How (SPOILER) Is Brought Back From The Dead In Shazam 2
The following article contains spoilers for Shazam: Fury of the Gods
Even as the reverberations from the Warner Bros. Discovery merger are still leaving aftershocks, some members of the DCEU have been lucky enough to survive relatively unscathed. While "Shazam" might not be the biggest superhero property in DC's stable, Zachary Levi's pitch-perfect rendition of a kid, Billy Batson, who suddenly receives superpowers, was solid enough to pave the way for a sequel.
"Shazam: Fury of the Gods" brings Billy Batson (Levi/Asher Angel) back for more as he and his foster family unite against the daughters of Atlas in hopes of saving the world from their vengeful quest for power. However, as Shazam faces off against the mighty Kalypso (Lucy Liu) in the film's finale, he is ultimately struck down and dies as a result of his injuries.
Luckily, though, the goddess Diana, a.k.a. Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), appears to repair the broken staff and resurrect him. Though this revelation offers the movie a happy ending and the chance for Shazam to reappear in future DC projects, it might be a bit confusing for audience members less familiar with the source material.
How did Wonder Woman repair the staff and revive Shazam?
Since Shazam breaks the staff in order to defeat Kalypso at the end of "Shazam: Fury of the Gods," it seems like it's impossible for him to come back from the dead. The reason that Wonder Woman is able to bring him back though actually makes sense once you familiarize yourself with the rules of DC's superhero comics.
There are two types of heroes in DC: science-based heroes like Batman and Superman and magic-based heroes like Wonder Woman and Shazam. Being that the two are magic-based heroes helps to explain how Wonder Woman was able to repair the staff. However, there's actually another element to the situation that indicates why Diana is the perfect person to resurrect Shazam.
Fans of Shazam will recall that his name is actually an acronym that stands for the names of 6 mythological characters, including Zeus and Hercules. With this in mind, it makes perfect sense that only another god — in this case, Diana — can be the one to repair the mystical staff and use its powers to bring Shazam back. All the same, the DCEU has now killed and brought back two major heroes and may want to hold off on doing it again for a while, lest it might take the teeth out of future stories.