Get ready to return to Atlantis because Aquaman 2 – or to give it it’s full title, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom – has finally begun filming. Director James Wan confirmed the news this Monday by sharing the very first photo from the set on social media, revealing that the shoot is kicking off in an unknown icy location.
“Day one,” Wan captioned the image. The pic in question doesn’t feature Jason Momoa’s Arthur Curry, Amber Heard’s Mera or the rest of the sequel’s cast, instead capturing the clapperboard, which sports the movie’s working title – Necrus. And that may give us a clue as to what we can expect from Aquaman 2.
Check out the set photo in the gallery below:
Necrus is a very obscure element of Aquaman lore – also known as The Black City, it’s an interdimensional location that only appears on Earth, at the bottom of an underwater canyon, periodically when an alien satellite, the last remaining piece of its homeworld, crosses into Earth’s orbit. It’s ruled over by King Mondo, a tyrant who shares Ocean Master’s hatred of surface-dwellers. He initially attempted to forge an alliance with Atlantis, but when Arthur refused he imprisoned him and declared war on his kingdom.
It’s very possible that Necrus is the “lost kingdom” of the sequel’s title, though it’s obscurity – Necrus only appears in a single issue, 1966’s Aquaman #30 – makes it a surprising choice to adapt for the DCEU. The working title may have been chosen to throw fans off the scent, then, although it would be a neat fit for the film. It’s easy to imagine Mongo teaming up with Prince Orm or even Black Manta to cause Arthur misery.
Now that filming has begun, hopefully further set photos will come our way and we can start piecing together the plot. Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is scheduled to arrive in theaters on December 16th, 2022.