Disclaimer: This article contains major spoilers from Shazam! Fury of the Gods.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods is finally here! The sequel comes after Shazam! (2019) and is one of the last films from the DC Universe before new studio heads James Gunn and Peter Safran take over. The buzz around the character seems to have fizzled out over time but he remains a key player in upcoming properties. Directed by David F. Sandberg, the film brings back Zachary Levi as the titular superhero. This time around, Billy Batson is figuring out how to fight crime in Philadelphia while keeping his family together (yes, there’s a Fast and Furious reference somewhere in there). The film also brings in hype-worthy new villains in the form of the Daughters of Atlas – Helen Mirren as Hespera, Lucy Liu as Kalypso and Rachel Zegler as Anthea.
If you’re wondering whether the film has a big impact on the DC Universe, the short answer is not really. But it is an entertaining ride with some key tie-ins that reveal where we’ll see Levi’s Shazam next. With everything that went down in the film’s run-time and post-credits scenes, we’re delving into what the ending means.
What happened in Shazam! Fury of the Gods?
Fury of the Gods is largely an entertaining ride that sees Billy Batson (Asher Angel) trying to keep his siblings interested in their superhero duties while they start branching off on their own. It doesn’t help that they continue making headlines as the “Philadelphia Fiascos” leaving a trail of damage every time they Shazam-up. But things really go south when Billy’s past mistake comes back to bite him. In the first film, he broke the wizard Shazam’s (Djimon Hounsou) staff and this brought the Daughters of Atlas into the picture. They have a bone to pick with mankind and it’s up to the siblings to stop them. While Kalypso has a special hatred for humans, the youngest daughter Anthea develops a bond with Freddy (Jack Dylan Grazer). Both these subplots have an impact on the final showdown.
What happens during the ending of Shazam! Fury of the Gods?
Near the end of Shazam! Fury of the Gods, Kalypso decides to act on her own. She takes the wizard’s staff, the Seed of Life contained in a golden apple, gets on a dragon and flies into a baseball field in Philadelphia where she plants the seed in the soil. This unleashes a large tree with rapidly growing roots and a slew of scary beasts. All this while Billy Batson’s siblings have lost their powers leaving him to go up against Kalypso (and her dragon) all alone. Kalypso also lands a fatal blow to her sister Hespera when she tries to stop her from turning into a complete fanatic.
In the final clash, Billy takes back the staff and powers it up with lightning. He then flies through dragon fire and says the word – Shazam! which works as Kalypso, the dragon and the tree are all destroyed. With the tree, the monsters are gone too but Billy is presumed dead by his heartbroken family. In fact, they also bury him and have a funeral.
So is Shazam dead?
Of course not! When all hope seems lost, in comes Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot). She uses her powers to spark Shazam’s staff back to its powers and resurrect Billy who climbs out of his grave to be reunited with his family. He also tries to flirt with Wonder Woman who politely tells him he has other things to attend to. The happy ending sees the siblings at home with their adoptive parents who are now aware of their superheroics. Joining them is Anthea who has picked sides and decides to hang back with Freddy.
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What happened in the post-credits scene?
Shazam! Fury of the Gods has two end-credits scenes. In the mid-credits scene, we see Peacemaker’s Agent Emilia Harcourt and John Economos walking at an unknown location to find a new recruit. Meanwhile, Billy/Shazam is seen aiming his lightning bolts at soda cans when he’s interrupted by the two. Emilia tells him that she’d like to recruit him to join a superhero group. As soon as she says “Justice” Billy immediately agrees to assume it’s Justice League. That’s when she corrects him and says that she means the Justice Society. Bummed out, Billy complains about the confusing names as he wants to join the group with Wonder Woman. As an extended joke, he also references the Avengers while suggesting new name ideas. While Billy is processing, Emilia and Economos leave. Make of that what you will.
The post-credits scene reveals a recall of the first Shazam! film. We get a lowdown on what Dr. Thaddeus Sivana (Mark Strong) is up to. He’s still in prison. The walls feature a graphic of Shazam getting murdered. He’s by himself till Mr. Mind, a talking worm shows up. When Sivana demands to know what’s taking him so long to get out of prison, he simply says it takes him a while to get around since he’s, you know, a worm. Mr. Mind then says he has other business to attend to and leaves leaving an enraged Sivana. It is unclear what this scene means for the future of Shazam. The last movie didn’t give away much about Sivana either so it looks like the villain won’t impact the storyline anytime soon.
What does this mean for the future of the DC universe?
The two scenes do leave more questions than answers. But the mid-credits scene hints at the studio having plans to retain Levi’s Shazam with the Justice Society of America or perhaps a Peacemaker spin-off that could be in the works. We do know that James Gunn wants the character around in DC Universe’s future. But it’s going to be a while before we get any concrete information on how he’ll figure it in.
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