Shazam 2 director responds to negative reviews and says he's done with superheroes "for now"

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David F. Sandberg is tired of superhero movie discourse

Shazam Fury of the Gods
(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

Shazam! Fury of the Gods director David F. Sandberg has reacted to the negative reviews on the DC sequel – and revealed why he’s ready to leave superhero movies behind (for now).

"On Rotten Tomatoes I just got my lowest critic score and my highest audience score on the same film. I wasn’t expecting a repeat of the first movie critically but I was still a little surprised because I think it’s a good film. Oh well," Sandberg wrote on Twitter. The Shazam sequel currently sits at 53% Critics’ score and 87% Audience Score on the film aggregator.

"After six years of Shazam I’m definitely done with superheroes for now," the director continued, adding, "I don’t regret even for a second making the Shazam movies. I’ve learned so much and gotten to work with some truly amazing people. Will forever be grateful that I got to direct two of these! They’ve been very challenging but valuable experiences."

In perhaps his most interesting observation, Sandberg also addressed "superhero discourse." In his final threaded post, he said, "A lot of that stresses me out so much and it will be nice not having to think about that anymore."

Sandberg’s words also echo his appearance on the Inside Total Film podcast. While discussing villain plans and that big DC cameo, he touched upon whether he would return to the comic book space.

“Right now I feel like I just want to do another horror movie or something again,” Sandberg said. “First, I miss horror. But also these movies are so much work! It’s like three years per movie. I’ve been doing nothing since Shazam since 2017 so I just need a bit of a break – and then we can talk.”

Bradley Russell
Bradley Russell
Senior Entertainment Writer

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.