Shazam! director David F. Sandberg offers fans their first look at some "work in progress" costume art for the titular hero in the film. After being announced as part of Warner Bros.' original DCEU slate back in 2014, Shazam! has remained one of the more eclectic titles currently in development at the studio. Based on the DC comics of the same name, the film is said to follow the life of Billy Batson, a young boy who is one day given the powers to transform into a mighty, super powered adult alter ego, by just saying the word "Shazam!" out loud. But even despite the clear interest surrounding the title, progress on Shazam! appeared to be practically non-existent in the years since that original announcement was made by the studio.

That was, until last week at least, when it was confirmed that not only would the Lights Out helmer direct the film but that Shazam! would also be the next DCEU movie to go into production. And with a filming schedule set to begin early next year, it looks as though Shazam! is finally starting to gain the behind-the-scenes traction that fans have been waiting years to see.

With Sandberg officially confirmed for the project last week, though, it's fair to say that Shazam! is still very much in the early days of pre-production. But that didn't stop one fan from tweeting the director about when he'd release any details or looks at Shazam's actual superhero costume in the film, which prompted the director to release some funny "work in progress" costume art for the character through his official Twitter account:

While this isn't the costume art that fans were likely hoping for from Shazam, it's just the latest piece of evidence of how much fun Sandberg looks to be having now that he's attached to the project -- and it's not hard to see why. After spending years directing online horror short films in his apartment for YouTube, Sandberg was handpicked by Warner Bros. to direct a feature film version of his popular Lights Out short, which was released to mostly positive reviews and strong box office numbers last year. Now, the filmmaker is returning to the big screen again later this year, with another Warner Bros. horror title in Annabelle: Creation.

Sandberg's rise in the industry is nothing short of meteoric, and considering that the early reviews for Annabelle: Creation have labeled it as the first good Conjuring spinoff film, it doesn't look like Sandberg's clout is going to be dying down anytime soon. And while he didn't actually release anything official from Shazam! online today, with the film set to begin principal photography in the coming months, fans can likely look forward to quite a few casting and creative announcements. After making fans wait years for things with Shazam! to finally kick off, it's about time.

Next: Shazam! The DC Extended Universe’s Next Superhero Explained

Source: David F. Sandberg