A new audition tape has surfaced online that teases the involvement of Freddy Freeman in the Shazam! movie. Freddy is otherwise known as Captain Marvel Jr. — a mainstay of the original Whiz Comics since the early 1940s, who eventually took up the Captain Marvel mantle himself in the late ’00s.
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Discovered by Omega Underground, the audition tape teases this surprise inclusion of the movie. It sees young actor Brendan Heard, who’s been in Odd Squad and Hannibal, auditioning for a character named “Frank”. Though it’s not explicitly “Freddy,” the tape indicates that the character has a disability, which lines up with the aforementioned character.
We also learn that “Frank” is obsessed with superheroes, owning a replica Batarang and the casing of a bullet that bounced off of the Man of Steel himself, Superman. This reveals that these heroes exist in the Shazam! movie, further confirming its likely inclusion in the DC Extended Universe. This tape isn’t the first to surface; a tape featuring Arrow alum Parker Young revealed that he auditioned for the titular role.
Shazam! is slated to shoot on February 5th until May 4th in Toronto, written and directed by David F. Sandberg. Dwayne Johnson was long attached to Shazam!, ultimately settling on playing the role of the hero’s longtime foe, Black Adam. However, it was announced in January that Johnson won’t appear in Shazam!; instead, he will star in a separate Black Adam movie.
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Expected to be the next DC Comics-based film to go into production, Shazam! is rumored to be eyeing such actors as John Cena and Joshua Sasse for the title role. It’s targeted for release in 2019.