Promotion on “Shazam: Fury of the Gods” is slowly starting once again, and Den of Geek is hosting a special with new pictures and interviews on their site: Crafting brand new villains for a superhero movie extravaganza like Shazam: Fury of the Gods is no easy feat. But in the highly-anticipated sequel, director David F. Sandberg enlisted three Hollywood icons to bring these original antagonists to life. Looking to the mythological origins of the hero Shazam, Sandberg and writers Henry Gayden and Chris Morgan introduce the Daughters of Atlas; Hespera (Helen Mirren), Kalypso (Lucy Liu), and Anthea (Rachel Zegler), who are less than happy to have seen their father’s powers stolen by the titular superhero. For Sandberg, it was a logical choice. “It was just such a cool idea,” the director tells us. “If those powers came from these gods, what if they were actually taken from them? What if they didn’t want to give up their powers and now they’re coming to Earth to take them back and they’re pissed off about it?” It’s an intriguing prospect and one that excited Oscar-winner Helen Mirren. So how does a Dame prepare to play a god like Hespera? “It’s very interesting because no human psychology can come into it,” Mirren shares. “You have to take yourself away from senses of morality or senses of desire or all of the things that you normally would be investigating in a character. You just have to say no, none of that comes into it.” The complete interview can be read here.

When the first Shazam! debuted in April 2019, it struck theaters like a bolt of lightning. Even in a crowded sea of superhero flicks, David F. Sandberg’s charming DC film stood out for being funny, fresh, and full of heart. With the sequel hitting theaters March 17, Warner Bros. has shared a new trailer for Fury of the Gods, teasing Levi’s return and the introduction of some very starry villains. To accompany the trailer’s release, Sandberg has also talked to Entertainment Weekly, giving us more insight on casting Lucy Liu and Helen Mirren as the villains in the film:

To play these devious daughters, Sandberg recruited some big names: Lucy Liu plays Kalypso, while Oscar winner Helen Mirren stars as her sister Hespera. “It was a dream to work with them,” the director says. “We aimed high when we cast the movie, and we got exactly what we wanted. They’re both so kickass. You kind of have an expectation, like, ‘Oh, it’s Dame Helen entering the set!'” Sandberg adds with a laugh. “But the first day she came on, she’s like, ‘Yeah! We need more p—y power on set! We’re here now!’ and I was like, ‘Oh, okay!'”

While all eyes are on 1923’s December 18 premiere, let’s not forget next Spring’s theatrical release of “Shazam: Fury of the Gods”. In a recent interview with Total Film, director David F. Sandberg teased Mirren’s compelling new DCU villain in Shazam! Fury of the Gods. After Billy Batson (Asher Angel) is imbued with special powers by the last remaining member of the Council of Wizards in the previous film, the 14-year-old boy is transformed into Shazam (Zachary Levi). To defeat Dr. Thaddeus Sivana (Mark Strong), an evil scientist who was denied the chance to become Shazam’s champion, Batson shares his power with his foster family to create a superhero team. Shazam! Fury of the Gods picks up two years after the events of its predecessor and sees Batson and his family take on the Daughters of Atlas. The director recalled his surprise that he was able to hire Mirren – an actor with a long esteemed career in film – to portray his chief antagonist, Hespera. Read Sandberg’s full quote below:

You need great villains for a great superhero movie. It was interesting that we landed on these mythological characters. It felt like something new for fans. We said from the start we should aim really high. We said, ‘We should get someone on the level of, like, Helen Mirren.’ And then we tried reaching out to her and she said ‘yes’ straight away. It was like, ‘Holy sh*t! We actually got Helen Mirren.’ Then we went to Lucy Liu and she said ‘yes.’ They bring so much to the parts. (David F. Sandberg, Total Film, December 2022)

The first full trailer for Shazam! Fury of the Gods has just landed online, giving us a glimpse of Dame Helen Mirren in action as one of the film’s central villains. In the new DC Extended Universe film, coming to cinemas this December, Mirren plays Hespera, one of the daughters of Atlas along with Kalypso, played by Lucy Liu, who make up the film’s central villains. They’ll take on Zachary Levi’s returning hero Billy Batson/Shazam, who is seen in the trailer struggling to bring his ‘Shazamily’ of super-powered foster siblings together, while still indulging in the fun of being a boy in a superhero’s body. The trailer was released during Warner Bros Theatrical’s San Diego Comic-Con panel, which also saw an appearance from Johnson dressed as Black Adam to hype up the crowd. In a message recorded with Zegler for the panel, Mirren said she “absolutely loved playing Hespera” and that she’s “such a delightful baddie and a bad ass”. Shazam! Fury of the Gods will be released in cinemas on 21st December 2022.

Well, Helen Mirren fans, here’s another first look: Despite the film’s release date still being two years out, “Shazam! Fury of the Gods” has now shared a behind-the-scenes look over at DC FanDome, offering a look at what appears to be a massive production. Returning as the titular hero will be Zachary Levi alongside Asher Angel as his non-superhero personality Billy Batson, both joined by Jack Dylan Grazer, Djimon Hounsou, Rachel Zegler, Helen Mirren and Lucy Liu. David F. Sandberg is also coming back to direct the sequel after a successful origin movie. While information revolving around the sequel’s plot remain scarce at this point, we do know that it’ll pick up where the original film left off, which Batson’s foster family now all wielding the power to transform into superheroes. Neither Mirren’s Hespera nor Liu’s Kalypso are characters previously from the Shazam! comics, but both villains are daughters of the Greek Titan Atlas, one of the heroes from Greek mythology that contributes to the acronym Shazam and gives power to him. Shazam! Fury of the Gods is now scheduled to release June 2, 2023. You can watch the featurette below, HD screencaptures have been added to the photo gallery.