Summary
- Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom director James Wan refutes reports of production disaster, stating that the news does not reflect his experience.
- Wan emphasizes that he had creative control and there were no serious problems with reshoots for the sequel.
- Despite changes in leadership, Wan felt his vision for the film was not compromised and remains open to directing a third Aquaman if given the same freedom.
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom director James Wan is speaking out against reports that the production on the DC sequel was a disaster. While chatting with Empire Magazine, the filmmaker told the outlet that the news regarding alleged onset drama does not reflect his experience shooting the movie. Additionally, the Aquaman director stated that he was given plenty of creative control, noting that there were no serious problems with reshoots.
While 2018’s Aquaman proved to be a massive success for DC, its sequel, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom has experienced a number of issues including Pandemic related delays, James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DC takeover, and plenty of rumors regarding the film’s stars Jason Momoa and Amber Heard.
Still, Wan dismissed this narrative, stating that all the news surrounding the film is not reflective of his experience. Wan said:
“I’ve had to learn to be more Zen in dealing with all the noise around me, for sure. I’m a pretty private person. I don’t get on social media and have fights, but it’s difficult because this narrative has emerged that is not the reality. The noise is fun to write about, and it gets clicks, but people don’t know the truth.”
The Malignant director went on to imply that despite DC’s change in leadership, he never felt like his vision for the sequel was compromised.
“Look, I’m a collaborative filmmaker—I welcome people’s thoughts and opinions. But ultimately, I feel I have more than proven myself. So, it was like: ‘This is the movie I want to make.”
James Wan Said That Reshoots Were “Nothing for a Movie of This Size”
The filmmaker went on to say that the reshoots the sequel underwent were common and expected for a film like Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. Wan stated:
“We probably did seven or eight days. Which is nothing for a movie of this size. It was just spread out because it’s so hard to get your actors back once you’ve finished the initial shoot.”
The Conjuring director then noted that when it comes to being a creator, he accepts that his films won’t turn out exactly the same as his initial vision.
“I’m not the kind of person that says, ‘This movie has turned out exactly how I planned it on day one.’ Your art will never be organic if you’re locked into that mentality.”
Additionally, the director told Empire that he still hasn’t dismissed the possibility of continuing the franchise with a third Aquaman if Gunn and Safran are interested in the idea.
“I haven’t directed a third movie [in a series] before, so I’d be open to doing another [Aquaman] if I got the same freedom I’ve had on these first two. I’m not sure what direction [Gunn and Safran] are going in, thought, so who knows? I’ve learned to never say never.”
Directed by James Wan from a screenplay by David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, and starring Jason Momoa as Arthur Curry, aka Aquaman alongside Patrick Wilson, Amber Heard, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and Nicole Kidman, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is scheduled to be released in theaters on December 20th.
