Warner Bros. has a bit of April Fools fun by teasing an Aquaman 2 trailer in a YouTube ad for Shazam. This week, the latest entry in the DC Extended Universe opens in theaters, looking to continue the franchise's forward momentum. Back in December, James Wan's Aquaman debuted to positive reviews and eventually crossed the $1 billion mark worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing DC film of all-time. Shazam isn't expected to be as big of a box office hit, but's generated strong word-of-mouth and is Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.

Aquaman's success all but guaranteed it would get a sequel, and that followup was recently confirmed for a December 2022 release. Obviously, details for the project remain largely under wraps, but it is known David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick is handling screenwriting duties and Orm is not expected to be a principal villain. As more pieces for that puzzle begin to fall into place, WB is having some fun as they continue to promote Shazam.

Related: Shazam Is The Last Remaining Film From the DCEU's Original Slate

On Twitter, Landon O'Leary shared video of a YouTube ad that begins by claiming it's the Aquaman 2 trailer. When the title card "The King Shall Reign" pops up, the word "king" is crossed out and replaced by "kid" as the video is revealed to be a humorous promo for Shazam. Watch it in the space below:

This is clearly an April Fools joke (Aquaman 2 is nowhere close to starting production), but it's still worth a chuckle and is perfectly in-line with Shazam's previous marketing and tone. Trailers and TV spots have played up the film's comedy and sense of wish fulfillment, helping it stand apart from several of the other DC movies released in recent years. WB's approach to promotion is definitely working; last week, Shazam's sneak peek screenings outgrossed Aquaman, signaling the studio has another big blockbuster on their hands. And since Shazam cost around $80 million to make, it doesn't even need to break the bank in order to become a profitable endeavor.

It'll be interesting to see what effect, if any, this final marketing push has on Shazam's box office. After a rough start in the winter, the 2019 box office has picked up with a pair of acclaimed movies - Captain Marvel and Us - that exceeded expectations with some of the best openings of all-time. It's very possible Shazam is able to pull that off as well. The film seems to be perfectly positioned on the release schedule, three weeks before Avengers: Endgame dominates the marketplace. And with critics already loving it, there's a good chance audiences follow suit and make Shazam a bigger hit than anticipated.

More: Sam Raimi's Spider-Man Had A Hilarious Shazam Reference

Source: Landon O'Leary