Shazam Director Returns for Until Dawn After IP Movie Backlash

You probably never imagined that David F. Sandberg, the director behind Shazam! and Shazam: Fury of the Gods, would take the helm of another IP film or franchise. And frankly, neither did he. Yet, with his new film Until Dawn set to hit theaters soon, Sandberg is opening up about the intense backlash from his previous DC Cinematic Universe projects and what drew him back to the IP world.

"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 acknowledged that, even when working on a game property, IP fans have strong opinions on 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 reflected on his DCU experience and its aftermath.

However, the potential of the Until Dawn story was too compelling for him 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. "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."

Until Dawn was penned by Blair Butler and Gary Dauberman, known for writing It: Chapter Two, and stars Ella Rubin. The film is scheduled to premiere in theaters on April 25, 2025.