After many (many, many) delays, the time has finally come to discover what the sequel Shazam! Fury of the Gods has to offer. Following up to the 2019 entry, the new DC blockbuster comes to cinemas at a weird time: The transition between the Zack Snyder-conceived DCEU and the new and exciting James Gunn-led DCU. So, the main curiosity from fans regarding this movie is: How does it fit into the conflicting DC universes? Early reactions from critics are here to let you know.Shazam! Fury of the Gods brings back Billy Batson (Zachary Levi/Asher Angel) and his group of friends as they band together once again to protect the world from the daughters of Greek god Atlas, who come to threaten the superhero. As Batson states in the trailer, “it’s all about family,” and this entry will see the protagonist’s adopted siblings wield the full extent of their powers, which we only got to witness a small bit of in the first movie.Aside from Levy, the star-studded cast of Shazam! Fury of the Gods features Helen Mirren, Lucy Liu, Djimon Hounsou, Rachel Zegler, Adam Brody, Ian Chen, Meagan Good, Jack Dylan Grazer, Ross Butler, and D.J. Cotrona. The movie is once again directed by David F. Sandberg, from a screenplay written by Henry Gayden and Chris Morgan.
Check Out Shazam! Fury of the Gods Early Reactions Here
Considering the magnitude of the project and the moment of DC in cinemas and behind the scenes, it’s no surprise that a good number of critics felt motivated to check Shazam! Fury of the Gods out and see where it leaves the franchise. One thing seems to be guaranteed: You’ll have lots of fun with the adventure, as it plays up its comedic moments just like Shazam! did.
Sentiment here at Collider was split, with Steve Weintraub highlighting the comedy of the film, and the fun of seeing it with an audience. On the other hand, Ross Bonaime was less taken with the film, singling out Grazer and Hounsou as stand-outs, while not finding much comedy in it otherwise.
Critics Brandon Davis, Rohit Rajput, and Rama Tampubolon all had high praise for the film as well, calling the film thematically resonant, a worthy sequel, and full of surprises.
Mama's Geeky's Tessa Smith singled out the film's villains, while also saying it was Glazer that stole the show, while But Why Tho's Swara Salih credited Sandberg's direction for bringing the whole thing together.
On the other side of things, some critics felt the movie didn't reach the heights promised by the marketing, with Cheat Sheet's Jeff Nelson calling it "standard superhero fare," and MSB reviews saying that the film was "almost saved" by the cast. Critic Elysia Brenner says the film doesn't compare to the first, but also indicated that the credit scenes answer questions about "future plans." What exactly that means, audiences will have to find out in theaters.
Overall, it seems critics mostly had fun with the superhero adventure, even though gears are shifting away from the DCEU and into the new era heralded by Gunn and Safran.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods premieres this Friday. You can watch the trailer below: