Aquaman (film)

*For the characters, see Aquaman (disambiguation).*

## Release chronology

"*I'm no leader. I'm not a king. I do not work or play well with others. And I can't let you die trying to turn me into something I'm not."
"You think you're unworthy to lead because you're of two different worlds. But that is exactly why you are worthy. You are the bridge between land and sea. I can see that now. The only question is... can you?*"
―Arthur Curry and Mera
***Aquaman*** is a 2014 superhero film based on the DC Comics superhero of the same name. It is the 3rd film in the DC Extended Universe and the 3rd installment of the Golden Age. It was released on December 14, 2014.

The film is followed by sequels *Aquaman: Secret Kingdom of Exiles* in 2019 and *Aquaman and the Others* in 2023.

The film introduces Aquaman, Mera, Black Manta, Queen Atlanna, Thomas Curry, Nuidis Vulko, King Nereus, Stephen Shin, and Ocean Master into the DCEU.

## Synopsis

Arthur Curry, the reluctant heir to the underwater kingdom of Atlantis, is caught in a battle between surface dwellers that threaten his oceans and his own people, with the terror led by Black Manta, filled with anger and vengeance after Arthur let his father die.

## Plot

In Maine, 1982, lighthouse keeper Thomas Curry rescues Atlanna, the queen of the underwater nation of Atlantis, and they fall in love and have a son, Arthur Curry, who is born with the power to communicate with marine lifeforms. Following an attack by Atlantean soldiers sent by King Orvax to retrieve Atlanna, who fled from her arranged marriage, she is forced to abandon her family and return to Atlantis, entrusting to her loyal advisor Nuidis Vulko the mission of training Arthur. Under Vulko's guidance, Arthur becomes a skilled warrior, but is rejected by the Atlanteans for being a half-breed and ultimately leaves his Atlantean lineage behind.

In the Kingdom of Xebel in Dimension Aqua, Princess Mera is tasked by King Nereus to kill the heir apparent of the Kingdom of Atlantis, Arthur Curry.

Arthur **confronts** the Devil Rays pirate band led by Jesse Hyde, who are in the middle of a Russian nuclear submarine hijacking. David Hyde, Jesse's son, attempts to kill Aquaman by firing his weapon but accidentally hits a torpedo and pins the wounded Jesse. Refusing to save his father, David vows revenge against Arthur. Going back to land, Mera stalks Arthur. After a night of drinking, he stumbles out of the bar and meets Mera. Thinking they were gonna hookup, Mera **defeats** Arthur and knocks him out. Contemplating whether or not to kill him, she decides to leave.

The next day, Arthur chats with his father, mentioning the mysterious woman, positing that she may be an Atlantean while watching the TV, where an interview of Dr. Stephen Shin about his theory of Atlantis is on air. Leaving the interview, Dr. Shin is met with David, who asks for his help. He takes David into his residence and shows him all of his Atlantean findings. David tells him of his plans and that in exchange of the doctor's help, he can take him to Atlantis.

Arthur meets Vulko once again, who is accompanied by Garth, and tells him that Atlantis needs him, but Arthur refuses. Later, a tsunami occurs and Aquaman attempts to save people before Mera appears and diminishes the wave. Mera quickly leaves before Vulko and Aqualad arrive. Aquaman asks them who she is but they have no idea what he's talking about. Vulko then reveals that the wave was caused by his half brother Orm who now rules Atlantis, Vulko tells him that he is a ticking time bomb of a war between the sea and land. Arthur then agrees to go to Atlantis, and meets his half brother. They engage in a serious chat about humanity's actions to the ocean before he requests to meet his mother. Arthur reunites with his mother before going back to the surface.

David and Stephen forges a supersuit, naming it the Black Manta. He tells Stephen that they would need a powerful weapon to match against him. The Devil Rays crew travel to the outskirts of Atlantis, where Manta contacts Orm, who gives him the coordinates to the vault of Kordax, a powerful weaponry compound. Dr. Shin asks David how he made contact with Atlanteans and tells him the story of how he and his father along with the Devil Rays once accidentally stumbled upon Atlantis and were confronted by Orm. After being attacked by a swarm of Trench creatures, they finally reach the vault, and Manta takes the Black Trident. Using the trident, he is able to control the Trench creatures. Dr. Shin insists on also going in for the weapons, and he takes a vessel containing a nut. Shin tells them about his friend Curry, and shows him a picture of his son, Aquaman. Manta drops Shin at his place.

The Devil Rays attack the Curry lighthouse and finds out about Arthur's life, and ...childhood school. The nearby Mera is alerted and she **battles** Black Manta. Manta manages to badly hurt Thomas but fails to kill him due to Mera. Mera's counterattack causes the Devil Rays to flee, giving her the opportunity to tend to Thomas' wounds using her hydrokinetic powers. Arthur arrives and immediately takes Thomas to be treated. Arthur gets closer with Mera and she reveals her true origins, as well as the weapon Manta has. Knowing this, Aquaman vows to stop Manta.

Aquaman and Mera go back to the lighthouse and finds that the pub that he frequents is being destroyed by Manta. After a hard fought **battle**, Manta flies away on his Manta-Sub. Aquaman thinks of a way to catch up to him and Mera reveals that she can fly. They finally get to Manta who is starting to destroy his childhood elementary school. A tense **battle** ensues and Manta summons the Trench, who began to rise up from the Earth and attacking people. Manta then leave Aquaman and Mera to fight against the horde of Trench until they're all dead.

Mera takes the wounded Aquaman to the ocean. After a dramatic conversation, Aquaman returns to the fight. He goes to Stephen Shin, and he admits to working to Manta, causing Aquaman to destroy his place and all his work. Mera calms him down, and they abandon Shin. Aquaman checks on his father, and tells him that he is not safe, and he agrees to be taken by Vulko. Aqualad takes Thomas to Atlantis on a ship. Aquaman, Mera, and Vulko join together to take down Manta. Manta and the Devil Rays is repairing their ship and is met with an angry Shin, Manta calms him down, telling him he can get it all back and more, if he helps him against Aquaman, which he agrees. Shin tells Manta that Aquaman's father is alive and they go to the hospital. There, Manta demands to the doctors to know where they took Thomas. Shin tells him that they must've took Thomas to Atlantis to save him from Manta.

In Atlantis, Thomas meets Atlanna for the first time after decades. En route to Atlantis, Manta's crew is attacked by Aquaman, but manages to escape. Manta deploys himself out of the sub, and charges into Atlantis, destroying many security constructs with the Black Trident. Dr. Shin consumes the Seed of Atlantis, and rapidly mutate into an Atlantean. Atlantis is on alert, and Orm confronts Manta, who flips him off, hellbent on killing Thomas. Orm realizes his mistake, and that Manta has become stronger than anyone in Atlantis with the Black Trident. Aquaman arrives, and Manta summons the Trench, creating chaos upon the kingdom. When Aquaman is too busy fighting the Trench, Manta finds Thomas, but was fought off by Atlanna. Aquaman joins in and the 3 of them fight on. Dr. Shin appears before Mera, and they fight until Mera manages to "kill" him. Aqualad takes Thomas to further safety, and Aquaman defeats Manta by destroying his helmet, forcing him to resurface for air. Manta is taken by A.R.G.U.S. and Aquaman starts rebuilding the lighthouse with Thomas and some guys. The movie ends with Aquaman swimming through Atlantis and emerging upon the sunset.

## Cast

### Main characters

* Jason Momoa as Orin/Arthur Curry/Aquaman
* Emilia Clarke as Mera
* Temuera Morrison as Thomas Curry
* Alfred Molina as Nuidis Vulko
* Nicole Kidman as Queen Atlanna

### Antagonists

* Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as David Hyde/Black Manta
* Randall Park as Dr. Stephen Shin

### Side characters

* Patrick Wilson as Prince Orm Marius
* Ryan Potter as Garth/Aqualad
* Dolph Lundgren as King Nereus
* Michael Beach as Jesse Hyde
* Graham McTavish as King Atlan

## Appearances

### Characters

AquamanMeraBlack MantaStephen ShinThomas CurryNuidis VulkoQueen AtlannaPrince Orm MariusAqualadNereusJesse HydeAtlan
(cameo)
#### Mentioned

* Orvax
* Kordax

### Locations

* Multiverse
	+ Earth-1
		- Earth
			* Atlantean Empire
				+ Kingdom of Atlantis
				+ Kingdom of Xebel, Dimension Aqua
				+ Kingdom of the Sea Lights
				+ Kingdom of the Brine (mentioned)
				+ Kingdom of the Deserters (mentioned)
				+ Lost Kingdom of Atlantis (mentioned)
			* United States of America
				+ Amnesty Bay, Maine
					- Curry lighthouse
			* Vault of Kordax
	+ Dimension Aqua
		- Atlantean Empire
			* Kingdom of Xebel

### Events

* Great Fall of Atlantis (flashback)
* Black Manta's Revenge

### Items

* Atlanna's trident
* Black Manta suit
	+ Black Trident
* Manta-Sub
* Seed of Atlantis

### Species

* Humans
	+ Atlanteans
		- Trench
	+ *Homo magi* descent

### Organizations

* A.R.G.U.S.
* Atlantean Marine Corps
* Devil Rays

## Production

The film, along with *The Flash* was announced in 2010 as the first two films following *Man of Steel* in the DC Extended Universe.

James Wan signed on to direct the film and *Game of Thrones* actors Jason Momoa and Emilia Clarke were cast as Aquaman and Mera, as well as Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as the villain Black Manta in 2011. Yahya Andul-Mateen II were cast as the main villain Black Manta in the same year.

Filming began on December 2012.