Shazam! and Black Adam are two of the most classic rivals in the DC universe. Like Superman and Lex Luthor or Batman and the Joker, the Mightiest Mortal and Teth-Adam have starred in major clashes in the history of the comic book company, and fans have been hoping to see it on the big screen.

In fact, a few months ago, the great battle between the two seemed possible. Leading up to the premiere of Black Adam, Dwayne Johnson stated several times that his character's path would eventually lead to a crossover with Zachary Levi's. However, after the creation of DC Studios and the revelation of new plans for the future of the franchise, the possibility is now unlikely.

Now, The Rock will not return as the famous anti-hero, and the fate of Billy Batson after Shazam! Fury of the Gods is quite uncertain since he may not appear again. And this is something that disappoints director David F. Sandberg.

The director spoke with The Hollywood Reporter and talked about the meeting that is not going to take place:

"The thing about Black Adam is that he has the same powers as Shazam, and we did that in the first movie where we gave Sivana [Mark Strong] the same power. So I don’t think the fight itself would’ve been super interesting, but I do think it’s a missed opportunity. What makes the most sense is to have them fight each other, so it’s money left on the table. But it’s how it is."

Related: How Shazam Fury of the Gods Sets Up Future DCU Films (and Does it Even Matter?)

Zachary Levi in promo art for Shazam! Fury of the Gods
Warner Bros. Pictures

During the interview, Sandberg also explained that some characters from Black Adam were set to appear in the movie, but it didn't happen in the end. He also took a moment to defend James Gunn:

"Yeah, poor James [Gunn]. (Laughs.) I saw people online going, “Stop casting your wife [Jennifer Holland] in everything,” and it’s like, “No.” So there were supposed to be characters from [Black Adam’s] Justice Society, but that fell apart three days before we were going to roll cameras. I was really upset because we had built that abandoned gas station set, and we could only shoot that scene in that little piece of forest. I was like, “This is so boring. We need something here.” So the art department built that whole gas station and brought in some old cars and things. They made it look really nice with very few resources, and so I was like, “We have this set and we have the time, so we have to shoot something here."

Fury of the Gods would have been the perfect way to make Shazam! join the Justice of Society of America. But now, that team-up will have to wait a few years at the very least.