Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
Despite the critical and financial success of 2018’sAquaman , why is the sequel , Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom , which wo n’t get in theaters until December 2022 , take so long to come out ? Director James Wan’sAquaman , starring Jason Momoa as the titular character was a homerun for the DC Extended Universe . Not only didAquamanreceive fairly positive review , but it was a loge berth smash , grossing over $ 1 billion worldwideand making it the highest - grossing moving picture in the DCEU thus far .
Because ofAquaman ’s achiever , negotiation of a subsequence quickly progressed , with Warner Bros. reassert the sequel and typeset the prescribed outlet escort for December 16 , 2022 . regress to indite the sequel is David Leslie Johnson - McGoldrick , who carbon monoxide - wroteAquamanwith Will Beal , with a story by him and Momoa . Wan is also tapped to return to the director ’s chairman forAquaman 2.The majority of the first flick ’s casting is substantiate for the sequel , admit Momoa , Amber Heard , who play Mera and has been training extensively at the gym in homework for the role , Patrick Wilson , who plays Arthur Curry ’s half brother , Orm , Temuera Morrison as Arthur ’s Father-God Thomas Curry , and Yahya Abdul - Mateen II , who plays Black Manta . Game of Thronesvet Pilou Asbæk link up the cast in an undisclosed role .
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With the sequel’srelease date set for the end of 2022,Aquaman 2officially began filming in July 2021 , about a class after it was confirmed Wan would return to guide . Four yr will have passed between the acquittance ofAquamanandAquaman and the Lost Kingdom , which is an unusual gap for a superhero celluloid . However , the other films in the DCEU are part responsible for the four - yr wait . Simply put , there was barely any distance for anAquaman 2release date . DC has had a crowded release slating over the last two geezerhood , with the release ofBirds of Prey , Wonder Woman 1984 , andThe Suicide Squadin 2021 , and withThe Batman , Black Adam , andThe Flashall set for 2022 releases . IfAquaman2were to abide by the traditional pattern for superhero photographic film , which is usually two to three years , the only lucid touch on the calendar would have been Dec. 2020 . But that was far too quick of a turnaround for a film that only started dart lately and bank so heavy on VFX that take month to implement and finalize .
Besides the engorged exit slating , Wan ’s fussy schedule also added to the delay ofAquaman and the Lost Kingdom . Wan sign on to write and directMalignant , a horror film starring Jake Abel , Michole Briana White , Annabelle Wallis , and Maddie Hasson , which is slat for a release on September 10 , 2021 . Wan also produced Chris Rock’sSawmovie andThe Conjuring : The Devil Made Me Do It , as wellMortal Kombatand Netflix’sThe Magic Order . Wan has a helping hand in all of these projection and was n’t free until the end of 2020 . Wan was also primed to produceThe Trench , anAquamanspinoff , but it was delete by Warner Bros. in April 2021 , free the film director up a bit . There ’s also the fact that Wan did n’t desire to hasten a secondAquamanfilm , which explicate why production was need its time to start on top of everything else . Then , of course , there was the government issue of the ongoing pandemic to contend with as it was not potential to shootAquaman and the Lost Kingdomin 2020 due to global production shutdowns .
Despite the long gap , a four - year wait betweenAquamanfilms may be a benediction in disguise . The special time allowed Wan to finish his other projects before fully immersing himself back into theAquamanuniverse . Plus , the DC universe is really starting to hit its stride thanks to the firstAquaman , Wonder Woman , Birds of Prey , Shazam ! , andThe Suicide Squad . The wait forAquaman 2may be a prolonged one , but it could end up being the best affair for the DCEU overall .
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