You probably never imagined seeing Shazam! and Shazam: Fury of the Gods director David F. Sandberg helm another IP film or franchise again—and honestly, neither did he. However, with his new film Until Dawn soon to hit theaters, he's reflecting on the intense backlash surrounding his previous DC Cinematic Universe projects and what prompted him to return to the realm of IP.
"What I loved about the script [is] that it wasn't trying to recreate the game," Sandberg told GamesRadar+ about the beloved horror game turned 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 also noted that, even when working with a game property, IP fans are highly particular about how they want their favorite stories brought to the 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 added of his DCU experience and its aftermath.
However, the potential of the Until Dawn story intrigued him. "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."
The filmmaker understands that it's impossible to please every fan when adapting an IP, but his approach seems to be the best way to capture the hearts of Until Dawn enthusiasts. "I think we would've gotten a lot of critique if we had tried to [recreate the game], because people would've been like, 'It's not as good. It's not the same actors, because, you know, they're older now,'" the Shazam director explained. "You wouldn't be able to better the game, so you'd just be in a losing situation."Until Dawn was written by Blair Butler and Gary Dauberman, who is perhaps best known as the writer of It: Chapter Two, and stars Ella Rubin. The film is set to premiere in theaters on April 25, 2025.
