Zachary Levi credits a breakthrough in therapy and personal healing with helping him land the role of superhero Shazam.
During a performance on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon to promote his starring role Shazam! Anger of the GodsLevi said he initially decided not to audition for a role in the DC franchise, in part because he was battling personal demons.
“I was in a kind of dark place in my life at the time. And then fast forward about a month and a half later, and I’m in this super-intensive, life-saving therapy, and I learned to really love myself for the first time in my life, and I’ve got this whole breakthrough,” Levi recalled.
But after also telling his agents that he was taking a break in the middle of his therapy amid the healing progress, Levi nevertheless agreed to audition for a supporting role in the first film. Shazam movie.
And as they did, the casting execs told the Hollywood actor to reach for the top. “Over the course of about a week, I went from auditioning for this whole different role to them saying, ‘Hey, we think you’re our Shazam,'” Levi recalled.
So when his therapy put him in a better place, Levi flew to Los Angeles, did a second audition, and within a week was offered the part of Shazam. “It shows when we do the real work of healing ourselves and helping other people heal themselves, that’s where all the good comes from. That’s where that blessing came into my life,” he insisted.
Anger of the Gods is the 12th installment in the DC Extended Universe and the first since filmmaker James Gunn and Shazam! producer Peter Safran were named co-heads of DC Studios, home to some of the most iconic superheroes in comic book history.
