Dwayne Johnson has offered fans an update on his future as Black Adam after meeting a meeting with DC Studios co-head James Gunn.
According to Dwayne Johnson, Black Adam won’t be part of the first chapter of James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DC Universe. However, Johnson says that there is an opening for the character to return thanks to the vast storytelling opportunities of the multiverse. The Rock broke the news on his social media pages, following a recent discussion with Gunn. His full statement on the matter can be found below, along with a brief message from Gunn.
Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, Black Adam has been dominating streaming charts for four weeks now, but the movie had a disappointing run at the worldwide box office, earning $390 million against a massive production budget. It’s currently the top ranking title on WarnerMedia’s HBO Max and Fandango’s on-demand streaming service Vudu.
Jaume Collet-Serra was working from a script by Adam Sztykiel, Rory Haines and Sohrab Noshirvani, with a cast that also included Aldis Hodge, Noah Centineo, Sarah Shahi, Marwan Kenzari, Quintessa Swindell, Bodhi Sabongui and Pierce Brosnan. The movie marked the big screen debuts of Black Adam and the Justice Society of America, one of the most popular superhero teams in the pages of DC Comics.
Dwayne Johnson had been trying to get Black Adam off the ground for years now, but the movie was released right before a massive DC Universe shake-up at Warner Bros. Discovery, which saw Walter Hamada exiting his post as the president of DC Films. Hadama is now at Paramount Pictures, overseeing all things horrror.
Today’s Black Adam news won’t come as a surprise to many, as Gunn recently announced that Henry Cavill is no longer attached to the role of Superman, something that has led many to believe that the DC Universe is being rebooted. Gunn is currently writing the script for the next Superman movie, which is expected to feature a new actor as a younger version of the DC Comics icon.
A recent article from The Hollywood Reporter called Henry Cavill “a pawn in [Johnson]’s failed attempt to control a piece of DC.” The Rock had his own plans for Superman, with the wrestler-turned-actor at one point teasing a showdown between the Man of Steel and his anti-hero Black Adam. Superman was most recently seen in the post-credits scene of Black Adam.
Over the weekend, Johnson had to shut down reports that he unfollowed the Black Adam and Warner Bros. Discovery accounts on the social media platform Instagram after a number of viral tweets pointing out that the actor doesn’t follow the two pages. “100% not true. Never followed either account on IG,” Johnson wrote on Twitter.
A new era for the DC Universe
James Gunn and Peter Safran are now in charge of DC’s film, television and animations efforts at Warner Bros. Discovery, bringing the company’s comic book-related assets under one roof. Gunn is said to be focusing on the creative direction of the DCU while Safran is handling things that are related to business and production.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods, The Flash, Blue Beetle and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom are currently in various stages of post-production at Warner Bros. Discovery, with all four DC Universe movies slated to hit theaters in 2023. Will the characters from those movies make appearances in the new DCU? Only Gunn and Safran know.
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