Shazam 2 director reacts to Bruce Campbell's joke about the movie flopping

Shazam! Fury of the Gods director David F. Sandberg has shared his reaction to a joke Bruce Campbell made about the DC movie's disappointing box office takings. 

The filmmaker took to social media recently to share a clip of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness helmer Sam Raimi talking about how much he enjoyed the first Shazam! movie. In the same tweet, Sandberg posted footage of Campbell too, as he greeted horror fans at a screening of Evil Dead Rise, his latest collaboration with Raimi, alongside the caption, "How it started vs How it's going".

"Did you see the movie Shazam, with the guy Zachary?" the actor laughed, before adding when the crowd grumbled: "Yeah, neither did anyone else."

When asked why he uploaded the two videos, Sandberg replied: "I thought it was funny." It appears, though, that not everyone was keen on the dunk. 

"This feels like a weird shitty move by Bruce Campbell??" one Twitter user said, as another wrote: "That's so disrespectful, holy shit, man."

A third person pointed out that Evil Dead Rise was produced by Warner Bros, the same studio behind Shazam 2. "I don't understand why BRUCE [would] say that," they noted.

"I really dislike how it's open season to shit on superhero movies lately. I think it's a good thing he's taking a break/leaving it for now, it's all about punching down," a fourth chimed in.

Starring Zachary Levi as the titular hero, Shazam! Fury of the Gods sees Billy Batson and his superpowered family face off against Atlas's daughters Hespera (Helen Mirren), Kalypso (Lucy Liu), and Anthea (Rachel Zegler, who have found themselves on Earth as part of their desperate, murderous quest to steal back the Wizard's magic staff.

Since releasing in the UK and the US on March 17, the movie has made around $104.1 million worldwide. For comparison, Shazam! made $367.8 million when it was released in 2019.

For more on Shazam 2, check out our spoiler-heavy deep dives: 
 

• Shazam! Fury of the Gods ending explained
• Shazam! Fury of the Gods post-credits scenes explained
• Shazam! Fury of the Gods cameos explained
• When will Shazam! Fury of the Gods be on HBO Max?
• Are Shazam and Black Adam the same?
• How to watch the DC movies in order
• The comic history of the Shazam Family explained
• All the new DC movies and TV shows coming soon
• Our guide to DCU Chapter One: Gods and Monsters
• The comic history of Shazam and the Justice Society
• Do Shazam and Wonder Woman have a shared history in comics?
• The comic history of the Olympian Gods
• Shazam 2 director explains why the first movie’s villain doesn’t return