Black Adam

Black Adam is a fictional comic book supervillain, appearing in publications and other properties of DC Comics; he is a primary adversary of the superhero Shazam (originally called Captain Marvel, before legal action by Marvel Comics resulted in DC Comics losing the copyright to that character name). Black Adam was created by Otto Binder & C. C. Beck in 1945, initially as a villain for (originally), Fawcett Comics “Marvel Family”; however, Black Adam was revived as a recurring character after DC Comics began publishing Captain Marvel stories under the title “Shazam!” in the 1970s. As originally depicted, Black Adam was a corrupted, ancient Egyptian predecessor of Captain Marvel, who fought his way to modern times to challenge the hero and his Marvel Family associates. Since the turn of the 21st century, however, Black Adam has been re-defined by DC Comics writers Jerry Ordway, Geoff Johns, and David S. Goyer as a corrupted antihero attempting to “clear his name”. Featured roles in such comic book series as Justice Society of America (JSA), Villains United, Infinite Crisis, and The New 52 have elevated the character to an unprecedented level of prominence in the overall “universe” of DC Comics characters. In 2009, Black Adam was ranked as IGN’s 16th Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time. The character will be played by Dwayne Johnson in the upcoming film Shazam!.