• Home
  • Mail
  • News
  • Finance
  • Sports
  • Entertainment
  • Search
  • Mobile
  • More
Yahoo
    • Skip to Navigation
    • Skip to Main Content
    • Skip to Related Content
    • Mail
    Entertainment Home
    Follow Us
    • The It List
    • TV
    • Movies
    • Celebrity
    • Music
    • Live Celeb Chats
    • Videos
    Reblog
    Share
    Tweet
    Share

    'Aquaman' director James Wan on reclaiming hero's rep, the film's environmental message, and that jaw-dropping trailer

    Ethan Alter
    Senior Writer, Yahoo Entertainment
    July 22, 2018

    Superman is the heart of the Justice League, while Wonder Woman is the soul, and Batman is the mind. And Aquaman? Well, he’s historically been the punching bag, frequently derided by fans for his powers — talking to fish, really? — not to mention that garish orange costume.

    Well, all of that changes now. The Aquaman trailer, which premiered Saturday at the San Diego Comic-Con, proves that DC’s aquatic hero has got plenty of blockbuster muscle. When Yahoo Entertainment spoke with Wan (watch our interview above), we asked him about how he wanted to go about reversing the long-held perception of Aquaman as a less-than-super superhero.

    “The first thing you do is you cast Jason Momoa,” the Australian director laughs, acknowledging the dominating physical presence of the muscular actor. “That goes a long way. Try making fun of him to his face and see what happens.”

    When Wan and his cast — including Momoa, Amber Heard, Nicole Kidman, Patrick Wilson, and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II — presented the trailer in Hall H to a roaring crowd of 6,000 fans, the director promised an experience that “plays more like a science-fiction fantasy film than a traditional superhero movie.”

    That vision is certainly on display in the trailer, which brings the underwater metropolis of Atlantis to vivid life and also showcases elaborate action sequences that take place above and below sea level. A longer trailer — one specifically made for the Comic-Con crowd — showed off even more material, including a thrilling Jason Bourne-style rooftop chase where Aquaman and Mera (Heard) are pursued by Black Manta (Abdul-Mateen) and a battle sequence featuring rival armies mounted on monstrous sea horses and behemoth sharks.


    In our conversation with Wan, he revealed some of the secrets behind making a movie where roughly half of the action takes place underwater — without actually submerging any of the actors.

    “When we shoot, we [use] a technique we call ‘dry for wet.’ We shoot the actors against a blue screen, but they’re on this really cool device that the stunt department made up where the actors are on these rigs, but they can fly them around. It looks like they’re kind of swimming underwater.”

    The Aquaman trailer also shows clips of the movie’s first big set-piece, which unfolds aboard a submarine. Unlike the dry-for-wet scenes, that vessel was built in a water tank, so Momoa did require the use of a towel afterwards. “We would submerge the set in a water tank so it would fill up and then we would raise it back up,” Wan says. “You can’t help but get wet.” The fact that Arthur wears jeans for that particular underwater exploit didn’t help matters. “Wet denim was a bad idea,” Momoa joked during the panel.

    Apparently, fashion is one area where we can still make fun of Aquaman.

    Aquaman swims into theaters on Dec. 21.

    Read more from Yahoo Entertainment

    • How ‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’ gives us a Peter Parker we’ve never seen before
    • Riz Ahmed on why a South Asian woman should write ‘Ms. Marvel’
    • Amandla Stenberg, ‘Darkest Mind’ stars salute the power of the teen generation
    Reblog
    Share
    Tweet
    Share

    What to Read Next

    • Huey Lewis contemplated taking his own life after hearing loss diagnosis

      Yahoo Celebrity
    • Netflix Christmas special which implies Jesus was gay sparks backlash from Christians

      Yahoo TV
    • Kim Kardashian and Kanye West Share the 'West Family Christmas Card 2019' with All Four Kids

      People
    • Jason Derulo Didn’t Think His Underwear Photo Would Cause ‘This Much Thirst’

      People
    • Tekashi 6ix9ine Cries To Judge, Claims Fellow Gang Member Had Sex With His Baby Mama

      TheBlast
    • Comedian Chris Cotton Dies at Age 32 — 2 Months Before His Baby Is Due

      People
    • Former HGTV Host Christopher Dionne Sentenced to 3 Years in Prison for Molesting 10-Year-Old Girl

      People
    • Kim Kardashian's Christmas Card Just Features Her Immediate Family, All in Sweatpants

      Entertainment Tonight
    • Colin Firth and His Wife of 22 Years Split Almost 2 Years After Affair and Stalking Scandal

      People
    • Taylor Swift blasts Scooter Braun and 'toxic male privilege' in Billboard speech

      Yahoo Music
    • Savannah Guthrie shares a sweet photo with her son as she recovers from eye surgery

      Yahoo TV
    • Nick Cannon's Mention Of Eminem's Daughter Hailie Jade Was 'Completely Off Limits'

      TheBlast
    • Kelly Ripa's Daughter Lola Consuelos Wears Stylish Silk Slip Dress for Family Christmas Card

      People
    • Melania Trump's Rep Speaks Out After President Mocked a Teenager on Twitter: They 'Communicate Differently'

      People
    • Christina Hendricks Files for Divorce From Husband Geoffrey Arend After 10 Years of Marriage

      Entertainment Tonight
    • Kelly Ripa Calls Husband Mark Consuelos and Son Michael Her Man Crushes

      People

    Mitch McConnell Brags About Blocking Obama For 2 Years, Then Laughs About It

    Enshadowed: I'm tired of hearing about term limits from people that elect their same people to Congress (House of Representatives and Senate) and expect others to change. I vote against all incumbents in Texas (because they are all part of the dynasty problem) but other people in my area want everyone else to give up their elected officials first. That's not how it works, we vote the change we want. Also, the U.S. has not voted for presidential term limits since Bill Clinton defeated George H.W. Bush, so thats when the real divide began in this country. These abuses has been going on for a long time as we have been more divided over the years. Want a solution? Start voting for term limits where you live. I do!

    Join the Conversation
    1 / 5

    9.9k

    • Kate Hudson On Mom Goldie Hawn's Relationship With Kurt Russell: "It's a hard thing to live up to"

      Rachael Ray CBS
    • Hayden Panettiere Shows Off Dramatic Transformation as She Returns to Social Media

      Entertainment Tonight
    • Lachlan Murdoch Buys ‘Beverly Hillbillies’ Mansion in Bel-Air for Record $150 Million

      The Wrap
    • Kim Kardashian's Doctors Wouldn't Let Her Do IVF Again After Her Pregnancy Complications

      People
    • Tristan Thompson Posts Touching Tribute to His 'Baby Boy' Prince on His Third Birthday

      People
    • Michelle Obama tells Greta Thunberg 'don’t let anyone dim your light' after Trump's tweet

      USA TODAY Entertainment
    • Inside Colin Firth and Ex Livia Giuggiolo's Affair Scandal That Occurred 2 Years Before Split

      People
    • CNN Fires Employee Who Said Boss Threatened to ‘Kill’ Him for Making ‘False Accusation’

      The Wrap
    • Christina Anstead Reveals Why Her New Baby Is the "Hardest" of Her 3 Kids

      SheKnows
    • Jennifer Lopez Just Stepped Out in These Glittery Leggings (Again) — and We Found Them on Sale

      People
    • Ryan Reynolds Agrees That Kate Beckinsale Is His Lookalike: 'It Is Like Looking in a Mirror'

      SheKnows
    • Eva Amurri on Heartbreaking Moment She Told Kids About the Divorce: We 'Experienced Some Refusal'

      People
    • Child actor and ballet dancer Jack Burns dead at 14

      Yahoo Celebrity
    • Kim Kardashian Had Five Operations After Saint West’s Birth, Says Doctors Refused to Inseminate Her

      Entertainment Tonight
    • ‘The Mandalorian’ Review: The Series’ One Plot Idea Wears Out Its Welcome in Episode 6

      Indiewire
    • Queen Elizabeth Just Fulfilled Her Most Important Constitutional Role — and Why 'Kissing of Hands' Is Part of It

      People