Although the James Wan film, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, was under severe scrutiny from the get-go. It was further rumored that the moviegoers were walking out of the movie midway for a seemingly unspecified reason in test screenings recently. Although plenty of speculations have been made, one baffling revelation stands out as the major reason for this bizarre behavior in the audience.
Many are going back to the statements made by the director himself a few years back, stating the film will have an underlying essence of horror etched to it, as it’s inspired by a ’60s horror cult classic.
James Wan’s Aquaman 2 Is Inspired by ‘60s Horror Cult Classic
In 2021, Aquaman 2 director James Wan revealed that the sequel to the Aquaman saga is highly inspired by the 1965 sci-fi horror movie Planet of the Vampires directed by Mario Bava. Speaking to Total Film as reported by CBR, he said,
“Aquaman 2 is very heavily inspired by Planet of the Vampires,—You can take the boy out of horror but you can never take the horror out the boy.”
He further stated,
“And that’s partially because they were not familiar with the comic book, which deals in this very lurid, strange world. People were taken aback that I didn’t throw all that stuff away and make a dark, heavy film. But I didn’t feel that would have been right for it. So with the second film, I feel it will be easier for people to accept where we go because I’ve already laid the foundation.”
Hence, it is undeniable that this cinematic journey promises to be a weird and unpredictable ride for sure, with a hint of both gore and horror. Audiences since then have found themselves perplexed by the uncertain levels of intensity that awaited them. Until the test screenings started taking place.
Fans Are Allegedly Walking Out of Aquaman 2 Screen Tests
A reliable inside scooper, MyTimeToShineHello on X (formerly known as Twitter) recently confirmed that fans are supposedly walking out of the free test screening of the film due to a bizarre reason. A scene, in particular, is speculatively responsible for that. As per the rumors, the death of the Aquababy is what compelled many avid Aquaman fans to walk out of the highly anticipated sequel.
Although the rumors have been circulating for a few days now, the truth of the situation is still not yet confirmed.
That is correct https://t.co/iGHVo40cN1
— MyTimeToShineHello (@MyTimeToShineH) September 16, 2023
However, it’s worth noting that throughout the production, there have been multiple reports of significant alterations being made to Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom due to the poor reactions. Although Wan wanted a more comic book-appropriate approach, only time will tell if the movie will go at all that route. Thus, the fate of the baby is still under question, and the viewers have to wait to find out what actually happens.
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is set to release in theaters on the 20th of December 2023.
Source: Total Film (via CBR)
