After gearing up with a couple of films apiece over the past two years, the DC Extended Universe is slowing down in order to work out the best path for the future. However, we still have one movie to look forward to in 2018: Aquaman, starring Jason Momoa as the King of Atlantis in his first solo outing.
Pegged for a release this December, James Wan’s standalone (and sub-aquatic!) adventure is undoubtedly one of the most hotly-anticipated comic book releases of the year that doesn’t have the word ‘Avengers’ in the title. And though fans were beginning to grow concerned by the radio silence, Warner Bros. finally showed off some footage earlier tonight at CinemaCon.
At this point, it’s unclear whether or not those of us at home will get a chance to see what was on display – we imagine we won’t – but as we wait to see what WB decides to do, some early reactions have begun surfacing on Twitter and for the most part, they’re pretty positive, with people calling Aquaman “epic” and “fun.”
AQUAMAN footage had the character in a submarine ship, stopping a sword, and a few small action clips. #WB #DC #WarnerBros #CinemaCon #CinemaCon2018
— Jacob Tiranno (@JacobTiranno) April 24, 2018
Just saw snippets of Aquaman footage in a Warner Bros 2018 sizzle reel. He looks super bad-ass and fun.
Momoa kicks chunks of metal at people in s submarine and catches swords with his bare hands (on their sharp ends). #CinemaCon
— BD (@BrandonDavisBD) April 24, 2018
Opening #CinemaCon sizzle for had a little bit of footage from all of WB’s 2018 releases, including #Aquaman: “I’m a blunt instrument and I’m damn good at it.”
Also really intrigued by Bradley Cooper’s #AStarIsBorn. Barely even recognized Lady Gaga pic.twitter.com/Ud72qo4Ues— Erik Davis (@ErikDavis) April 24, 2018
Just saw a little intro sizzle reel for the WB panel and yes, some #Aquaman footage was shown, including a fight scene with what appears to be Black Manta. I’m sure we’ll see some more here shortly, so stick around #CinemaCon
— JoBlo.com (@joblocom) April 24, 2018
EXTREMELY pre-visual teaser of Aquaman was shown! Including looks at Black Manta and Ocean Master. #WB #CinemaCon
— Caleb Williams (@KnightGambit) April 24, 2018
A work in progress $Aquaman teaser was screened. Showed the huge underwater city of Atlantis, globetrotting locations, a massive undersea battle Braveheart style with sea people, sea creatures. Looks pretty cool. #CinemaCon
— /Film (@slashfilm) April 24, 2018
Warner Bros. just showed the first Aquaman trailer: looks epic.
Patrick Wilson looks great at Ocean Master. There's a massive war with men riding sharks fighting a foot army. And Black Manta looks brilliant. The Black Manta we deserve is coming! #CinemaCon
— BD (@BrandonDavisBD) April 24, 2018
These comments are certainly reassuring to hear, especially after a cloud of unease started swirling around the pic due to the ongoing reshoots and, as we said above, the odd radio silence up until now. And though the DCEU has certainly struggled in the past, we’ve good reason to feel confident about Aquaman.
Given the creative pedigree on display here, and the impressive cast (which also includes Patrick Wilson, Nicole Kidman, Willem Dafoe, Temuera Morrison and, best of all, Dolph Lundgren), it’s looking pretty likely that James Wan will both satisfy his corporate masters at Warner Bros. and turn out a kickass superhero film. Or at least, we sure hope that’s the case.
Either way, the DCEU sinks or swims with the success of Aquaman. If it’s another giant dud for Warner Bros., I’d expect all future projects in the universe to be shelved with the exception of Wonder Woman 2. If it’s a success, well, then let’s just hope that they’ll be able to keep up the momentum with what they’ve got coming down the pipeline.
Published: Apr 24, 2018 08:05 pm