The author of this article is @North of the Little Wan family
Find the spiritual corner of everyone in the movie
With the official finalization of "New Bat" (March 18, China), the DC movie "Year of Heroes" has also officially kicked off.
Throughout 2022, not only will as many as 4 DC super British movies be released in relay - "New Batman", "Black Adam", "The Flash", "Aquaman 2", but also various animated versions and streaming movies will be released one after another (such as "DC Cute Pet Dispatch Team" and "Batwoman").
The repeated attacks of these blockbuster works can finally make fans around the world feel the atmosphere of the long-lost super British blockbuster again.
Among this many masterpieces, the year-end finale of "Aquaman 2: The Lost Kingdom" is undoubtedly one of the most high-profile sequels.
Aquaman's new look
If "The New Batman" represents a new era of independent cinema in the DC Universe, then "Aquaman 2" is the last stubbornness in the DC Universe at present.
When Ben Affleck's version of Batman quit and Henry Cavill's version of Superman ("Man of Steel 2") was no longer heard, Aquaman, who could only be relegated to the second line in the comics, unexpectedly became a well-deserved "DC brother".
Before the official opening of DC's "Year of Heroes", let's talk about this "Aquaman 2" released at the end of this year (December 16, North America) and shouldering the transition of DC's new and old universes, to see what we are worth paying attention to.
As one of the few single-player sequel films in DC, the launch of "Aquaman 2" can be said to be the most anticipated.
The previous game's super high box office of $1.147 billion and the reputation above the standard saved the DC Movie Universe at the same time, but also took the opportunity to recruit Wen Ziren, a well-known director, to DC Movies.
However, the development process of "Aquaman 2" was not smooth.
After the success of his previous game, Wen Ziren decided to make a spin-off called Trench Clan before filming Aquaman 2 to expand the depth and breadth of the underwater world.
However, since the project began preparations in 2019, few on-set photos and materials have been released, and finally in 2021, Warner announced that the project has been stopped.
The "Trench Clan" in the manga
Along with "Trench Clan", there is also the movie "New God Clan" that tells the origin of the villains Steppenwolf and Darkseid in "Justice League".
The two works were cancelled in succession, which can be seen as a reflection of Warner's lack of confidence in the stylized work after the failure of Zach Schneider's DCEU.
Because from the information previously exposed, the story of "Trench Clan" takes place in the Trench Kingdom, with the well-received underwater bridge section in "Sea King" as an extension, which is a smaller horror film.
Such a style is obviously something that Warner does not want to try again at present.
In addition to the cancellation of the spin-off, Amber Hilde, the actor of The Queen of the Sea, also suffered a huge resistance to "Aquaman 2" during filming because of the lace news outside the film.
Her war of words with her ex-husband Johnny Depp has been raging on the Internet, and many netizens have petitioned to fire Hield.
But the producers of Aquaman 2 withstood the pressure.
He struggled to keep the original team in the previous game, saying: "Honestly, I don't think we will react to pure fan pressure. We felt that this movie should be paired with Wen Ziren, Jason Momma and Amber Hield. ”
Fortunately, the above difficulties did not affect the production of "Aquaman 2", whether it is Warner executives or the creative team, they are full of confidence in this sequel.
In an interview, director Wen Ziren also talked about the style of the work will be darker and more terrifying, and the inspiration for the work is largely inspired by the 1965 Italian horror film Vampire Planet (aka Demon Planet).
Vampire Planet
And this stylistic shift can also be seen as a spiritual continuation of the cancellation of the work "Trench Clan".
King Aum and the Black Manta Ray
In terms of actors, "Aquaman 2" not only returns all the old characters, but also introduces Chinese actor Zhao Jiani, black actor India Moore and British action actor Vincent Reagan.
Zhao Jiani, who has previously had a brilliant performance in the TV series "Double Life", will play the role of Stingray in "Aquaman 2", but whether the role is positive or negative is still unknown.
India Moore's character is named Karshon, who was originally a villain in the comic strip Green Lantern, a shark who gains telepathy and intelligence after being irradiated.
Vincent Reagan's character is named Atlan, the first king of Atlantis and the invincible god of war who created the trident.
In the comics, Atlan sinks the entire of Atlantis with a trident and a scepter symbolizing death, known as the Dead King.
As the most important villain in the comics, the "two-king war" between the former ruler of Atlantis and the current sea king Arthur Curry is undoubtedly the biggest attraction of the sequel.
Judging by the attributes of these new characters, Aquaman 2: The Lost Kingdom not only has a larger scene and narrative, but also mentions the story before the underwater world.
It can be seen that when "Trench Clan" was canceled, director Wen Ziren used a more secure way to continuously expand the worldview of the "Sea King Universe".
The hero, who once came to the second line in the comic book and had a low sense of existence in "Justice League", is gradually growing into a "senator" level hero in DC movies.
At the same time, Aquaman 2 also carries the hope of the DC Universe.
It is reported that in this year's release of "The Flash", the famous event "Flashpoint" will be used to restart the current DC Universe.
Heavyweight heroes such as Batman and Superman will leave the Justice League, replaced by Batgirl, The Flash, Supergirl, and a new group of fresh faces in the Justice League Association.
Dr. Destiny will be played by the former 007 Brosnan
As one of the seven giants of the previous Positive Alliance, Aquaman has not yet officially confirmed whether it will appear in the new "Justice League", so the development direction of "Aquaman 2" is also related to the future trend of the DC Universe.
On the other hand, Aquaman is also inextricably linked to the Zedo Universe that fans are obsessed with.
In the recently aired final episode of "Messengers of Peace", four members of the Za Director's Justice League appeared on the end credits Easter egg, in which The Flash and Aquaman also gave a wonderful mouth cannon performance.
This can't help but make people think that the DC Universe of Za's version has not really been broken, and the "Justice League Part II" that people have been expecting may appear in front of the audience again in some way.
After all, in real life, Jason Momma and Ezra Miller are all loyal fans of the topic of #Resurrection of the Zadao Universe, and the streaming media platform has been quietly exerting efforts, which has brought more possibilities for the follow-up of the Zadao DC Universe.
It is reported that with the help of the HBO max platform, Za Director will shoot two follow-up works of "Justice League" in the form of original episodes in three years, based on the nightmare timeline.
Maybe we can really see the DC Universe again in "Aquaman 2", and the superhero who stands at a key turning point will definitely use his unique charm to lead DC movies to a better future.
As the movie says, "They come from different worlds, but life is like the sea, and people always meet unexpectedly." ”
Note: Some of the pictures in this article come from Douban and the Internet, if there is infringement, please take the initiative to contact us.