It’s still incredible to think that, not only do we have formidable looking live-action Aquaman, but a James Wan directed Aquaman solo movie is releasing next year.
Ten years ago this would have seemed unlikely. Of all of the comic book characters spawned over the decades, Aquaman has always seemed the most frequently jabbed at. For years people have said that Aquaman can’t work on screen due to the characters less-than-useful powers: How is communicating with fish useful in any scenario that isn’t taking place in the ocean?
So what does Aquaman director James Wan think of the stigma attached to the character? In an interview with The Wrap, Wan suggests not getting on this particular Aquaman’s bad side:
“Momoa is not a guy that you would go up to and make fun of. I really think you immediately remove any of the stigma of the character from the cartoons that we are familiar with.” said Wan. “Having said that, I’m not completely unaware of the stigma. If anything, I embrace it and being able to laugh at yourself and have fun at yourself is important and that’s something I am aware of as I make Aquaman right now.”
SEE ALSO: Mera is on the run in new Aquaman set photo
Wan also spoke to THR about the casting of Dolph Lundgren in the role of King Nereus, stating that: “When I was in the process of writing this character [King Nereus] in the world of Aquaman, a friend of mine, Mike Mendez, was working with him on one of his films, and Mike was just raving about how great Dolph was. And I thought ‘Oh my god, Dolph would be great for this role as well!’ So it kinda came about from that roundabout way. He’s a really strong actor. I don’t think anyone gives him enough credit for how serious he actually takes his craft. He’s taking it very seriously on this.”
Wan then went on to discuss the challenges he faces in shooting the film’s underwater sequences: “It’s a very technically challenging shoot to be on. Working with water, and even the dry-for-wet sequences are very complex. Our equivalent of two people sitting around chatting in the underwater world is super complicated. You have to think about CG with the hair, and how their clothing moves, how are they floating, what kind of rig we put them on and all that stuff. That just makes it very difficult and time-sucking and time-challenging to do all of this. So it’s not an easy shoot — but hopefully it will pay off in spades down the line.”
SEE ALSO: Description of the Aquaman footage shown at Comic-Con
Judging from trailers for Justice League, it does certainly look like Warner Bros. is trying to strike a nice balance with Aquaman, and it seems to be working so far. He is often called out as one of the best parts of the Justice League footage released so far. One thing is for sure: With such a great director, concept, and cast… the Aquaman solo movie has absolutely everything in its favor.
Aquaman is being directed by James Wan (The Conjuring) and stars Jason Momoa as the titular hero, reprising his role from Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League, along with Amber Heard as Mera, Patrick Wilson as Ocean Master, Willem Dafoe as Dr. Vulko, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as Black Manta, Dolph Lundgren as King Nereus, Nicole Kidman as Atlanna, Temuera Morrison as Tom Curry, Ludi Lin as Murk, Michael Beach as Jesse Kane, and Otis Dhanji as a young Arthur Curry. It is set for release on December 21st 2018.
Originally published August 11, 2017. Updated April 16, 2018.
