Asher Angel steps out as Billy Batson in new image from Shazam!

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Over the past week we've seen several images of Zachary Levi as the title character in Warner Bros.' upcoming SHAZAM!, but Billy Batson wasn't always a full-grown superhero and in fact starts off the film as a regular 14-year-old played by Asher Angel. Entertainment Weekly has dropped a new image from SHAZAM! which features the young Billy Batson along with his buddy Freddy Freeman (Jack Dylan Grazer). Check it out!

The film finds Billy Batson (Angel) being assigned to a new foster home where he befriends comic-book superfan Freddy (Grazer) whose knowledge of comics and superheroes comes in handy. "Freddy’s a fanbody when it comes to Batman, Superman, the Justice League, so he becomes Billy’s mentor and sansei when it comes to being a superhero," Grazer said. In the above image you can see a few of Freddy's collectables, including an issue of Time Magazine with a World Engine from MAN OF STEEL on the cover as well a framed clipping from The Daily Planet with the headline "Superman is Back". While riding on the subway, Billy is approached by a mysterious Wizard (Djimon Hounsou) who has been searching for ages to find the right successor to inherit his powers. He reveals that Billy has been selected to gain an assortment of abilities, and all it takes is for Billy to say “SHAZAM!” Asher Angel will spout the character's signature phrase many times throughout the movie, but he's certainly not getting tired of it.

Oh my god, I can’t even tell you how many times I practiced saying it! My family and friends are asking if I’ll ever get sick of saying ‘Shazam!’ I’ll never be sick of it. Ever.

The official synopsis for SHAZAM!:

We all have a superhero inside us, it just takes a bit of magic to bring it out. In Billy Batson’s (Angel) case, by shouting out one word—SHAZAM!—this streetwise 14-year-old foster kid can turn into the adult Super Hero Shazam (Levi), courtesy of an ancient wizard. Still a kid at heart—inside a ripped, godlike body—Shazam revels in this adult version of himself by doing what any teen would do with superpowers: have fun with them! Can he fly? Does he have X-ray vision? Can he shoot lightning out of his hands? Can he skip his social studies test? Shazam sets out to test the limits of his abilities with the joyful recklessness of a child. But he’ll need to master these powers quickly in order to fight the deadly forces of evil controlled by Dr. Thaddeus Sivana (Strong).

SHAZAM! is slated for an April 5, 2019 release.