DC's long-awaited Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is reportedly facing trouble behind the scenes, with The Hollywood Reporter writing that the sequel recently completed a third round of reshoots. These reshoots were handled by director James Wan and included stars Jason Momoa and Patrick Wilson.
As THR notes, while reshoots are hardly uncommon for a superhero blockbuster, three rounds of reshoots is unusual. Sources indicate these reshoots were done in response to lukewarm test screenings, with studio executives Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy stepping in and Abdy overseeing a new edit of the film. When that version of the film fared even worse with test audiences, more reshoots were ordered.
THR's Borys Kit writes, "Different visions of executives notwithstanding, it is unclear what the problems were, but one insider said the underlying issue of story clarity has been an ongoing concern."
One major sticking point with the sequel has involved Aquaman's fellow Justice League teammate Batman, who was expected to play a small role in the film. However, the shifting release dates have complicated matters. According to THR, Michael Keaton originally filmed a scene, but was replaced by Ben Affleck when it appeared Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom would be released before The Flash. Now, with Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom having been significantly delayed and The Flash eliminating both Keaton and Affleck's Batmen from the picture, it seems the film is doing away with the Batman cameo entirely.
Kit writes, "The latest cut of the film features neither version of the Dark Knight, according to sources, as new DC heads James Gunn and Peter Safran do not want to promise a movie universe that will not come to fruition nor tie it down excessively to past failures. 'It was pretty chaotic,' said one source."
Still, THR indicates the mood around the film may be improving, with the very fact that Gunn approved this latest round of reshoots serving as a positive sign. Reportedly, Blue Beetle's filmmakers were denied a similar request for reshoots in February 2023.
Back in June 2023, Wan indicated Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom hasn't been significantly impacted by internal shakeups at WBD and the pivot to Gunn and Safran's DCU.
"I’ve had to make adjustments all along the way. The DCU has been through lots of different versions, and one of the things that was challenging about this film was keeping track of what’s going on," Wan told THR. "Fortunately, the Aquaman universe is pretty far removed from the rest of the world. We’re going to many different underwater kingdoms that are not necessarily related to what’s happening with the other movies and characters, so we’re stand-alone in that respect."
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom will hit theaters on December 20, 2023.
Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.
