Following reports that Shazam: Fury of the Gods is tracking only to break $35-$40 million in its domestic release weekend, Dame Helen Mirren may hold the key to that concern.
The acclaimed, Oscar-winning actress plays one of Atlas’ daughters, Hespera, in the DC Comics/Warner Bros. sequel. While doing a UK publicity junket on the wildly popular “Graham Norton Show,” Mirren talked about various things about filming the family-friendly sequel.
For example, she broke her finger performing her own stunts. The woman is 77! Actors half her age use stunt doubles. Give Helen Mirren a Red Bull; she thinks she’s back in her 30s! You go, girl. Even that story didn’t get the publicity that her next story is getting across the pond.
“Don’t ask me about the plot; it’s too complicated. [Lucy Liu and I] are angry goddesses wearing unbelievably heavy costumes. It was very hot and uncomfortable and in fact, Lucy said at the end of the first day’s shooting, ‘They are trying to kill us,’ in all seriousness.”
Helen Mirren: “Not a Big Superhero Type.”
Like Lucy Liu, who plays Hespera’s sidekick Kalypso in planetary devastation, Mirren appears in full force in the trailers. She knows how to suit up for fantasy and science fiction movies. Those genres aren’t new for her, as we have seen in The Snow Queen (1995), The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (2005), Inkheart (2008), or Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole (2010).
However, the CBM world is a new achievement for the iconic leading lady. That may be why the comment about the “heavy costumes” was so funny. The good thing about her excitement level is that David F. Sandberg‘s origin story about Billy Batson was something that got Mirren’s attention.
I wanted to do it because I loved the first ‘Shazam!’ It was sweet and funny. I am not a big superhero-type person, but I loved the idea of it and happily signed up for the second one. It is great.
This is a preeminent actress who has excelled in a few Shakespearian theatrical presentations and movies. And, if you aren’t familiar with her force in acting, see The Queen. That said, Helen Mirren understands how to make complex dialogue in a dense plotline seem easy. And she says Shazam: Fury of the Gods is complicated?!
Whether you believe in one God or many, it’s time to pray DC fans. Watch lightning strike (maybe) in theaters March 17.
Since he saw ‘Dune’ in the $1 movie theater as a kid, this guy has been a lover of geek culture. It wasn’t until he became a professional copywriter, ghostwriter, and speechwriter that he began to write about it (a lot).
From the gravitas of the Sith, the genius of Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, or the gluttony of today’s comic fan, SPW digs intelligent debate about entertainment. He’s also addicted to listicles, storytelling, useless trivia, and the Oxford comma. And, he prefers his puns intended.
