As Warner Bros. unite the various DC heroes for the DCEU, one hero’s spot on the superhero ensemble remained uncertain. It has only been a few years since we’ve heard anything about WB’s Shazam, but early reports say that he might not even be on the team. Since Dwayne Johnson accepted the role of Black Adam in 2014, the actor as called the character an anti-hero, which is contrary to how he’s normally depicted in the comics, which is to serve as a villain to the heroic Shazam.

Now there are reports that Black Adam and Shazam will be two separate films entirely. Not only that, but Black Adam will also appear in Shazam as well. More on the story below.

The Hollywood Reporter says New Line will develop a film centering on Black Adam concurrently with the Shazam film. While there have been delays, this latest news comes from recent meetings between Johnson and DC Films co-head and comics author Geoff Johns.

Johnson promised that the future of the DCEU will be filled with optimism and fun, despite evidence to the contrary. Films like Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Suicide Squad have all had dark tones. Here’s what New Line’s Toby Emmerich had to say about those tonal differences, in 2014:

Even though Emmerich’s statement suggests that Shazam will be separate from what’s going on in the DCEU, Johnson’s social media says otherwise, but it does support the idea that it will be tonally different from the rest of the DCEU films:

Had a very cool and strategic meeting with the heads of DC about their entire universe. As a hard core DC fan, to get a real sense of the tonal shifts and developments coming in these future movies has me fired up. Something we, as DC fans have all been waiting for for a very long time. Hope, optimism & FUN. Even when talking about the the most ruthless villain/anti-hero of all time finally coming to life. Prepare yourselves DC Universe. #KneelAtHisFeet #OrGetCrushedByHisBoot #BlackAdam⚡️

A photo posted by therock (@therock) on Jan 11, 2017 at 4:07pm PST

And with that, we can finally say that Shazam will open in theaters on April 5, 2019. A release date for Black Adam has yet to be announced.

For those that don’t know, Black Adam is a corrupted, ancient Egyptian predecessor of Shazam aka Captain Marvel, who fought his way to modern times to challenge the hero and his Shazam’s Family associates. He has since become an occasional anti-hero attempting to clear his name of past transgressions.

[Source: THR]