The release ofAquaman and the Lost Kingdomis just around the corner, but the projections for the nextDCUfilm anticipate another resounding flop for Warner Bros. Discovery in an already difficult year.
The first chapter of the adventures of the King of the Seven Seas, released in December 2018, was a smash hit at the box office and one of DC’s biggest triumphs on the big screen. The sequel will arrive at a complicated moment for the franchise, since the studio decided to reboot the DC world, and the movies released in 2023 will not be part of the new canon. In that context,Box Office Proreveals thatAquaman 2will gross between $32 and $42 million dollars during its opening weekend, which represents a massive drop compared to the grossing of the first entry during that same period, which was almost $68 million.
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
The follow-up to the smash hit DC adventure Aquaman, starring Jason Momoa as the King of Atlantis.
Projections, however, place it aboveShazam! Fury of the Gods($30 million) andBlue Beetle($25 million), two of the major flops of the year. But, at the same time, the numbers arelower than those ofThe Flash, which reached $55 million, although it fell significantly as the weeks went by. These numbers do not predict a good theatrical run forAquaman and the Lost Kingdom, although it could recover if it manages to win over the audience, following a path similar to that of Pixar’sElemental, which had one of the worst openings in the history of the studio but inproved weekend to weekend, becoming a surprising hit by the end of its run.
The DCU hasn’t been the only one facing a difficult year at the box office. The MCU also had a rough start to 2023, withAnt-Man and the Wasp: Quantumaniaposting good opening numbers before collapsing over the following few weeks, with negative reviews and general fan disappointment taking a toll on its longevity.Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3was very successful in the summer, but the recently releasedThe Marvelshas already crowned itself the worst debut in the history of the franchise, and its drop in thesecond weekend was massive.
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Will Aquaman Have a Place in the New DCU?
When James Gunn and Peter Safran, in January of this year, announced the first projects that would be part of the first phase of the new DCU, titledGods & Monsters, Aquaman was not part of the list of heroes mentioned. However, his participation is not ruled out, since Gunn has already announced many unexpected characters within the series and films already confirmed, such as Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner or Isabela Merced’s Hawkgirl.
However, just because the King of the Seven Seas still has chances of showing up in any of these projects does not guarantee that he will be played by Momoa. In fact, most of the actors who were part of the previous canon, such as Henry Cavill or Ben Affleck, will not participate in the reboot. Although Momoa’s case could be different.
The actor is confidentthat he can continue being part of the franchise, and rumors indicate that he could play Lobo, a character with whom he has many physical similarities. This has not yet been confirmed, so we can only wait to find out if Momoa will continue to be part of the DCU or not.
