Aquaman has been one of the most prominent superheroes in the DC Comics universe, even if he hasn't always gotten the same level of respect as the likes of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. 2016 marked a new era for the water-swelling vigilante, though, as Jason Momoa cameoed as the cinematic Aquaman in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Following his full debut in Justice League, Momoa's Aquaman is returning to the silver screen this winter for his own movie, and now the first Aquaman trailer for the underwater adventure has finally arrived! Check it out, below.
Justice League briefly touched on Arthur Curry's past, but for those unfamiliar with the comics, the first Aquaman trailer does a good job at laying out his origin story. His mother was an Atlantean queen named Atlanna (Nicole Kidman) and his father was a lighthouse keeper named Thomas (Temuera Morrison), and much to the surprise of.. well, pretty much everyone, he learned he can control marine life. Fast forward to the present, Arthur's taken it upon himself to take out armed goons aboard a submarine, and from there, we get into the meat of the preview. Arthur's half-brother Orm, better known in the comics as Ocean Master (Patrick Wilson), wants to declare war on the surface, thus requiring Arthur to embrace his royal duties and take his rightful place on the throne.
While a fair amount of the Aquaman trailer shows scenes set on land, be it near a shore, in a town or (oddly) out of a plane, but make no mistake, a lot of this movie will be set underwater. And thankfully, the Atlantean kingdoms are a visual spectacle, taking audiences to a "world" that hasn't been visited in other superhero movies. Nevertheless, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Black Manta, Aquaman's greatest nemesis from the comics. Black Manta has a very distinct look, and we can all breathe a sigh of relief that said look has been retained for Aquaman. His helmet even shoots energy beams! It remains to be seen if Black Manta will be allied with Orm in Aquaman or if he will be carrying out his own agenda, but it's good to see that no steps were taken to tone down his costume. Overall, this trailer does a good job of showing that Aquaman's general premise and the blockbuster action we have to look forward to.
Directed by James Wan, Aquaman dives into theaters on December 21, so keep checking back with CinemaBlend for continuing coverage. In the meantime, you can learn what other DCEU projects are in development by looking through our DC movies guide, and if you're interested in what other movies will arrive later this year, head to our 2018 release schedule.
