'Shazam! Fury of the Gods' Abysmal Opening Director "Done With Superheroes for Now"

Warner Bros.

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Following the opening weekend bomb of Shazam! Fury of the Gods in theaters, director David F. Sandberg expressed that he is stepping away from creating superhero films for now.

Shazam! Fury of the Gods was the second sequel to the 2019 Shazam film. Sandberg also directed the first film, which received a 90% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and 420 votes. In his thread of Tweets on March 20, Sandberg explained that this sequel has garnered him his “lowest critic score” and at the same time, his “highest audience score on the same film.” While he did not expect “a repeat of the first movie critically,” Sandberg did say that he felt “a little surprised because I think it’s a good film.” The director took this opportunity to reveal that this is as good a time as any to take a stape back and focus on the horror genre, “Oh well. As I’ve been saying for a while now I’m very eager to go back to horror (as well as trying some new things). After six years of Shazam I’m definitely done with superheroes for now.”

Sandberg clarifies to fans that his being done with superhero films does not mean he did not enjoy making them, “I’ve learned so much and gotten to work with some truly amazing people. Will forever be grateful that I got to direct two of these!” He doubles down writing, ” They’ve been very challenging but valuable experiences,” however, it appears that he greatly looks forward to “disconnecting from the superhero discourse online.” In regards to the low ratings for the second Shazam film, the sequel came in at a lower-than-estimated $30.5 million USD during the opening weekend. The film itself cost over $110 million USD to make and another $100 million USD to market and is looking to be an unlikely win for Warner Bros. and DC Comics. Take a look at his tweets below.

As I’ve been saying for a while now I’m very eager to go back to horror (as well as trying some new things). After six years of Shazam I’m definitely done with superheroes for now.
— David F. Sandberg (@ponysmasher) March 20, 2023

One thing I’ve really been looking forward to is disconnecting from the superhero discourse online. A lot of that stresses me out so much and it will be nice not having to think about that anymore.
— David F. Sandberg (@ponysmasher) March 20, 2023