It was directed by David F. Sandberg from a screenplay by Henry Gayden who co-wrote the story with Darren Lemke, and stars Zachary Levi, Mark Strong, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer, and Djimon Hounsou.

William Goldman, Alec Sokolow, Joel Cohen, Bill Birch, and Geoff Johns, among others, were all attached to the project as writers at various points.

In 1974 in Upstate New York, young Thaddeus Sivana is riding in a car with his abusive father and elder brother Sid during a snowstorm, and is mocked and verbally harassed by them constantly.

A social worker places Billy in a group home run by Víctor and Rosa Vásquez with five other foster children: "den mother" Mary Bromfield, shy Pedro Peña, obsessive gamer Eugene Choi, energetic Darla Dudley, and superhero enthusiast Freddy Freeman.

Freddy is taken into Billy's confidence and helps him explore his newfound powers, which include superhuman strength, near-invulnerability, superspeed, and electrokinesis.

[17] Director David F. Sandberg makes cameo appearances performing as each of the three Crocodile-Men (collaboratively assisted by Steve Newburn and Ned Morill), and provides the voice of the alien lifeform Mister Mind during a mid-credits sequence.

[21] Executive producer Dwayne Johnson's likeness is used for the mystically generated holograph of Teth-Adam, which the wizard Shazam conjures while teaching Billy the history of the Rock of Eternity, the Seven Realms of Magic, and his previous Champion.

[23] The Seven Deadly Sins – a supernatural team of villains consisting of the demons Pride, Envy, Greed, Lust, Wrath, Gluttony, and Sloth – were portrayed by stunt doubles in motion capture suits on-set during filming, and depicted on-screen through CGI special effects.

In an Easter egg appearance, Andi Osho reprises her role as social worker Emma Glover from Sandberg's debut film Lights Out.

live-action feature film in the early 2000s, with multiple screenplay drafts, by William Goldman, the team of Alec Sokolow and Joel Cohen, Bryan Goluboff, and John August.

[28] Following the success of Warner's Batman film The Dark Knight and the commercial failure of its lighter, family-friendly Speed Racer, both during the summer of 2008,[28] August departed from the project, citing pressure from the studio to make the screenplay darker and more serious.

[31] In August 2009, Bill Birch and Geoff Johns, a prominent DC Comics writer, were assigned to write the screenplay, while Segal remained attached as director.

[32] In August 2010, the studio considered canceling the theatrical film in favor of a live-action series for prime time network television.

[33] In December 2013, Segal stated that the film would not be happening, as the similarities between Captain Marvel and Superman had become an obstacle after the successful launch of Man of Steel earlier that year.

[38] In April 2014, Warner Bros. revealed their upcoming slate of films based on DC Comics properties: Shazam!, Metal Men, Fables, and 100 Bullets.

[48] After being cast as the lead, Zachary Levi stated in an interview, "the idea is that it's gonna feel like the movie Big, but with super powers," when was asked about the direction DC Films and New Line Cinema are going for with Shazam!

backup feature from the Justice League comic book, by writer Geoff Johns and artist Gary Frank,[50] which told a modernized version of Shazam's origin.

[51] In August 2017, director David F. Sandberg stated that the film would be the next to shoot in the DC universe,[52][unreliable source] and by the end of the month, it had begun pre-production.

[57][unreliable source] Zachary Levi, John Cena, Zane Holtz, Jake McDorman, Derek Theler and Billy Magnussen all met with and/or auditioned for Sandberg for the role of Shazam.

[67] Later that month, Spanish actress Marta Milans joined the cast to play Rosa Vásquez, one of the foster parents at the home where Billy lives.

[51] Mike Wassel (Hellboy II: The Golden Army and the Fast & Furious franchise) and Kelvin McIlwain (Aquaman) were the overall visual effects supervisors for the film.

Technicolor's VFX studios Mr. X (known for The Shape of Water and Tron: Legacy) and Moving Picture Company (MPC) provided visual effects.

"[93] On July 21, 2018, the first teaser trailer was shown at San Diego Comic-Con during the Warner Bros. panel at Hall H, with Sandberg, Zachary Levi, Asher Angel, and Jack Dylan Grazer in attendance.

[110] In its fourth weekend, it made $5.6 million and finished fifth at the box office, including behind fellow superhero films Avengers: Endgame and Captain Marvel.

is goofier (and darker) than it may look, you'll wish its superhero came with a little more spark,"[116] while The Hollywood Reporter's Frank Scheck called the film "Big on steroids" and praised the tone and performances.

Club, Ignatiy Vishnevetsky gave the film a "B−" and said: "...while the story of an extremely overpowered champion rising to challenge a one-dimensionally sinister baddie might seem like the epitome of simplicity, Shazam!

"[119] That publication followed up with a further consideration of masculinity in the film and the superhero genre generally, focusing on the transition of Billy Batson from an adolescent boy to a man with power and responsibility.

[120] Benjamin Lee of The Guardian gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, specifying, "The finale, while admirably self-contained and small-scale, grinds on for far too long, a boring escalation of anti-climaxes that cumulatively dull the intended emotional impact.

On April 8, 2019, TheWrap reported that New Line Cinema was developing a sequel with Henry Gayden returning to write the film, along with David F. Sandberg directing and Peter Safran producing.

Additional casting took place over the next year, including four members of the Justice Society of America (JSA), and the script was re-written by Haines and Noshirvani.