James Wan’s Aquaman casts Black Manta and Queen Atlanna

Many of the upcoming films in the DCEU have had their fair share of issues, including multiple director’s exiting (the latest being Ben Affleck stepping down as director of the standalone Batman film), so it’s a relief that AQUAMAN has managed to keep its core creative team intact. With production due to kick off in Australia this April, James Wan is continuing to fill out the AQUAMAN cast.

Per THR, Warner Bros. and James Wan are in early talks with both Nicole Kidman and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II to take on roles in the film, with Kidman being offered the part of Aquaman’s mother, Atlanna, and Abdul-Mateen II up for Black Manta. It was long rumoured that Black Manta would appear in AQUAMAN, but once Patrick Wilson was cast as Orm a.k.a. Ocean Master, it seemed that the villain role had been filled. With the casting of Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, a relative newcomer who is best known for Netflix’s The Get Down, as Black Manta, it certainly seems that Aquaman (Jason Momoa) will have his hands full. James Wan and the studio have been meeting with a variety of actors to play Black Manta for the past several weeks, and the official offer went out to Abdul-Mateen II just yesterday. As for Nicole Kidman, she’s long been a favourite of James of Wan’s to play the role of Atlanna, the former Queen of Atlantis as well as Aquaman’s mother, and the studio seems optimistic that a deal will be reached with both actors.

AQUAMAN is set for a October 5, 2018 release while JUSTICE LEAGUE is due to hit theaters on November 17, 2017.