Zachary Levi had a brief run at the Marvel Cinematic Universe before joining the DC Extended Universe as Shazam. But Shazam 2 was a box-office disappointment propelling the franchise to be put on hold indefinitely, and DC is unlikely to move ahead with Shazam 3.
But Levi is undeterred by the failure of his DCEU run, the actor is now back in action with Guy Moshe’s action thriller Hotel Tehran. He will play Tucker and the premise of the movie will be set in Afghanistan as confirmed by the director.
Zachary Levi Returns With a New Action Thriller
Zachary Levi is all set to bring his A-game in a new action thriller Hotel Tehran. Holly and Bunraku director Guy Moshe is excited to bring Levi on board to lead a group of disgraced, war-torn ex-CIA operators who set out to Tehran to take down a life-changing score. Moshe co-wrote the screenplay with Mark Bacci which is based on an original idea by The Blacklist star Bazzel Baz. Moshe is very enthusiastic about moving the project forward with Levi, speaking with Deadline, the director said:
“Can’t wait to collaborate with Zac on this. He’s not only a great actor but also an insightful partner. We both share the same vision for what we hope and believe will be a special film beyond the confines of the genre.”
As per the outlet, Hotel Tehran will begin production this May, and Oakhurst Entertainment, Astral Future, and Dreamtime Films are producing the film. “Zac and Guy are an ideal team! Zac is an incredibly talented actor and we know he will deliver a knockout performance,” Oakhurst’s Marina Grasic has high hopes for the project. Several fans were curious about Levi’s next potential role after his DCEU run and Levi is all set to make his cinematic return with a bang.
Shazam: Zachary Levi’s Uncertain Fate At DC
There is no denying that Levi had the opportunity to shine in the Shazam! Fury of the Gods. Of course, Shazam 1 was a huge success considering the introduction of a new character in the DCEU as the movie went on to gross over a worldwide total of $368 million while receiving wide critical reception. On the contrary, the sequel failed miserably with a worldwide total of just $134 million. Remarkably, the failure of the sequel almost closed the door for Levi’s potential future appearance in DCEU, at least in a solo movie anyway. Also, James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DC revamp may not have the space for another ride for Levi at the studio. Regardless, the 43-year-old was happy to reprise his role. Speaking with The FilmUp Podcast, Levi addressed the negative reviews of the Shazam! Fury of the Gods.
“As an experience, I really enjoyed making that movie and I really enjoyed playing that part. I don’t know what the future holds for it all because, unfortunately, the second movie was not as well-received. I mean, the audience score is still quite good, but the critic score was, I don’t know, very oddly and perplexingly low and people were insanely unkind,” Levi said.
Considering the current atmosphere of the DC Studios facing back-to-back box office failure, Levi’s future in DC is pretty bleak as Warner Brothers Discovery producing the film would be slim to none.
