Aquaman and the Lost Kingdomhas added three new cast members, in addition to announcing the return ofRandall Park. The sequel will of course see the return ofJason Momoaas the titular hero, with filming having commenced back in June. Filming is underway throughout both the Bristol Channel and the English Channel, with horror maestroJames Wanreturning to the director’s chair.
Park will be reprising his role of Dr. Stephen Shin, an obvious move given where his character ended up at the conclusion of the first film. Shin is obsessed with locating Arthur Curry’s lost homeworld of Atlantis, going so far as to team up with the hero’s enemy inYahya Abdul-Mateen II’s Black Manta. The villain is rescued by Shin after being marooned from a showdown with Aquaman in Sicily, as evidenced by the post-credits scene of the original.
As for the new cast members,Jani Zhao(Pilgrimage) will be playing a new character named Stingray. As the character is wholly original to the sequel, it’s unknown if her intentions are pure or villainous in nature.Indya Moore(Pose,Queen & Slim) will take on the character Karshon, a shark that gains telepathic powers after being hit with radiation. There will likely be some adjustments to Karshon, who is originally a Green Lantern villain.Vincent Regan(Before We Die,300) will be portraying Atlan, the original ruler of Atlanis who caused the city to sink down into the sea.Graham McTavishbriefly played the character in the 2018 original. Viewers will more likely remember Atlan’s trident, which Arthur retrieved from the Karathen (voiced byJulie Andrews) in the climax of the first film.
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Wan is clearly raising the stakes for the sequel, with potentially three of these characters posing some serious threats to Aquaman. The sequel will also see the return ofAmber Heardas Mera,Patrick Wilsonas Orm/Ocean Master,Dolph Lundgrenas King Nereus, andTemuera Morrisonas Arthur’s father, Thomas.David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrickwill be writing the screenplay solo this time, with Momoa receiving a story credit. Wan has said that the sequel willdraw inspirationfromPlanet of the Vampires, a science fiction horror film from 1965. That film sees a spaceship crew land on an alien planet, where they are shortly infiltrated and killed by the planet’s native, bodiless inhabitants.
The DC Extended Universe recently saw the release ofThe Suicide Squad, with this coming March bringing forthMatt Reeves’sThe Batman. 2022 will also finally unleash two long-gestating DC films inDwayne Johnson’sBlack AdamandThe Flash. Next year is shaping up to be a major one for the DCEU, with four films that easily can rival the output Marvel has built to over the years.
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdomwill hit theaters on July 16, 2025.
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