The fallout from Shazam! Fury of the Gods hasn’t reflected particularly kindly upon Dwayne Johnson, with the actor and producer being pinpointed as holding onto Black Adam so tightly that it ultimately had a negative impact on the DCU at large.
Even though he produced Zachary Levi’s first outing as the costumed crimefighter through his Seven Bucks company, it felt more like a means to an end in order to leverage the Man in Black into a showdown opposite Henry Cavill’s Man of Steel, especially when it’s been claimed that he was rejecting cameo and crossover opportunities left and right.
If we take Levi’s comments at face value, then not only did The Rock knock back a guest spot in Fury of the Gods, but he also blocked Shazam from returning the favor in Black Adam, before vetoing the Justice Society popping up in the post-credits of the recent box office disaster, leaving James Gunn regulars Steve Agee and Jennifer Holland to pick up the slack.
With that in mind – should it be 100 percent factual, of course – then you get the feeling Levi won’t be inclined to agree with the sentiment that Johnson is in fact “the kindest man in Hollywood,” a title he accepted humbly.
Off-camera, Johnson’s good deeds are a regular and heartwarming occurrence, but you don’t make it to the very top of the industry ladder without causing some collateral damage. Ironically, Black Adam proved to be one of the highest-profile casualties, but that doesn’t mean the 50 year-old can’t be regarded as a kind-hearted soul when he’s not obsessing over his own IP.