of my life!

 

[Breogan]

There are two types of presentation of Shazam/Capt. Marvel. One is the more modern approach used since about 1987, where Billy is simply transformed into an adult with the power and wisdom of a super hero but with Billy's personality intact. In the other it's more like Capt. Marvel takes his place and is a separate entity merely changing place with Billy.

Yeah I think he's supposed to become what he sees as the the idealized adult version of himself.
So the question becomes what happens to his personality? I'm really not crazy about the little boy stuck in a man's body approach DC has been using, mostly to distinguish him more from Superman.
He really just comes off stupid.
I prefer the more classic approach where he has some of the idealized hope of a kid (maybe even a bit naive at times), but he's fully an adult.

 

[KRYPTON INC.]

Yeah I think he's supposed to become what he sees as the the idealized adult version of himself.
So the question becomes what happens to his personality? I'm really not crazy about the little boy stuck in a man's body approach DC has been using, mostly to distinguish him more from Superman.
He really just comes off stupid.
I prefer the more classic approach where he has some of the idealized hope of a kid (maybe even a bit naive at times), but he's fully an adult.

Yeah, while I like the idea of Billy's personality being intact you are right in it can be played up too much that he's a kid and it can sometimes make him come across as a bit dim. On the other hand, read the really old Marvel tales and Capt. Marvel can seem a little dumb. I think there was always a bigger element of "fairy tales" in the Shazam stuff as compared to Supes. Supes has all this pathos and drama (or melodrama if you wish) in his origin and his stories. While there is some "goofy" stuff like Mxy or Bizzaro they are fewer and far between compared to Shazam. Tawny? Mr. Mind? Sivana's kids? And yes, the general Dudley Do Right persona of Capt. Marvel himself which was even cornier than Golden And Silver Age Supes combined... And that's saying something!

Which is why I think two aspects of the whole set up could be key... The Wisdom of Solomon and the courage of Achilles. All the others are physical attributes. Power, strength, speed etc. But courage and wisdom are mental and philosophical. So I say play those up. Show that while Billy is a kid in a powered grown body when he transforms that there is a significant difference in that he gains this improbable insight and fortitude. Maybe at first he doesn't quite grasp how to access this mental/character edge? He is a kid after all. And that's your arc. Mastering the physical stuff is, literally, child's play. Wisdom and courage for human beings is a different kettle of fish.

I think if the Seven Sins are used as the film's baddies, and with Adam out I really hope that is the case, then tying that fight to Billy's struggle to master his wisdom and courage could yield a good dramatic arc. When transformed Billy has these mental attributes but understanding their use and integrating them into his personality shouldn't be automatic. A struggle with them, a learning curve makes it come off more natural to me. Also makes "Capt. Marvel" less than a Dudley Do Right and more a real character.

Just my two cents.

 

[BH/HHH]

But let’s not forget that even if he’s still a child he has the wisdom of Solomon. So he’s not an idiot.

I loved the approach in Superman Shazam the Return of Black Adam where he’s so excited to have all these powers. That’s the approach I want.

 

[Greenlite]

But then they have to go through the trouble of explaining that in the film, when they can simply call him Captain Marvel and be done with it.

I can totally see my wife whispering to me during the film "I thought Cap Marvel is Marvel, we watched that last month" "is this Marvel?" "Cap Marvel is DC? And Marvel? Whaaaat?"

This will just be an incidence where Billy introduces himself as Shazam, nothing happens, and Cinema sin, hishe etc makes fun of it.

 

[Dark Raven]

Is Levi going to look like the classic Shazam where he looks more like Superman, with the shorter cape that is skewed to one side like some of Elvis Presley's jumpsuits?

Or is he going to be wearing that white hooded costume with the longer cape instead?

Which would you prefer to see?

 

[Web-Head]

A variation of the classic suit is what I'd like to see

 

[Boom]

You have to have the sash.

 

[Powerman34]

An amalgam of both?
Shorter cape and a more cloth based suit instead of any type of armor. I hope they take some inspiration from the old sword and sandal movies like Herecules Troy or even 300. Captain Marvel should look like an old school warrior instead of something out of Man of Steel

Just my opinion

 

[Dark Raven]

An amalgam of both?
Shorter cape and a more cloth based suit instead of any type of armor. I hope they take some inspiration from the old sword and sandal movies like Herecules Troy or even 300. Captain Marvel should look like an old school warrior instead of something out of Man of Steel

Just my opinion

Which bits out of the second costume do you want?

Because if you want it old school, why not just have everything from the original costume? That is cloth-based, and looks perfect as it is already.

I'm not sure if it should be spandex or more of a jumpsuit material like Elvis Presley wore.

His is actually based more on Captain Marvel Jr than Sr.

 

[KRYPTON INC.]

An amalgam of both?
Shorter cape and a more cloth based suit instead of any type of armor. I hope they take some inspiration from the old sword and sandal movies like Herecules Troy or even 300. Captain Marvel should look like an old school warrior instead of something out of Man of Steel

Just my opinion

It should look "magical" and fantasy film based. So not like a thing produced by high tech methods. More Wonder Woman's armor than the suits for Superman and Batman.

 

[Sawyer]

I can totally see my wife whispering to me during the film "I thought Cap Marvel is Marvel, we watched that last month" "is this Marvel?" "Cap Marvel is DC? And Marvel? Whaaaat?"

This will just be an incidence where Billy introduces himself as Shazam, nothing happens, and Cinema sin, hishe etc makes fun of it.

The best solution I can think of is that he just refers to himself by name.

"W-who are you?"
"I'm Billy! Billy Batson."

And then a reporter or something overhears and tries to expose the whole thing, only for it to turn out that Billy Batson is just a 14 year old kid and the reporter gets fired.

And then for sequels... I don't know. Reports of people hearing "Shazam!" right before lightning strikes and they start applying it to him.