Fans of the DC Extended Universe, who have been looking forward to some of the movies Warner Bros. currently has in the works, have been getting some unfortunate news lately.The Flashis getting a page-one rewrite and is almost certainly being delayed. But the bigger news is thatBen Affleckis no longer directingThe Batman. Still, amidst this negative news and setbacks has come something potentially exciting. The upcomingAquamanmovie has castYahya Abdul-Mateen IIas Black Manta, who will be themain villainin the movie. So we now know who is going to go toe-to-toe withJason Momoa’s Arthur Curry next year.
The news comes courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter, who are reporting that Warner Bros. and directorJames Wanhave officially made the offer toYahya Abdul-Mateen IIand negotiations are now underway. Per the report,James Wanand the studio have been meeting with actors for the part of Black Manta over the past couple of weeks and they ultimately decided onYahya Abdul-Mateen II, who made it on Hollywood’s radar after starring in Netflix’sThe Get Down. He will also be starring in the upcoming R-ratedBaywatchmovie and was reportedly a finalist for the role of a young Lando Calrissian in the upcomingHan SoloStar Warsstandalone movie. It wasDonald Gloverwho ultimately landed that role.
In addition to the casting ofYahya Abdul-Mateen II, THR is reporting that Oscar-nomineeNicole Kidmanis up for the role ofAquaman’s mom in the movie as well. The deal isn’t set in stone, but the report notes that things are looking good and that she isJames Wan’s top choice for the role and has been for weeks. Assuming the movie sticks somewhat close to the comics, the character of Atlanna is royalty in the underwaterkingdom of Atlantis. She eventually escapes the kingdom and falls in love with a humble, human lighthouse keeper. She then gives birth toAquamanas a result.Nicole Kidmanhasn’t starred in a comic book movie since 1995’sBatman Forever, in which she played Dr. Chase Meridian. This would probably be a big step up in a lot of ways.
It was first reported last year that Black Manta was set to be the main villain inAquaman, which makes sense.Aquamandoesn’t have a major rogues gallery of villains like many other superheroes do andBlack Mantais the closest thing he has to an arch nemesis. Recently,The ConjuringstarPatrick Wilsonwas cast as Orm, aka Ocean Master, inAquaman, who is something of a bad guy but is also the half-brother ofAquaman, so it is possible we will be seeing multiple bad guys in the movie. It is hard to say exactly how Orm will factor in, since plot details have largely been kept under lock and key so far. Either way, despite troubles elsewhere in the DCEU, a promising up-and-comer is playing Black Manta and a recent Oscar nominated actress is possibly going to be playing Arthur Curry’s mom, and that should be encouraging to fans.
The character of Black Manta is exceedingly dark, and has been a villain forAquamandating back to his first appearance in Aquaman #35 in September of 1967. Essentially, Black Manta is a man, generally depicted with enhanced strength and abilities, who wants to challenge Aquaman to rule the sea. He typically wears a high-tech suit that allows him to be under water, which also features various weapons. There are a couple of different origin stories for the character, which are very, very dark. In the 1993 origin, he was kidnapped as a boy and forced to work on a ship, and was also sexually abused by his captors. He eventually had to kill one of his captors in order to escape. Another origin story was given for the character in issue #8 of the 2003Aquamanseries, in which, the nameless boy who eventually becomes Black Manta is an autistic orphan, who winds up in Arkham Asylum and is experimented on. As a result, he becomes incredibly violent, even though it did seem to “cure” him of his autism, to a degree.
Aquamanis gearing up for production and is expected to start shooting this April in Australia. We will next seeJason MomoaasAquamaninJustice League, which is set for release on November 17. Up to this point, we have only seen the character for mere seconds inBatman V Superman: Dawn of Justice.Amber HeardandWillem Dafoeare also set to star inAquaman, which is currently scheduled to hit theaters onOctober 15, 2018.
