Dwayne Johnson to Play Black Adam in DC’s Shazam! Movie

Early in August, Warner Bros. revealed nine release dates for untitled DC movies spanning from August of 2016 to June of 2020, and since that initial announcement, no official titles have been unveiled. But today actor Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson revealed he will play the anti-hero Black Adam, the foe of young Billy Batson's alter-ego Captain Marvel from the DC Comics' Shazam! series, in an upcoming film.

Dwayne Johnson made the announcement via Twitter, accompanied by an image of Black Adam holding Shazam in a headlock. Although DC has yet to make an official statement, Johnson's big reveal likely means that one of this decade's untitled DC movie slots is reserved for a Shazam! movie adaptation.

Shazam! is a comic book series that focuses on a boy named Billy Batson who turns into a superhero with the powers of the Gods by saying "Shazam!" When DC relaunched their comic book universe several years ago, they renamed Captain Marvel as Shazam to avoid copyright disputes with Marvel Comics. Here's Dwayne Johnson's official announcement:

""Kneel at his feet or get crushed by his boot." My honor to become.. #BlackAdam #TheAntiHero #DCComics"

We'll keep Daily Dead readers updated on this story as it develops. In the meantime, for those not familiar with Black Adam or Shazam, we have their official character backstories (via DC):

Black Adam:

"Power corrupts. It's a trial many heroes have had to face. But no one exemplifies this more than Black Adam—a champion turned villain whose quest for dominance over all magic drives him to destroy anything that stands in his path.

Long ago, the council of wizards—powerful beings that held dominion over all magic in the world—chose the warrior Black Adam as their champion, granting him vast magical powers and abilities. However, that power only further skewed Adam's already maligned moral compass, and rather than use his newfound gifts to help others, he used it to dominate them.

Adam turned against the wizards and after a brutal battle was imprisoned for thousands of years. But now he is free once more, and his insatiable quest to conquer the world, to control all magic, continues. The only thing that stands in his way is Shazam!, the new champion of magic—and Black Adam will do anything in his power to destroy him and assert his position as the true ruler of the world.

Driven by a need to rule, incredibly arrogant and one of the most powerful beings on the planet, Black Adam lives by a simple creed: kneel at his feet or be crushed by his boot."

Shazam:

"Alakazam. Presto Chango. Abracadabra. How many magic words are staples of pop culture? If you can count them on more than one hand, then color us impressed. Regardless of how you’re keeping score, only one has been featured in comics, live-action TV shows, cartoons, toys, and video games for over seventy years.

SHAZAM! Two syllables famous for magically turning a boy into a superpowered adult.

Unlike most foster children, Billy Batson couldn’t care less about finding a family. He just wants to turn eighteen and finally become an adult. While the boy’s compassionate and kind, he’s gotten used to protecting himself by staying emotionally distant from everybody. But that changes when he meets an ancient wizard who introduces him to one very powerful word.

Just by saying SHAZAM!, Billy is transformed into a magical flying adult superhero, one with the genius of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the unbreakable will of Atlas, the lightning blasts of Zeus, the power of Achilles and the speed of Mercury. But gaining the power of the gods means inheriting their enemies too. With the abilities of the world’s mightiest mortal, Billy will have to struggle with magical threats as well as his own youthful naïveté. To truly tap into his power, this orphan who’s always kept people at arm’s length will have to learn what family really is."