Helen Mirren will soon be going toe to toe with Zachary Levi in Shazam: Fury of the Gods.
Update (3/23/2021): According to Deadline, actress Helen Mirren has officially joined the cast of New Line and DC Films’ highly anticipated Shazam sequel.
For her part, Mirren is set to take on the role of Hespera in Shazam: Fury of the Gods. Hespera is a daughter of Atlas, and also happens to be the film’s villain.
The Academy Award winner joins Zachary Levi, who’s already on board to reprise his role as the titular superhero alter ego of Billy Baston.
Mirren’s involvement with the highly anticipated sequel comes just a few weeks after word that West Side Story breakout, Rachel Zegler, has also joined the cast of Shazam: Fury of the Gods.
You can read up on Zegler’s casting announcement below!
Original Story (2/26/2021):
Shazam 2 has found its newest cast member in up-and-coming actress Rachel Zegler.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, actress Rachel Zegler has officially joined the cast of DC Films’ upcoming Shazam sequel, Shazam: Fury of the Gods.
Details surrounding who Zegler will portray in the highly anticipated sequel are being kept firmly under wraps for now. One thing we do know is that the rising star has been cast in a key role for the sequel.
The actress took to Twitter shortly after news broke to comment on scoring a role in the sequel with a pair of tweets, the first of which thanked DC fans for their excitement.
“DC fans, thank you for this warm welcome. I am feeling so supremely blessed,” tweeted Zegler.
dc fans, thank you for this warm welcome. i am feeling so supremely blessed. ⚡️💖
— rachel zegler (she/her/hers) (@rachelzegler) February 26, 2021
She followed up by re-sharing one of her own tweets from back in 2019 in which she mentioned running into Shazam star Zachary Levi.
aged like a fine wine methinks https://t.co/4ql7opFTfJ
— rachel zegler (she/her/hers) (@rachelzegler) February 26, 2021
Levi is already on board to reprise his role as the titular superhero for the New Line sequel. Others who are also back for second helpings include David F. Sandberg (who directed the first installment of the burgeoning franchise), as well as producer Peter Safran.
Meanwhile, Henry Gayden and Chris Morgan will split screenwriting duties on the sequel.
Shazam: Fury of the Gods isn’t set to hit theaters until 2023, but fans won’t have to wait that long before they can catch Rachel Zegler in action on the silver screen.
Coming up next, the young star will hit the big screen as part of director Steven Spielberg’s upcoming West Side Story remake. Zegler stars as Maria in the upcoming remake— a role she scored after beating out over 30,000 other hopefuls vying for the coveted part.
West Side Story hits theaters on December 10, 2021.