Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom will be the final DCEU movie before James Gunn totally wipes out the old empire and introduces a new era of superheroes in the newly revamped DC Universe. There was a lot of hope for James Wan’s project considering the original installment brought Warner Bros over a billion dollars, but that was before all the controversies happened.
It seems like Jason Momoa’s Aquaman 2 won’t exit with a bang this time because the prediction for its upcoming release is looking a little sad.
Aquaman 2 Projection Is Way More Depressing Than The Marvels
As per Deadline, the projection for Warner Bros’ Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is between $32 million to $42 million on its opening Christmas weekend. The production budget for the film is around $205 million, making it quite a challenge for Jason Momoa to beat his previous film’s record.
Granted Aquaman 2 makes $42 million, the highest predicted figure, it would still fall behind Marvel Studios’ The Marvels, which made $47 million on its opening weekend. Considering the Brie Larson-led movie is now hailed as the worst MCU film of all time, Aquaman 2 flopping as well already signals one thing: superhero fatigue is real.
The many circumstances that occurred surrounding the James Wan film have greatly affected its reputation among fans. Amber Heard’s public defamation case with ex-husband Johnny Depp severely influenced the creative decision to reduce her character’s exposure.
Many fans demanded that they should fire her altogether, but the director previously confirmed that she would still appear in the movie but on a very small scale. Heard’s involvement in the franchise is a trigger for many people.
There is also the question of whether Aquaman 2 will still matter knowing James Gunn will reboot the franchise – it seems useless anyway. The purpose of building interconnection in movies is to make sure the story will flow seamlessly through each installment, just like what Marvel Cinematic Universe is doing. Whatever happens in Aquaman 2 will no longer matter in the new DC Universe.
It is such a shame that a promising movie franchise would end up getting pushed to the sideline again. Momoa’s passion for the character is quite evident; he even expressed interest in working with James Gunn and Warner Bros again because DC feels like home for him.
Can Aquaman 2 Still Be Saved?
There was nothing that could have rescued Brie Larson’s The Marvels from its imminent doom, so Jason Momoa’s Aquaman 2 would definitely hold on to the hope of the holiday season. However, this year, there will be an onslaught of diverse titles arriving in theaters throughout the rest of the month.
From what we have witnessed all throughout the year, fans are definitely still suffering from superhero fatigue. It is not even sure whether the early reviews and ratings for Aquaman 2 would attract a large crowd of viewers.
The quality of the story remains a mystery at this moment, but the same creative team that made the original movie was present in all aspects of the sequel, so this could probably spark a little bit of hope.
