On December 21st, after over several years of waiting, the world will finally get a chance to see James Wan's epic DCEU entry AQUAMAN, starring Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, Willem Dafoe, Nicole Kidman, Dolph Lundgren and Patrick Wilson (among many others). The film is a big, luminous spectacle, one that should satisfy fans of the DC universe while winning over some of those people less inclined to give the franchise a chance. Not long ago, Warner Bros. brought the main cast and director out to New York for a press day, and yours truly was among the lucky folks to sit down with this amiable crew.
Let's start with the big man himself. Jason Momoa, as you know by now, plays Arthur Curry, half-human/half-Atlantian demigod who has spent his life ignoring his birth right. Now that his brother Orm (Wilson) is threatening a war on the human race, Curry must accept his destiny as King of Atlantis. Momoa and I spoke about how close he is to the Aquaman character, whether or not he pays attention to all the online chatter, what he sees next for Aquaman and more!
Amber Heard plays Mera, Atlantian royalty who eventually becomes Aquaman's wife. In the film, she's portrayed as a badass warrior who is just as capable at holding off villains as her love interest (makes sense when your father is played by Dolph Lundgren). Amber and I talked about the appeal of the character, if she wants her own spin-off and working with that "big kid" Jason Momoa.
Patrick Wilson chews the scenery as Orm, "the Ocean Master," and half-brother to Aquaman. Orm is desperate to claim the throne and rule the sea and maybe even the land, but first he has to go through his long lost bro, and that will be no easy feat. Wilson is one of the nicest guys in Hollywood, so talking to him is always a pleasure. Here we speak about how over-the-top he was allowed to go, how his theater background came in handy when standing in front of all those green screens, his knowledge of the comic books and more.
James Wan has certainly come a long way from his first film, SAW, which cost under $2 million to produce. AQUAMAN cost, well, a lot more. But Wan has never been one to back away from a challenge, having climbed up the ranks of the genre world and into mega gigantic blockbuster territory. I asked Wan about the insane amount of CG in the film and making those underwater scenes look realistic, how the project has evolved over the 2+ years he's been attached and if he plans on going back to smaller budget horror features.
Over in L.A., my west coast counterpart Jimmy O spoke to Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, who plays AQUAMAN's other nemesis, Black Manta, who goes from savage pirate to full-blown supervillain with the help of some Atlantian armor. Jimmy and Yahya talk about getting into this complex character, whether or not Yahya knew his comic book history before the role, shooting one of the film's biggest action sequences, and more.