Advertisement

‘Aquaman’: First Footage Debuts at Comic-Con

Fans at San Diego Comic-Con were transported underwater on Saturday when Warner Bros. screened the first taste of Aquaman.

“In a lot of ways, this is an origin story,” director James Wan said to introduce the footage.

The first-look footage, revealed at the studio’s packed panel at Hall H, begins with two fishermen on a small boat in the water. One man casts his rod into the water, and gets a bite. But the pull on his rod is strong, and drags the boat through the sea until the man lets go.

The camera then zooms out to reveal that the men are floating above an army of underwater ships. The shot dips below the surface to reveal an entire army, including schools of warriors riding sharks.

“That’s Ocean Master’s army,” star Jason Momoa said during the panel to clarify speculation that the army belonged to Black Manta. “Black Manta ain’t got nothing like that. That’s my brother. I’m gonna be fighting my brother.”

The superhero tentpole, which was shot in Australia, hits theaters on Dec. 21, 2018, after Aquaman makes his debut in Justice League on Nov. 17.

Wan and Momoa first teased fans with the film’s concept art at CinemaCon.

“I want the audience to experience Atlantis in the way that Aquaman experiences it as well,” Wan said at the exhibitor convention in March.

“Aquaman is an absolute badass,” the filmmaker continued. “This is the kind of movie that could not have been made five years ago.”

Aquaman is based on the DC Comics character first introduced in the early 1940s who’s the king of Atlantis — a half-human/half-Atlantean named Arthur Curry.

The cast also includes Nicole KidmanWillem DafoePatrick Wilson, and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as Black Manta. Peter Safran is producing the film, while Deborah Snyder, Zack Snyder, and Rob Cowan are executive producing.

Channing Tatum on 'Gambit' at Comic-Con: 'We're Giving It a Bit of a Rethink':

Read more from Variety:

Get more from Variety and Variety411: Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Newsletter