Ever since Vinny Chase starred as Aquaman in "Entourage," comic book fans everywhere have wondered: will Hollywood ever make a real Aquaman movie? Or is that scene of an actor playing an actor playing the superhero in an HBO show all we’re going to get? The recent success of comic book-based movies has made the question more relevant than ever. With even obscure superheroes like the Guardians of the Galaxy and Ant-Man starring in major studio movies, now seems like the perfect chance for the King of Atlantis to make his own box office waves. And, based on recent announcements and some Easter egg-style clues, perhaps Warner Brothers is thinking the same thing. An Aquaman movie is closer than ever to reality.
Introduced in 1941's "More Fun Comics #73," Aquaman has been an important member of the DC Universe's stable of heroes. He has had many story lines over the years, including several origin stories and more than one reboot. The original version of Aquaman was a lighter character, wholesome, occasionally the butt of a joke, not nearly as powerful as Superman or some of the other DC heroes. A superhero whose power is the ability to talk to fish? Not exactly flying. But Aquaman showed staying power. During World War II, he battled Nazi U-Boats. In 1956, he got an octopus sidekick named Topo. Aquaman was the son of a famous, but unnamed, underwater explorer, who lived under the ocean in a water-tight house and taught his son how to survive underwater; later he was the son of a lighthouse keeper named Arthur Curry and Atlanna, an outcast from the lost city of Atlantis. In a third origin, Atlanna would go from outcast to queen, and Aquaman's father was a mysterious wizard named Atlan. He was raised by the lighthouse keeper after being discovered, abandoned, on Mercy Reef as a baby. Aquaman has done battle with the Ocean Master, his amnesiac half-brother, with the Black Manta and the Fisherman. He was a founding member of the Justice League of America. In the 90s, he was re-branded as a darker, more brooding character.
Come on, Hollywood! Isn't that enough to work with?
Apparently, it is. There have been a rash of recent announcements concerning Aquaman, all of which point to an upcoming feature film in 2018. Firstly, there was a brief clip in the trailer for "Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice," purportedly showing the underwater hero. This has led many fans to believe that Aquaman will make an appearance in the upcoming film, due out in March 2016. Aquaman is also confirmed to appear in the first "Justice League" movie, which’ll be released in 2017.
But what about an Aquaman solo feature? It seems set for 2018. Starring Jason Momoa, who played Khal Drogo in HBO's "Game of Thrones" adaptation, the movie will be directed by James Wan ("Furious Seven," "The Conjuring") and written by Kurt Johnson, who wrote the screenplays for the "300" movie franchise. Unfortunately, that's all we know at the moment. Will the movie be an origin story? If so, which origin will be chosen? Which Aquaman will be featured, the original wholesome character who talked with fish, or the brooding '90s version?
We'll have to wait a few more years to find all this out.
