When it comes to naming good DC superhero movies, Batman and Superman are the two names people often think about. However, one movie that is often swept under the rug is none other than Shazam! Shazam! follows the tale of Billy, a young boy who is constantly running away from foster houses in search of his real mother. However, his life takes an interesting turn when he gets superhero abilities from a wizard in order to stop the Seven Deadly Sins, who have been set free by Doctor Sivana. While the premise is enough to hook the audience in, Shazam! is still one of the most underrated movies, not only in terms of box office, but also in the eyes of the audience. Here are the reasons why that is so.

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     Warner Bros. Pictures

In simple words, whether one likes to admit it or not, the popularity of a superhero really plays a role in how well a movie about them will do. Shazam! isn’t really an A-list superhero. Thus, it doesn’t get as much attention as some of the other superheroes do in pop culture, such as Wonder Woman, Batman, Spider-Man, Superman, and so on. Even though he is well respected by comic book nerds and superhero fans, it is where it ends. No one is a huge fan of Shazam!, in fact, many aren’t aware of his existence. One may argue a similar case with Captain Marvel, but by being linked with Avengers, fans were able to look forward to it. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case with Shazam!.

Brand Value

At this point, DC fans need to face it; when it comes to superhero movies, Marvel has taken the throne. It wouldn’t be unjust to say that the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is now one of the most loved and known franchises after Star Wars. And now with Disney, MCU is able to get exposure and promotion more than they ever did before. Now, each and every movie that MCU releases is guaranteed to be huge. However, if we look at DC, this isn’t really the case. While they did really well with The Dark Knight franchise, it somehow died down. At this point, DC movies are very hit or miss, making their movies not as anticipated by the general public.

The Storyline is a Bit Peculiar

While most stories heed a cardboard cutout three-act hero structure, it isn’t the case with this one. Shazam! has a unique take on the origin story itself. As the audience can see that the wizard needs to transfer his power to someone who has a pure heart and isn’t crooked. However, that isn’t the case with Billy. He isn’t the Mr. goodie two shoes, who wants to save people, initially. In fact, he is a complete brat, and cynical. Even in the scene where Billy gets summoned by the wizard, he just picks him up and says he will have to do it without looking much into his character. Billy getting power feels quite ironic at the start, because he uses it for his benefits, such as to watch strippers, and become a Youtube star. Not so pure-hearted after all.

Not only this, but the structure of the movie is peculiar. Shazam! doesn’t really have a plot. The movie begins with him searching for his mother, and getting sidetracked by new superpowers. However, for most of the movie, he does nothing with them except fool around. In fact, the end of it is even more bizarre, as he shares his power with almost all of his supporting characters who together, defeat the villain.

Marketing

Another big reason that played a role in its box office failure was the marketing. Marketing makes or breaks everything. Therefore, it is really important to create proper hype around your movie. This is where Shazam! fell short yet again. When it came to the marketing, there wasn’t much done, to the point the audience had no idea that DC was releasing a new movie. On the other hand, they had barely any budget set for its campaign, which led to barely a few people looking forward to it.

Doesn’t Follow DC Color Theme

When it comes to distinguishing between DC and Marvel, one of the biggest ways to do so is by looking at their shots, and themes. Marvel movies are known for their particular style with colorful, bright shots and quite witty dialogue. On the other hand, DC movies have a particular style of their own. They are mostly dark, saturated, and contain serious themes. However, Shazam! doesn’t follow that. It is somehow a blend of both franchises. In a dim and gloomy world, he is a cheerful and bright superhero. The movie addresses serious issues like abandonment, abuse, and poverty, all from a child’s point of view. However, at the same time, it is absolutely hilarious. Shazam! follows a dream-like narrative that occasionally dips into nightmares. This approach isn’t the cup of tea for most DC fans, as they think the producers and writers of Shazam! played too much for laughs.

Date of Release

This is without a doubt one of the biggest reasons behind Shazam! being underrated. Picking the right release date for any movie is highly essential when it comes to making sales, especially when it is a superhero movie. This is because in superhero movies, Marvel Cinematic Universe is leading the race, and fans of MCU drop everything else when a new movie is released. Unfortunately, Shazam! was sandwiched between two of the most anticipated MCU movies, Captain Marvel and Avengers: Endgame — talk about having terrible timing. In fact, to make the situation even worse, Shazam!’s release date was even less than a month prior to Endgame. This small margin gave it little-to-no time to bring in as many tickets as they could, because once Avengers: Endgame hit the cinema, all other movies’ screenings were empty. Because of its bad timing, the movie wasn’t able to shine through as the spotlight was entirely on the admiringly anticipated MCU releases.