Do Shazam and Wonder Woman have a shared history in comics?

News
By published

Both Shazam and Wonder Woman have connections to the gods of Olympus, but what about to each other?

War of the Gods #1 interior art
(Image credit: DC)

Shazam!: Fury of the Gods has a big hero cameo that's been semi-public knowledge for some time, but if you want to go in totally unspoiled, turn back now!

Light spoilers for Shazam! Fury of the Gods ahead!

Word has been out about Wonder Woman's big Shazam!: Fury of the Gods cameo since before the movie even released thanks to DC Studios' own promotional material. And her role in the film, though brief, is crucial to the story's resolution thanks to Diana of Themyscira's own connections to DC's Greek pantheon, from whom Billy Batson and his foster siblings get their power.

But what's the comic book connection between Wonder Woman and Shazam? Is there a comic book reference point for the movie's joke about Shazam and Wonder Woman dating?

The short answer is… not really, no.

(Image credit: DC)

However, the pair do share a small amount of comic history that isn't too far off from some aspects of the plot of Shazam!: Fury of the Gods, in which the Daughters of Atlas try to reclaim the Shazam Family's mythic powers. 

A sorta similar story titled War of the Gods was one of DC's first big crossover events after the continuity-rewriting story Crisis on Infinite Earths, in which many of the divine pantheons of the DC Universe went to battle with each other, each choosing a champion to fight for their interests.

Wonder Woman was chosen as the champion of the Greek Pantheon, and Shazam (then still called Captain Marvel) was chosen as the champion of their sister pantheon of Roman gods. The two battled to a standstill on Mount Olympus, with Shazam's 'Strength of Hercules' matching that of Wonder Woman. 

(Image credit: DC)

In the end, neither was able to gain the upper hand and the battle ended with both champions being cast out of Olympus - the comic book equivalent of a disqualification in a pro-wrestling match between two supposedly unbeatable combatants that allows each to maintain their impressive strength.

Interestingly, starting on March 14 Shazam and Wonder Woman will be engaged in Lazarus Planet: Revenge of the Gods, a four issue comic book limited series in which the two heroes cross paths against the backdrop of DC's recent Lazarus Planet event story.

Will they cross paths again in the movies? There's nothing publicly on the books with the new DC Studios yet, but anything is possible.

Check out the best Wonder Woman stories of all time.

For more on Shazam! Fury of the Gods, be sure to check out our spoilery deep dives:

George Marston
George Marston
Entertainment Writer

I've been Newsarama's resident Marvel Comics expert and general comic book historian since 2011, and now I'm the Entertainment Writer at GamesRadar+. I've also been the on-site reporter at most major comic conventions such as Comic-Con International: San Diego, New York Comic Con, and C2E2. Outside of comic journalism, I am the artist of many weird pictures, and the guitarist of many heavy riffs. (They/Them)