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When I first saw Shazam, I was really blown away by the blend of humor, horror and action. and the latest, Shazam!wrath of the gods, found an interesting sequel. It’s funny and clever, and just as clever and engaging as its predecessor. And much of the credit can be given to the screenwriters behind it.Henry Gayden, who wrote the original film, is back. This time with Chris Morgan. These two of him have done a great job of creating a sequel that keeps the core of its predecessor rather than repeating the same thing.
We recently had the pleasure of speaking with both Chris and Henry about the new film. The two discussed what David F. Sandberg brought to the experience and how cool it was to have Helen Mirren on set. I had the pleasure of speaking with both of them. Luckily, the movie they were talking about is worth watching. You can read my review here.
First, I loved this movie.
Henry Gayden: yes.
Chris Morgan: nice.
HG: That’s great, man. thank you.
See, it’s hard enough to make a satisfying superhero sequel. How did it come about? What was the design that worked with David to find it?
HG: Well, it’s been a long road to get there. We started development a few weeks after the first movie came out. Such a natural first step was to see through Mr. Mind and Dr. Sivana. And so we went through it, and eventually veered into investigating the second run of Jeff John’s Shazam comics. There was nothing to tell the story. All I knew from the beginning was that I wanted to tell the story of how Billy now has a family and what he does. With his family that he is probably afraid of losing it?
We knew it, and we knew it was an internal conflict. So I kept looking for stories that could best reflect and tell that story. It all started one day when I sat down with David and Peter the producer and Walt Hamada and Geoff Johns and I literally said almost random words.
Geoff Johns became “Atlas” because Shazam has the power of Atlas. “Atlas is an interesting person,” which led him to tell the story of Atlas. We all pull out our phones and google Atlas. It’s really basic. Then we came up with our daughters and started creating something really special. And then eventually Chris came along and helped us build a lot of that lore. I will let him speak.
CM: Well, what I find very interesting is how it incorporates the mythology in there, there’s Shazam who has the powers of all these gods, and now it’s going to delve into where they came from. You can play with Greek mythology. So it’s a really fun exploration of a little bit more about Billy, where they came from, and about the Wizard and how he got there.
HG: And I know… I don’t want to speak for David Sandberg, but he’s not here, so I will. Are you renewing your dragon? How can you make it interesting, one of my favorites that Chris came up with was like a terrifying dragon that you came up with a design for.
CM: yes. I just wondered if it was something guarding the Tree of Life or if it was like or similar. yes.
HG: And David had a great time building it.
It’s amazing. When it comes to mixing horror and comedy, it’s a pleasant surprise to work with someone with such knowledge.
HG: I mean, it’s really irreplaceable. One of my favorite scenes of him is the conference room scene in the first movie. And like Doc Ok in Spider-Man 2’s hospital-room energy he brings to horror, there’s a breath of fresh air within that film and genre.
CM: By the way, just a side note here, it’s pretty interesting that horror tends to be momentary. And can you manage the tension? As for action. can you manage the moment? A quick look at David’s Light’s Out and it’s easy to see that he’s good at stuff like this. All of a sudden, pick those moments, those funny moments, those action moments and it paid off. We needed to get him in Fast 7 after watching The Conjuring.
HG: yeah yeah.
CM: Something about understanding what the audience feels, no matter what the genre is, and they tend to prove it.
HG: Also, since we talked about David, I have one more good thing to say about him. He also started animating. It’s really fun to watch movies and see how they structure scenes like in an animated movie, like in Looney Tunes. There are moments when Freddy sneaks around the room, but we don’t get into spoiler territory. And it’s so funny because he does. Anyway, yeah, we like him here.
Oh that’s hilarious. By the way, Fast 7 is one of my favorite him. great job. What I especially enjoyed about this is that we’ve already met these characters that Henry helped introduce us to. , which is difficult for many of these films.
CM: yes.
Did you write it with Helen Mirren in mind?
HG: No, we didn’t write for actors. We have only three daughters and an age group and have really built them as a sort of mirror of Billy’s journey. And the sisters are people who have experienced loss and how they have dealt with it and come into our world. I felt like
CM: Can I say that Henry is very humble? You wrote for Helen Mirren. And that is, as a writer—
HG: This is a pleasure.
CM: …one of the nicest-
HG: However, I did not write knowing that she was her. And it was the highlight of the year.
CM: By the way, I think it’s my favorite scene in the movie. It is very fun.
I mean, it’s not the highlight of the year. It’s a lifetime highlight.
HG: fault. And the whole set was lit with fire, righteous fire, and we were all wearing masks. But it was working.
oh. See, there’s so much balance in these movies. Why do you think this character connects with so many people? What do you think makes him a special and interesting character?
CM: I can say for me
HG: After you.
CM: Listen, I was a fan of this franchise first with the first movie Henry did. It established the characters and really established this kind of friendship with Billy and Freddie. It’s great to see someone who has the ability and is nevertheless just a human being who fucks constantly but doesn’t give up. There’s something about recognizing yourself and rooting for that character. He is incredibly human and incredibly wrong most of the time. No other character suits him so well. It’s pretty incredible.
HG: And I agree with them all. And for me, superhero movies can sometimes get a little too serious for my taste. I really love the boundless joy you can get from meeting a kid. It makes you think, what do I do? And watching kids literally sit in warehouses and experiment with what their abilities are, puts superhero movies in such a fun place for me, and I’ve loved them ever since.
CM: And to me more specific, there’s something about watching Billy go through the adulthood process and screw it all up that resonates with anyone who’s done it. , nasty, awkward, ugly, just loves the guy and makes him feel attached.
No, I agree. Add a little to it. I watch a lot of movies where the hero is very heroic. He’s strong, he’s fit, he’s capable.” But that’s just not how we do it.
CM: No, that’s right.
we are like shazam We have our doubts and we have all of that. I like his flawed nature.
CM: To see him succeed nonetheless.
yes.
CM: …the little things can make a wish come true and give you hope that something can be done.
Now you said you were inspired by some of the earlier comics. Were there any particular stories that stood out that you might have tried but had to cut because they didn’t go well with the story you were talking about?
HG: Well, well, the main two that we followed were down, and then there were a few others, mostly Dr. Sivana and Mr. Mind. And it was really fun, and there’s something about that draft that I’m really, really proud of, but it never felt like the first movie. It didn’t feel like any kind of news story. And it felt a little redundant, so I abandoned it.
Geoff Johns has another series of Shazam comics that we were really after. It was wild, full of creatures, explored all seven dimensions, and the tone felt a little too childish. So when we started from scratch, what are the best villains to meet in a world where Billy might not feel worthy of his power? It is also a villain who thinks he is not worthy of his power.
Ok, perfect. Thank you very much. Time is up. thank you very much.
CM: Thank you so much, man.
yeah yeah. you guys are great Again, good luck with this great movie. It’s a pleasure.
HG: thank you.
CM: thank you. I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Thanks guys.
See more interviews from Shazam!wrath of the gods here!
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