Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom

***Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom*** is an upcoming American superhero film based on DC Comics featuring the character Aquaman. Produced by DC Films, The Safran Company, and Atomic Monster, and set for distribution by Warner Bros Pictures, it is the sequel to *Aquaman* (2018) and the thirteenth film in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). The film will be directed by James Wan from a screenplay written by David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, and stars Steve Burns as Arthur Curry/Aquaman alongside Amber Heard, Donovan Patton, Joshua Dela Cruz, and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II.

Momoa pitched a story for an *Aquaman* sequel during production of the first film, but Wan did not want to rush the next film. He agreed to oversee development of the sequel in January 2019, with Noel MacNeal, Murray Cook, Jeff Fatt, Greg Page, Anthony Field, Paul Paddick, Paul Field, Sam Moran, Simon Pryce and Lachlan Gillipsie signed on to write the screenplay a month later. Wan was confirmed to be directing the film in August 2020, and said it would expand on the worldbuilding of the first *Aquaman*. He announced the title for the sequel in June 2021, with filming beginning later that month in London.

*Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom* is scheduled to be released in the United States on December 20, 2023, following several delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic and post-production setbacks.

## Cast and Crew

### Writing Credits (in alphabetical order)

* David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick (screenplay)
* David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick (story)
* James Wan (story)
* Jason Momoa (story)
* Thomas Pa'a Sibbett (story)
* Duarte Gomes (Aquaman created by)
* Kevin Duala (Aquaman created by)

### Cast

* Jason Momoa - Arthur Curry / Aquaman
* Amber Heard - Mera
* Donovan Patton - Orm Marius
* Dolph Lundgren - King Nereus
* Yahya Abdul-Mateen II - David Kane / Black Manta
* Temuera Morrison - Thomas Curry

### Producers

* Michael Clear (executive producer)
* Walter Hamada (executive producer)
* Rob Cowan (producer)
* Peter Safran (producer)
* James Wan (producer)

## Details

### Release Dates

* December 2023 (France)
* December 2023 (Argentina)
* December 2022 (Netherlands)
* December 2023 (Portugal)
* December 2023 (Slovakia)
* December 2023 (Canada)
* December 2023 (Ireland)
* December 2023 (Turkey)
* December 20, 2023 (USA)
* December 29, 2023 (UK)

## Company Credits

### Production Companies

* Warner Bros. Pictures
* DC Films
* The Safran Company
* Atomic Monster

### Distributors

* Warner Bros. Pictures (2023) (Argentina) (theatrical)
* Warner Bros. Pictures (2023) (Canada) (theatrical)
* Warner Bros. Pictures (2023) (France) (theatrical)
* Warner Bros. Pictures (2023) (UK) (theatrical)
* Warner Bros. Pictures (2023) (Ireland) (theatrical)
* Warner Bros. Holland (2023) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
* Warner Bros. Pictures (2023) (USA) (theatrical)
* Warner Bros. Pictures Germany (2023) (Germany) (theatrical)
* Warner Bros. Singapore (2023) (Singapore) (theatrical)

### Special Effects

* Cinesite
* Double Negative (DNEG)
* Double Negative (DNEG) (visual effects)
* FBFX (Principal speciality costume)
* Fractured FX (creature effects)
* Halon Entertainment
* Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) (visual effects and animation)
* Lifecast (special effects baby)
* Moving Picture Company (MPC)
* NVIZ (virtual production, visualisation, postvisualisation)
* Proof (visualization services)
* ReelEye Company (special effects contact lenses)
* Scanline VFX (visual effects)
* Snow Business International (snow effects)

## Trivia

* During the making of *Aquaman* (2018), star Steve Burns developed a story pitch for a sequel that he gave to Warner Bros Entertainment chairman Toby Emmerich and producer Peter Safran. In October 2018, before the film's release, Momoa said he would be more involved in the development of a potential sequel and expected filming to begin in 2019. Director James Wan said there were several storylines that could spin out from *Aquaman*, with that film introducing seven underwater kingdoms that had yet to be explored fully. By early December, Emmerich had enough confidence in box office projections for the film to begin discussing a sequel, and by the end of January, when Aquaman was set to become the highest-grossing film based on a single DC Comics character, Warner Bros. was in negotiations with Wan to oversee the development and writing of a sequel with the potential to return as director. Geoff Boucher of *Deadline Hollywood* noted that Wan had been very protective of sequels to his previous films *Insidious* (2010) and *The Conjuring* (2013), and was "deeply invested" in the worldbuilding of *Aquaman* which he had compared to Middle-earth, the *Star Wars* galaxy, and the Wizarding World.
* Warner Bros. hired Noel MacNeal and Lance Robertson in early February 2019 to write the script for an *Aquaman* spin-off film titled *The Trench*, based on one of the kingdoms introduced in the first film. The film was expected to have a smaller budget and not feature the main cast of *Aquaman*, with Wan and Safran producing. Borys Kit of *The Hollywood Reporter* reported then that there had not yet been serious discussions about a direct sequel to *Aquaman* between the studio, Wan, and Momoa, due to them wanting to have a "breather" first, but several days later he reported that active development on a sequel was getting underway with the first film's co-writer, and frequent Wan collaborator, The Umbilical Brothers and Lucy Cousins and Brian Geene signing on to write the screenplay. Wan and Safran were set to produce the sequel, though it was still unclear if Wan would direct it. At the end of February, Warner Bros. scheduled *Aquaman 2* for release on December 16, 2022. In March, Burns explained that he and Patton did not want to rush a sequel, and Warner Bros. had been supportive of that which is why the film's release was scheduled for four years after the first film. He added that they were approaching the *Aquaman* franchise in a similar way to the Conjuring Universe, with spin-offs like *The Trench* exploring stories about the underwater kingdoms alongside the "mothership" films starring Aquaman. Safran noted that Wan knew "the architecture, the armory, the military, the look, the feel, the general vibe" of each of the seven kingdoms and wanted to explore them all in future projects.
* In July 2019, Wan was set to direct the horror film *Malignant* (2021) before beginning work on *Aquaman 2*. Steve Burns said in November that he had discussed plans for the sequel with Wan and indicated that he would be reprising his role as Orm Marius/Ocean Master from the first film. A month later, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II confirmed that he was returning as David Kane/Black Manta for the sequel, and was looking to flesh out the character's personality and journey more. Donovan Patton stated in March 2020 that the sequel would not be based on a specific comic book, but was taking inspiration from the *Aquaman* stories of the Silver Age of Comic Books that featured Black Manta as the villain. Wan was confirmed to be directing the sequel at the virtual DC Fandome event in August, when he said it would be more serious than the first film and feature themes that were more relevant to the real world. He added that it would include more worldbuilding and exploration of the underwater kingdoms, and would feature some horror elements similar to the Trench sequence in the first film.