Some people still don’t understand why half the internet is hating on Rachel Zegler or why revamping a classic children’s tale has caused such a massive uproar. But whether it’s her comments, the creative direction of Snow White, or just internet outrage culture doing its thing, the controversy hasn’t slowed down. Of course, the movie itself had its own flaws, but that’s a story for another time.
What many people don’t realize is that, before all this Snow White drama, Zegler was actually in the running to play Supergirl in The Flash! Yep, before Sasha Calle ultimately landed the role, Zegler was considered for the part. Here is what actually happened!
Rachel Zegler was almost Supergirl!
Rachel Zegler‘s audition for Shazam! Fury of the Gods actually happened before West Side Story even hit theaters. And compared to the grueling, year-long process of West Side Story, her Shazam! audition felt like a blink.
But what many don’t know is that before becoming a superhero on-screen, she was almost cast as an entirely different one, Supergirl. Speaking to Slash Films, she revealed,
I read for Rich [Delia], who was our casting director, and he originally had come to me with Supergirl for “[The] Flash,” and I was not right for it. He was like, “You know what, I’ve got a character in mind for you for ‘Shazam.’ They’re looking at X, Y, Z. We would love it if you came in and read.”
During the early casting stages of The Flash, Zegler was considered for the role of Kara Zor-El, aka Supergirl. Casting director Rich Delia initially had her in mind for the part but ultimately decided otherwise, and then god she did. Instead of closing the door on her, though, he saw potential elsewhere.
He recommended her for another DC project, Shazam! Fury of the Gods, where the team was still searching for the right actress to play Anthea, one of the daughters of Atlas.
Unlike her exhausting, year-long audition process for West Side Story, this one moved at lightning speed. Zegler first auditioned over Zoom, a common practice during the pandemic. After impressing the casting team, she was invited for an in-person audition with director David Sandberg. Finally, she had a chemistry test with Jack Dylan Grazer, who played Freddy Freeman in the film.
That chemistry test ended up being the deciding factor. Producer Peter Safran turned to Grazer and asked him which actress he thought was the best fit for the role. As a devoted West Side Story fan, Grazer immediately picked Zegler.
In the end, Sasha Calle was cast as Supergirl in The Flash, making history as the first Latina actress to portray the character. Meanwhile, Zegler found her own place in the DC Universe as Anthea in Shazam! Fury of the Gods.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods was just as bad as The Flash!
It’s been said a million times how bad The Flash was, but let’s not pretend Shazam! Fury of the Gods fared much better. In fact, while The Flash usually takes most of the heat, Fury of the Gods was quietly one of the biggest superhero disasters in recent memory.
By its fourth weekend, the sequel had all but vanished from the box office. It pulled in a painfully low $1.6 million, a drop of over 65%, at a time when The Super Mario Bros. Movie was raking in a mind-blowing $377 million worldwide. To say Shazam! got overshadowed would be an understatement; it was completely wiped off the map.
With a total global box office of just $134.1 million, Fury of the Gods failed spectacularly (via Forbes), especially considering its predecessor was a surprise hit.
Truth be told, it was doomed from the start. It had everything going against it, a struggling DC Universe, weak marketing, and an audience that simply wasn’t interested. Now, will Zegler be in James Gunn’s new and improved DCU? Only time will tell!
Shazam! Fury of the Gods is available on Max to stream.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
