DC fans were dealt a blow of disappointment earlier this year when they learned they’d have to wait even longer to see Dwayne Johnson’s superhero debut in “Black Adam,” but there’s a good reason why the film’s release date was pushed back from July to October.
“I think we’re just in a world right now where there was a huge and understandable freeze-up when the pandemic hit and a lot of productions were put on hold,” producer and president of production at Seven Bucks Productions Hiram Garcia told TheWrap during a recent interview about NBC’s “Young Rock” series. “Now that the industry has really roared back, the pipeline for VFX is so jammed. Obviously all these superhero movies just require so much VFX, and we’re just in a situation where the majority of the VFX houses are just completely swamped with work.”
Garcia pointed to other high-profile blockbuster delays (like “The Flash” and “Aquaman 2”) as further examples of how the VFX backlog is impacting the industry, especially when it comes to tentpole films. “I think that’s why you saw seismic shifts across the board, and you continue to see those giant properties just moving further down the line. And it’s just a matter of the vendors being able to accommodate the amount of VFX they have to do, the shots that have to be done.”
“They’re busting their ass and we’re so grateful for all those VFX houses,” Garcia added, while expressing optimism for the near future. “It feels like things are starting to calibrate and I think you’ll start to feel less shifts down the line.”
“Black Adam” has been a long time coming and finds Johnson filling the role of the DC Comics anti-hero unafraid to dole out justice on his own terms. Jaume Collet-Serra, Johnson’s “Jungle Cruise” filmmaker, directs the film, which also stars Noah Centineo, Aldis Hodge and Pierce Brosnan.
“We’re excited about it and we’re really excited with the way the movie’s been looking and excited to finish it and get it out into the world,” Garcia said of Johnson’s DC film, which comes on the heels of another DC film starring Johnson and produced by Seven Bucks: the animated feature “DC’s League of Super-Pets,” which opens in theaters on July 29, 2022.
“Black Adam” will open in theaters – with completed VFX – on October 21, 2022.