Aquaman 2 opened during the Christmas week last year to mediocre response from the audience in contrast to its previous installment. With numerous reshoots and multiple delays in release, the movie suffered badly, and it is a far cry from the success of its predecessor.
Actor Dolph Lundgren, who plays the character of Nereus, the father of Mera, is quite unhappy with how things have turned out. Mera, played by Amber Heard, was made into a background character in the second movie after her infamous trial against ex-husband Johnny Depp. And though director James Wan has said that the second movie was always planned with Jason Momoa’s Aquaman and Patrick Wilson’s Orm at the forefront, people are not really convinced of that.
Suggested Article: Aquaman 2 Star Is Not Happy With How Jason Momoa Handled the Amber Heard Situation After Johnny Depp Controversy
Dolph Lundgren is Disappointed With Aquaman 2
After the Amber Heard-Johnny Depp controversy, a lot of the fans appealed to have Heard removed from the movie. Though that was not the solution, WB, DC Films, and director James Wan tried to resolve the issue with reshoots. The plan was to have Heard’s character, Mera’s part turned into something insignificant and very small. The director, though, dismissed this idea, saying the movie was always supposed to be about Aquaman’s relationship with his brother and about Atlantic, not about the relationship between him and Mera.
But because Mera’s part in the movie was reduced, so were parts that included characters linked to her. Like her father, King Nereus. Dolph Lundgren told ComicBook.com,
“I just realized that it was some kind of corporate decision that they try to limit Amber Heard and then I’m playing her dad and went along with it. I was just disappointed for the moviegoers, because I thought the original script was great and the original cut — I saw a little bit of it, it was really good. So I didn’t see any reason to start reshooting and reshaping the story, which obviously led to disappointment in the moviegoers and not just me.”
Suggested Article: Amber Heard Shares Happy Picture With Daughter Oonagh Paige from Aquaman 2 Sets Despite Claiming James Gunn’s DCU “Pared down” Mera
Whether the reshoots were done to reduce Mera’s screen time or to focus on the bromance between Arthur and Orm was always the plan for Aquaman 2, the movie was not a complete disaster.
Aquaman 2 Sets Record, Ready to Make Max Debut
After so many underwhelming releases from DC, Aquaman 2 has managed to become the most successful sequel of the franchise. So far, of all the sequels released by DC, Aquaman 2 has managed to set the record of the most financially successful sequel. But given the most successful sequel till now was Shazam! Fury of the Gods, the feat is okay at best.
Suggested Article: It’s Official: Aquaman 2 Beats Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam Despite Amber Heard Controversy
The movie has already made its debut on digital platforms from January 23. Aquaman 2 is available to buy and rent digitally on Amazon Prime, Google Play, Apple TV, Vudu, and more for a price. As for its Max debut, though a date has not yet been announced, following Warner Bros. pattern of releasing movies so far, we expect the Jason Momoa starrer to be available on the streaming platform from March 2024.
