Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson may finally get to play his DC villain next year, as the actor says Black Adam will begin filming next year. Although Johnson is one of the longest tenured members of the DC universe, based on the timing of his casting, he has yet to actually make an appearance. He was cast as Black Adam all the way back in 2014, where he was envisioned as the villain of Shazam! This plan changed, partially because of Johnson's influence, and saw Warner Bros. and DC Films green light a solo movie for Johnson to star in.

It has been two years since Black Adam was announced to be in development, and The Rock's increasingly busy schedule has made it all the more difficult to fit in. Warner Bros. previously hired a writer in Adam Sztykiel for the project, and Johnson has remained incredibly optimistic about the shooting schedule of his solo film. There have been several instances of him saying when production could begin, and he's now provided another possible update.

In an Instagram post, Johnson revealed that the current plan for Black Adam will see production begin in about a year. This would give the solo movie a range of spring to summer 2020 to start filming. If this plan does stick, then Black Adam could possibly be ready to hit theaters in the early parts of 2022.


Johnson's optimism around Black Adam's filming schedule is well-placed, but there are still several steps that the movie needs to take before cameras can start rolling. One of the biggest hurdles that it has yet to clear is naming a director. There was prior speculation online that some of Johnson's familiar partners could also take the lead here, but nothing has transpired to this point. This timeline still gives Black Adam several more months to find the right person for the job, so hopefully this is the time when Johnson's hopes actually result in some good news.

The overall interest in Black Adam is already high with a star like Johnson attached, but it could also see a spike thanks to Shazam! Johnson executive produced the origin story and managed to work in some setup for Black Adam in the process. Audiences who want to know more about the previous champion selected by the Council of Wizards may not have to look any further than Black Adam. And with Shazam! being a hit with audiences, there is even more anticipation from fans that want to see Black Adam face off with Zachary Levi's Shazam in the future. Since Black Adam appears to be part of the plan before such a fight can occur, we'll just have to hope that filming will indeed begin filming in 2020, so that the wheels can be set in motion for this showdown.

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