Shazam Director Returns for Until Dawn Adaptation Despite IP Movie Backlash

You probably never imagined seeing Shazam! and Shazam: Fury of the Gods director David F. Sandberg helm another IP film or franchise, and frankly, neither did he. However, as his new film Until Dawn gears up for its theatrical release, he's opened up about the intense backlash he faced with his previous DC Cinematic Universe projects and what enticed him back into the world of IP.

"What I loved about the script [is] that it wasn't trying to recreate the game," Sandberg shared with GamesRadar+ about adapting the beloved horror game into a film. "Trying to condense 10 hours into two, or something like that. But it is scary still, even though we're doing a new thing." He emphasized that even when working on a game adaptation, IP fans have strong expectations for how their favorite stories should be portrayed on screen.

"I mean, to be honest, fans can get very, very crazy and very angry with you. You can get, like, death threats and everything, so after Shazam 2, I was like, 'I never wanna do another IP-based movie because it's just not worth it,'" the filmmaker admitted, reflecting on his experience with the DCU and its aftermath.

Yet, the potential of the story in Until Dawn was too compelling to pass up. "But then I was sent this script, and I was like, 'Ah, this would be so much fun to do, to do all these kinds of horrors? I kind of have to do it, and hope that the people see what we're trying to do and like it,'" Sandberg said. He praised the writers for their innovative approach, stating, "I really thought it was brilliant of the writers to come up with this time loop idea where the night starts over because then you do kind of get that feel of the game, when you're replaying it and making different choices. I think it's very much in the spirit of the game."

The filmmaker understands that it's impossible to satisfy every fan when adapting an IP, but his approach aims to win over the Until Dawn community. "I think we would've gotten a lot of critique if we had tried to [recreate the game], because people would've been like, 'It's not as good. It's not the same actors, because, you know, they're older now,'" the Shazam director explained. "You wouldn't be able to better the game, so you'd just be in a losing situation."

Until Dawn, penned by Blair Butler and Gary Dauberman, who is best known for writing It: Chapter Two, stars Ella Rubin and is set to hit theaters on April 25, 2025.