James Wan, director of many horror movies such as films from the Saw and The Conjuring universes, has spoken about the Aquaman spinoff that will no longer be happening: The Trench.
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as Black Manta / Picture Credit: DC Films
Wan has said that this spinoff, titled The Trench, would have been a movie about Aquaman villain Black Manta, who is played by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. The villain was first seen in 2018’s Aquaman, and had a personal vendetta against Jason Momoa’s Arthur Curry/Aquaman in regard to the death of his father.
The 2018 DCEU (DC Extended Universe) film followed Arthur Curry as he reluctantly set out to take the control of the Kingdom of Atlantis from his half-brother, King Orm (Patrick Wilson), and save the surface world from his wrath.
After the flop that was 2017’s Justice League, seeing Momoa’s Aquaman in his own solo movie definitely created more interest than there already was for the character, and Wan’s unique and exciting way of directing made Aquaman a very big success.
At the moment, the sequel, titled Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, is in the midst of shooting and is scheduled to release on December 16th, 2022; fans are more than ready to see Momoa back in the titular role, which could be highlighted by the success of Zack Snyder’s Justice Leage (2021), which was a cinematic masterpiece to say the least.
2019 saw The Trench being put into development, and was described as a ‘horror-tinged’ addition to the DCEU. Aquaman scratched the surface of eerie and disturbing when the titular character headed into the depths of the ocean to find the iconic trident.
When Warner Bros. announced its plans for the film, it was said that The Trench was to follow the bloodthirsty beasts that Arthur and Mera (Amber Heard) went face-to-face against during their mission to stop King Orm.
After The Trench was announced, progress was slow and in April this year (2021), Warner Bros. confirmed that the new DCEU feature film would not be going ahead.
If the film went ahead, it is likely it would have focused on the high-seas mercenary. In the DC comics, the Trench is shown as a tribe that survived the fall of Atlantis and had adapted to living in the dark, treacherous depths of the ocean.
The comic story followed the wielder of the Dead King’s Scepter, which at one point is stolen by Black Manta from a tomb, which then allows him to rule over the tribe with asserting dominance.
Despite Abdul-Mateen II’s Black Manta villain not getting a solo film, he is still expected to be seen in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom in a rather important role. While fans may not know what Black Manta’s specific role is, the new information regarding cancelled film The Trench may help fans piece together his character a bit better.
The Trench was to be set between Aquaman and its upcoming sequel; if the feature had gone ahead, we may have seen a more structured and perhaps pivotal version of Black Manta in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.
There may still be the possibility of a Black Manta solo film, which may be hinted at in the credits of the upcoming movie, but only time will tell if we will be seeing Abdul-Mateen II in his villainous role in The Trench.
Written by Melissa, who you can follow on Twitter @melissajournal
RELATED: DC projects that are on the way: From The Suicide Squad to Gotham PD
Tagged in Jason Momoa Aquaman