This December brings an interesting Holiday Season to theaters. With Disney not releasing a new Star Wars movie for the first time in years, the market is open for other titles. Chief among them are Mary Poppins Returns and James Wan's Aquaman. The latter will fill the need for action fans, while also hopefully leading the DC Universe to its second critically acclaimed project.
Early reception for Aquaman has been positive, which is a welcome change for the DCEU. The movie's pre-sales look great in the states, and Aquaman has actually already been released in China. And it's making a ton of money in those international markets, around $24.6 million to be specific. Yes, you read that right.
Per Variety's report, it looks like the Chinese moviegoing audience is going all in for Aquaman, setting up James Wan's DC debut for success before it even premiers for Western moviegoers. The Chinese market has become an integral part of measuring the success of expensive blockbusters. While the Star Wars franchise continues to fall flat overseas, movies like Warcraft have been saved from financial disaster, as comic book properties like Venom continue to make oodles of cash.
The pressure is on for Aquaman to deliver, and bring the DC Universe it's second critical darling. While there has been a ton of world building in the past few years with movies like Justice League and Suicide Squad, they've all suffered from bad reviews. That is, except for Patty Jenkins' Wonder Woman. And with so much of the shared universe's future a mystery, the quality of the next few movies are key to the overall franchise's survival.
That being said, James Wan is making some bold choices with Aquaman, and it seems to have drummed up a ton of excitement about Arthur Curry's solo flick. With so much of the movie underwater, Wan had to use some clever filmmaking to make the actors appear submerged. Wire work was used heavily, and there's going to be a ton of CGI in order to make each characters' hair and clothes seem weightless.
While Aquaman is James Wan's first journey into the world of comic book movies, the director has had a long and successful career, and built a reputation that moviegoers care about. He started in the horror world, creating the Saw, Conjuring, and Insidious franchises. Aquaman is teased to have an influence from the director's horror roots, adding another exciting unknown to the upcoming blockbuster.
Aquaman will give Game of Thrones alum Jason Momoa the chance to lead his own blockbuster, after playing a supporting role in Justice League. He'll be joined by an all-star cast including Amber Heard, Nicole Kidman, Willem Dafoe, Patrick Wilson, and Dolph Lundgren.
Aquaman will arrive in the states on December 21st, 2019. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your trips to the movies in the New Year.
