The stunning first trailer for Black Adam is here

The Shazam and DC universes will expand later this year with Black Adam. Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra and starring Dwayne Johnson, the film will focus on Teth-Adam, a man from ancient times who’s transformed into a super-being known as Black Adam by the wizard Shazam.

Adam attempts to liberate the people of his home country of Kahndaq, but goes too far and is imprisoned. 5,000 years later, he is freed and is forced to face the modern world, as well as a group of new superheroes known as the Justice Society.

Black Adam is flying into theaters on October 21, and Warner Bros. Discovery has unveiled the film’s first trailer.

Watch the Black Adam trailer

Throughout the last decade, Dwayne Johnson has built a reputation as a likable and sympathetic leading man with films like Rampage, Skyscraper and the Fast and Furious franchise. Black Adam offers him an opportunity to twist that dynamic.

This trailer shows us the titular antihero is not someone you want to play around with, and not someone you would necessarily be able to reason with if his mind is already set on something. 

Of course, as the film’s protagonist, Adam will likely have redeeming qualities and therefore won’t be all-out evil. However, the character allows Johnson to show off a different side of his acting talents and provides audiences with a darker perspective on the superhero environment (previously explored in films like Birds of Prey and The Suicide Squad), which is an enticing prospect.

Another highlight of this first trailer is the action. It feels relentless and exciting, which is appropriate for a DC Comics blockbuster focused on a character as larger-than-life (and all-out powerful) as Teth-Adam.

Pairing Black Adam With Other Superheroes 

Aside from having to adjust to waking up millennia away from his original time period, Black Adam will also have to contend with the Justice Society, a group of superheroes comprised of Hawkman (Aldis Hodge), Cyclone (Quintessa Swindell), Doctor Fate (Pierce Brosnan) and Atom Smasher (Noah Centineo).

The confrontations between the Justice Society and Black Adam will probably offer plenty of exciting moments. But eye-popping special effects isn’t the only thing the heroes will bring to the table.

Speaking with Total Film in 2021, director Jaume Collet-Serra stated that having the Justice Society as an opposing force for Adam opened the door for “interesting situations,” seemingly teasing fun character interactions:

"“You have a couple of seasoned veterans, like Hawkman and Doctor Fate, and you have a couple of newbies like Atom Smasher and Cyclone. […] And that chemistry and coming together to try to defeat someone who’s undefeatable like Black Adam, creates a lot of interesting situations – without having the pressure to carry the whole movie. That’s a much more fresh way in.”"

In the animated Black Adam teaser released during 2020’s DC FanDome, the antihero made it clear that he is not a nice person: “Kahndaq needed a hero. Instead, they got me. I did what needed to be done, and they imprisoned me for it.”

Most of the members of the Justice Society — in the comics, at least — live by common superhero values (i.e., no brutality and at times, no killing).

So far, it seems none of those values apply to Black Adam, so having Hawkman, Doctor Fate and their teammates be in direct opposition of him could result in engaging and thought-provoking interactions.

Black Adam will land in theaters on Oct. 21, 2022.

What did you think about the first trailer for Black Adam? Let us know in the comments!