Director James Wan teases Aquaman 2 will have a touch of horror

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

While I didn't find AQUAMAN to be the best of what the DC Universe has had to offer, the film seemed to mostly resonate with fans as it became a true global phenomenon when it was released back in 2018. A lot of the film's positive qualities can be attributed to charm of Jason Momoa but James Wan's direction and radical reinvention of the aquatic superhero for his big-screen solo movie debut played a factor as well. AQUAMAN 2 is, of course, in the works and James Wan is sharing what the sequel will have to offer and some of i will go back to Wan's roots as a horror writer and director.

Coming from an excerpt from DC FanDome's Q&A session posted on Twitter, Wan revealed that the sequel will have a touch of horror:

"I would say yes. Just like the first movie had a touch of my horror sensibility in it, in regards to the Trench sequence, I would say there'll be a little bit of that in this next one. I think it's something that's a big part of who I am, and it just naturally comes out in these kinds of films. And especially a movie like Aquaman, you know where the story takes place in these underwater worlds that can be very scary. So naturally, my love for the horror genre just means that I latch myself to these scenes and try to give them a little bit more of my scary sauce."

If you're a fan of Wan's filmography, you're well aware that he has some impressive horror credentials with movies like SAW, INSIDIOUS and THE CONJURING under his belt. With THE CONJURING, and the subsequent universe that spawned from it, Wan has created one of the most successful horror  film franchises of all-time. 

As Wan pointed out, the first AQUAMAN did have elements of horror in the middle of the superhero antics. The aforementioned 'trench' sequence proved to be so popular that a horror spinoff is being planned centering around the monstrous sea creatures shown during the scene. The moment where Aquaman enters the domain of the Karathen to reclaim is ancestor's trident also plays out a bit like a horror movie where a giant, terrifying creature lies hidden in the shadows.

The world of AQUAMAN deals with the seven seas and all the undiscovered monstrosities that are possibly lurking in their depths. This lends to plenty of horror material that is just waiting to be mined for the sequel. Writer Johnson-McGoldrick, who is penning the script, hinted that he looked to silver age comics featuring Black Manta for inspiration. 

We'll have to wait and see how this all plays out when AQUAMAN 2, which will likely also see Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II making a return, hits screens on December 16, 2022.

Are YOU excited to see what horror elements James Wan brings to the sequel?