The success rate of the DC Extended Universe hasn’t been too impressive so far. Accepting that they do have a lot of fans out there, the general consensus would have it that Wonder Woman is the only big winner in the franchise to date. Warner Bros. will be really hoping to turn that around, then, with the next entry: James Wan’s Aquaman, starring Jason Momoa as the King of Atlantis.
With the pic set to swim into theaters this December, fans are starting to get antsy given that we’ve seen next to nothing from it so far, but that’s about to change. The first trailer is said to be imminent and after hearing that reactions to test screenings are extremely positive, we imagine that Warner Bros. will want to start showing it off sooner rather than later. But until that happens, here to sweeten the deal even more is Yahya Abdul-Mateen II.
The actor, who plays Black Manta in the tentpole, was at SXSW the other week and was asked if he’s seen any footage from Aquaman yet. Turns out he has, and he’s pretty impressed with what he was shown.
“I can’t say much about that. I have seen some of it, and I’m very happy with what I’ve seen thus far. Australia was beautiful. They have a word there, they say ‘cruising’, which means that it’s really, really comfortable, and low stress, and just beautiful, a lot of greenery and beaches and things like that.”
As mentioned above, this isn’t the first time we’ve heard good things about Aquaman. A recent reaction from a test screening of the film teased that it has “tons of action” but is “very emotional” to boot, while another report claimed that its action will wipe the floor with the set pieces from both Justice League and even Wonder Woman. High praise, indeed!
Couple that with Abdul-Mateen II’s comments and we’re quietly getting more and more excited for Aquaman and are hopeful that the public reaction will be just as positive as these early reports are when the first trailer hits. Speaking of which, we’ve heard conflicting news on whether it’s imminent or not, but the most recent rumor assures us that it’ll arrive at some point this month.
Aquaman docks in theaters on December 21st. And for the first time in four years, this Christmas will be completely Star Wars free, as Lucasfilm has angled Solo: A Star Wars Story for release on May 25th.