Dwayne Johnson has shown an intense amount of dedication to Black Adam over the years. In fact, in an effort to achieve his vision for the film, Dwayne Johnson allegedly upset WB executives by speaking directly to CEO David Zaslav.
This comes via Variety where they tried to gather some of what went on before James Gunn and Peter Safran took over DC. As we all know, the two have since decided to replace Henry Cavill’s Superman with a new actor. But Dwayne Johnson did his best to not only bring back Cavill as Superman – but put the character on a path directly against his own character Black Adam.
For the most part, Dwayne Johnson succeeded. While we won’t be seeing the promised Black Adam sequel where he finally fights Superman, Henry Cavill still managed to make a post-credits appearance in the blockbuster film. It’s a moment that no one expected. And, apparently, it only happened because Dwayne Johnson spoke directly with CEO David Zaslav. As stated by one source:
“Dwayne went around everyone, which didn’t sit well.”
Ultimately, the decision to bring back Henry Cavill as Superman was approved by new Warner Bros film co-heads Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy. They acquired their possitions after previous DC head Walter Hamada and Warner Bros film chief Toby Emmerich began their departures from the company.
Additionally, while Henry Cavill won’t be returning as Superman, it seems Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam will similarly remain absent. Dwayne Johnson previously revealed his discussions with James Gunn and that his character won’t be making an appearance in the first chapter of the DCU. While he could possibly return at some later point – that all remains to be seen. It’s unlikely that Black Adam did well enough to warrant a direct sequel. And, without Henry Cavill’s Superman, it seems unlikely that it would directly follow the first film anyways.
As of this writing, Black Adam is currently available to stream via HBO Max. Stay tuned to ScreenGeek for any additional updates regarding Warner Bros and the DCU as we have them.