Before you see him soar into action, here’s a look back at some of the other works you may have seen Zachary Levi star in. If you were wondering, this is why the actor playing Shazam looks so familiar.
For his first-ever film gig, Levi nabbed a supporting role in the TV movie Big Shot: Confessions of a Campus Bookie. The film aired on FX in March of 2002, and although the movie was a dud, it was a great opportunity for Levi to add a film credit to his acting resume. Prior to Big Shot, he had only performed in theater productions. With Big Shot, Levi was able to get his feet wet in Hollywood, which potentially acted as a springboard for his career’s next big achievement.
ABC’s Less Than Perfect was a moderately successful workplace sitcom that debuted in 2002 and ran through 2006. The show followed Sara Rue’s Claude Casey, an employee at a television network. Other big names in the cast included Sherri Shepherd and Andy D***, who played Claude’s coworkers. However, it was Levi who truly made a name for himself as Kipp Steadman, Claude’s elitist frenemy and primary rival. He appeared in all 81 episodes of the series.
Playing Kipp, Levi started to see his life change. In a 2003 interview with Relevant Magazine, the then-22-year-old opened up about his newfound fame:
“It’s weird. To me, it hasn’t all completely sunk in yet. But at the same time, I hope it never does… I hope there’s always at least a small part of me that’s always surprised, always taken aback, always childlike or innocent in the whole process.”
Considering that in Shazam! he played a 14-year-old in an adult’s body, Levi apparently got his wish.
Watch the video to see more of why the actor playing Shazam looks so familiar.
#Shazam #ZacharyLevi
Big Shot: Confessions of a Campus Bookie | 0:10
Less Than Perfect | 0:37
Big Momma’s House 2 | 1:39
Chuck | 2:19
Wieners | 3:13
Shades of Ray | 3:47
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel | 4:14
Video Game High School | 4:55
Thor: The Dark World | 5:34
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel | 6:14