Fans have been waiting a long time to see Dwayne Johnson play a superhero. The actor’s involvement with the DC movie Black Adam dates back to 2007, and now over a decade later, production has finally wrapped on Johnson’s DC debut – and the balance of power in the DC universe is about to change.
The titular Black Adam is an antihero from the DC Comics, and during a recent exclusive interview with Seven Bucks Productions president of production Hiram Garcia, he stressed to me just how seriously they’re taking the severity with which Black Adam deals out justice: “There are lots of people that may start alive in a Black Adam movie and may not be there at the end of the movie.” With the long-in-development film in the can, Garcia said he feels great about the film they put together, adding that he’s thrilled with the vision that director Jaume Collet-Serra (with whom Garcia and Johnson worked on Jungle Cruise) put together for the DC movie.
Garcia added that one aspect about Black Adam that’s unique from other superhero movies is how they’re showcasing Black Adam’s powers. “You're not just going to see him use super speed for a moment and then it stops,” Garcia told me. “This is part of his arsenal.” He went on to note that the technology used to make Black Adam fly has never been done before, and showcasing the character’s power dynamics onscreen was of the utmost importance when developing the movie.
But Garcia also explained that, despite a PG-13 rating, this is a movie that’s going to have “edge” and real life-or-death stakes, equating its intensity to that of The Dark Knight. “By no means will [the PG-13 rating] limit our kill count,” he said pointedly.
As for how Black Adam fits into the overall DC Universe, Garcia confirmed it takes place in the same world as Shazam! but while he declined to explicitly discuss how the film connects (or doesn’t) to The Flash or The Batman, Garcia noted that “when Black Adam appears, no matter what universe you are in the DC world, you're going to feel it.”
Johnson is one of the biggest stars in all of Hollywood and yet still Black Adam feels like a huge deal, so fans are eagerly awaiting our first look at the film in action ahead of its scheduled July 29, 2022 release date. But everything Garcia told me about Black Adam bodes well for the fans, and it’s clear this has been a passion project of his and Johnson’s for a long time.
You can check out the full portion of our interview about Black Adam below, which also touches on potential HBO Max spinoff series, the tone of the movie, and how audiences will empathize with Black Adam even as he’s doling out some seriously brutal justice.
You just wrapped Black Adam. How are you feeling about it? What are you excited about? How did the shoot go?
HIRAM GARCIA: I feel great. We’ve spoken before about how excited I am about Black Adam and what this project means to us, and I know the cast, especially DJ, feels the same. DJ works hard all the time, but somehow, he's been working even harder physically and mentally for this role. I'm thrilled for what we have created and the vision that Jaume Collet-Serra has for the film is exceptional. There were a lot of aspects to this film that were important to us, from big dramatic storylines that we wanted to explore to make sure we were properly representing an antihero of Black Adam's caliber, to the visual effects and displaying Black Adam's powers in a way that we think the fans will love.
This is a character with amazing abilities. He has super speed, can fly, and has world breaking strength to name a few. We wanted to make sure moviegoers feel that throughout the entire movie. You're not going to see him use super speed just once and then it stops, this is part of his arsenal. It’s common to see abilities fall to the wayside when dealing with characters like that but one of our many goals was to keep continuity there and push the bar in terms of how we do it. For example, the technology we're using to make Black Adam fly has never been done before. It's completely unique. It was critical for us to ensure that it felt special, authentic, and real. Jaume took that to heart. Our special effects' team are Oscar winners, and we certainly put them to work.
We’re just so excited for you and the fans to see the film, because this cast and crew worked exceptionally hard to just make this film feel fresh, and really introduce a new group of incredible characters to the world. All while making sure we unleash Black Adam on the DC Universe in a big way. This guy is an absolute force of nature. A force of nature that dishes out justice the way he wants. Unfortunately not many people walk away from the kind of justice he delivers. We mean it when we say the hierarchy of power in the DC Universe is going to change. When Black Adam arrives, everything's going to change.
So I've heard you say it, I've heard Dwayne say it, "The hierarchy of power in the DC Universe is about to change." I know Warner Brothers is looking to create more connectivity between their films. So does Black Adam fit firmly alongside movies like Shazam! and The Flash, or is it kind of outside of that continuity like The Batman?
GARCIA: I think there are versions of it. We’re definitely focusing now though on building out our world. Obviously Shazam! does exist in the same universe as Black Adam and there are some other crossover elements you might feel in our movie. In terms of the details of how they all merge together though, is still in the works. But I think it’s safe to say that when Black Adam appears, no matter what universe you are in within the DC multiverse, you're going to feel it!
Well, the door's swung wide open now. I know The Suicide Squad is rated R, Joker was R. Is this R? Is it firmly PG-13? Is that still being worked out?
GARCIA: This will be PG-13, but it’s not because we're being forced to be PG-13. The way we devised the movie, it just wasn't necessary to make it R, and it's something we discussed because we did want to be true to the character. The truth is that we felt we were properly able to represent the edge and power that Black Adam has without needing to go to an R rating. This movie can thrive in a PG-13 space and that’s great for us because we want to introduce Back Adam to as many people as possible.
No one ever felt like The Dark Knight was too soft. That was probably one of the hardest PG-13s you've ever seen. That's the way we’ve approached our PG-13, and by no means has that rating limited our kill count!
How would you describe the flavor or the tone of Black Adam? Each DC movie has kind of its distinct thing. What is Black Adam's thing? What doe that movie feel like?
GARCIA: It’s big and fun, but edgy with very real stakes. There are lot of people on screen that won’t make it to the end of the movie because let’s be honest.. Black Adam is not the kind of character that throws people in prison. That said I think the audience will have a blast with this.
The stakes are real in terms of life and death situations, and that was important for us. We wanted to make sure we had some edge, so I'm not sure what I would compare it to. I like to say we're our own movie, and I haven't really seen a movie like this that matches what we've done. But I think we're able to deliver on a lot of tonal spots. Whether it's fun or whether it’s scares, I think we have a lot in our film.
Well, it looks like at least based on that concept art that came out, it's covering a pretty wide time span of length of time, whether that's in flashbacks or stuff like that.
GARCIA; Yeah. This is Black Adam's introduction to the DC Universe. We want to make sure we're properly introducing him and making sure people understand the motivation behind a guy like this who was a slave at one point, and the catalyst that turns him into the antihero that he is. He’s been alive for a long time, so there's a lot of territory to cover.
Dwayne Johnson is one of the most loved human beings on the planet. Black Adam, as you say is an antihero, teetering on villainy. How did you guys approach the character in a way that kind of allowed you to subvert the fact that a lot of the audience is going to walk in already loving Dwayne Johnson and therefore already rooting for this guy who’s going to do a lot of bad stuff?
GARCIA: I'll go all the way back to DJ's origins. I think The Rock, as a wrestling character, was essentially an anti-hero. He was a character that wasn't necessarily a good guy, but it was hard not to love him. I think that's the way we’re approaching Black Adam, obviously not in terms of quips and so forth, but this is a guy who may not be your prototypical hero, but the way he conducts himself, it's going to be hard not to love him. What’s made Black Adam such a popular character among fans today is he's not beholden to typical hero tropes. There's these rules and morals that heroes are burdened by and Black Adam is not. He has his own moral compass and he dishes out his own version of justice.
I think audiences ultimately will be able to empathize with a character like this because they're going to understand where that wrath, power and drive come from. This isn't someone who just woke up one day wanting to do this. He experienced a great wrong in his life and he suffered from it. He carries it with him. That’s one of those things that ultimately motivates him to act the way he does, and audiences will be able to relate to that.
Is Dwayne Johnson going to fight Henry Cavill on screen?
GARCIA: Hard to say, but I know that would be incredible if it ever did happen. We certainly know the fans want it! All I can say is that we’re always listening to the fans and doing what we can!
I know HBO Max is huge for Warner Bros. Is there a TV iteration or spinoff or prequel of Black Adam already in discussions?
GARCIA: When it comes to the Black Adam universe, we have had discussions covering all gambits of what that could be like. So I can't say anything specifically, but obviously DJ, Dany and myself along with all of Seven Bucks is thrilled with our involvement in the DC Universe, especially with Black Adam and Super-Pets. With those two big properties and the tentacles that emerge from them, there are so many conversations happening as we figure out how to expand those universes and build them out. Every day there's a new discussion about the universe and believe me when I say our ambitions are big! We're really excited to be a part of the DC universe and bring more of their characters to life.
Look for much more from my interview with Garcia soon. Black Adam is set to be released on July 29, 2022.