Warner Bros. has hired writer Bill Birch for Shazam!, the DC Comics version of Captain Marvel. It is being developed as a potential new franchise.
Director Peter Segal (Get Smart) has been onboard the project for some time and continues to be. Comic writer Geoff Johns will co-write and consult on the project.
Segal and producer Michael Ewing began working on the film three years ago at New Line before it moved over to Warner Bros. Shazam! is about teenager Billy Batson who transforms into Captain Marvel when he shouts the magical word.
The comic was originally published in ’40s at at the time was even more popular that Superman. DC sued the original publisher saying that Captain Marvel was a rip off of Superman. By the ’50s Captain Marvel was dead.
Later the popularity of the dead hero had a resurgence and DC began publishing a new monthly Shazam! comic in the ’70s and he became a stable of the DC Universe.
Previous drafts of the script have been written by John August, William Goldman, Bryan Goluboff and the team of Joel Cohen and Alec Sokolow.
Birch is currently writing One Finger Salute with Segal attached to direct.
Source: Variety
