Regardless of what you think of the recently released Justice League film, one thing is for sure — of the new characters introduced, Aquaman as played by Jason Momoa was easily one of the breakout characters. His take on the King of Atlantis, a mix of ’90 long-haired loner Arthur Curry from the comics, together with Jeff Spicoli from Fast Times at Ridgemont High, was unique and quite lovable. And originally, Justice League had a lot more Aquaman in it.
Thanks to Entertainment Weekly, we’ve learned that quite a lot of Aquaman’s scenes from Justice League ended up on the cutting room floor, including an appearance from his chief Atlantean advisor Vulko, portrayed by Willem Dafoe. In fact, we never really get a good look at Atlantis in the finished product, just what seems to be an outpost near the city. None of that is super clear, actually. Here’s what Momoa had to say about so many of his scenes and subplots vanishing from the final film:
“The challenging part is [the Justice League story] is only about a weekend in Author Curry’s life. [Fans] might be like, ‘Why is he that grumpy? Why’s he hiding up there?’ We had it all planned out. A lot of things got cut. But it’s not my movie. It’s a huge movie introducing three new characters, and for myself and The Flash and Cyborg, there was a lot that was there we just couldn’t get in. It could have been two movies. We had some stuff with William Dafoe. The whole Atlantean part, about me being this reluctant king. There was no need for it because you’re going to see it in Aquaman. It’s not an Aquaman movie, it’s a Justice League movie.”
It’s tough to say what exactly got lost from Aquaman’s scenes at this point, without a released script or deleted scenes available. But it’s likely they included more of his backstory as the son of the Queen of Atlantis and a human lighthouse keeper. The film only touches on Arthur’s origins in his one scene with Mera (Amber Heard), which appears to be their first meeting. I think a lot of the Aquaman scenes were confusing for non-fans of DC Comics.
James Wan has completed principal photography on Aquaman, which will be out this time next year, and no doubt that film will answer all our Arthur Curry questions. Personally, I hope that movie succeeds just like Wonder Woman did. And then maybe, the DCEU can be saved after all.
What did you think of Jason Momoa’s Aqua-bro? Are you excited to see more of him in his own movie? Let us know down below in the comments.
More from the Justice League!
- What that Justice League post-credits scene means for the DCEU.
- Why superhero movies need more “normal” people.
- Breaking down the good, the bad, and the mustache of Justice League.
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Images: Warner Brothers / DC Comics
