Here's Who Lucy Liu Is Playing In Shazam! Fury Of The Gods

Shazam! is one of the best DC movies available, which isn't too surprising: the lighthearted action-comedy is the closest the DC Extended Universe has come to aping the Marvel Cinematic Universe formula, and the film is full of Easter eggs and references, to boot. It's no wonder a sequel was greenlit at the speed of Mercury, but that news came at the cost of knowing the plot and characters.

Shazam! 2 was announced so early in development (or predevelopment) that nobody knew who would star in the sequel, aside from the original movie's main protagonists. Sure, Shazam!'s post-credits scene teased the evil caterpillar Mister Mind, and many hoped longtime villain Black Adam (played by Dwayne Johnson) would serve as the villain, but other than that, the plot was a mystery. However, as development has proceeded, we've learned that Black Adam — to be played by Dwayne Johnson — probably won't be appearing, since he's getting his own movie, but news has also trickled out about a number of high-profile performers being cast as different antagonists. 

Namely: Variety has announced that Lucy Liu will appear as a main villain in Shazam! Fury of the Gods. However, the sequel's writers must be channeling the courage of Achilles, because Liu's role isn't as instantly recognizable to comic fans as the first movie's Doctor Sivana (Mark Strong). Here's what we can piece together.

According to Variety, Lucy Liu will play the character Kalypso in Shazam! Fury of the Gods. If you're a DC fan thinking that her name sounds familiar, you should double-check your memory — you're probably thinking of Eclipso, who is an entirely different character, and almost definitely not who Liu is playing.

Kalypso, in fact, doesn't exist in current DC lore, but she is inextricably linked with the source material that inspired Shazam. Greek mythology buffs should recognize Kalypso — or Calypso, depending on how you spell it — as an Hesperis (singular of Hesperides), a nymph of Greek lore (via Encyclopedia Britannica). While the names of most Hesperides will fly over the heads of most casual audiences, another nymph, Hespera, has also been confirmed as an antagonist in Shazam! Fury of the Gods, where she will be portrayed by Helen Mirren.

Even though Kalypso, Hespera, and other Hesperides haven't appeared in DC Comics media before, they are supposed to be the daughters of Atlas, the entity who gives Shazam his stamina. Considering the title and the source material familial links, perhaps the titular "fury of the gods" stems from Kalypso and Hespera being upset that their father's greatest strength is being used as part of a powerset for a family of adolescent superheroes? If some fan theories prove correct, both Mirren and Liu may be playing two figures in an updated version of the comic foe known as the Three Faces of Evil, traditionally depicted as a triple-headed, dragon-like being. That's just speculation, though — we'll have to wait and see.