How The Success Of Aquaman Let James Wan Go Fully Nuts With The Sequel [Exclusive]

"Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom" is almost here after Covid delays and all the changes at Warner Bros. It's one I'm looking forward to, because, even though this is the last film that's part of the old DC Extended Universe (DCEU), the first film was a blast. I mean, it had a drum-playing octopus named Topo. How can you not love that?

Director James Wan didn't try to stay in the sort of darker vibe the DCEU was giving off at the time. He was making a movie about a superhero who swims through fish poop, and he made it fun. The film grossed over a billion dollars at the worldwide box office (according to Box Office Mojo). A sequel was inevitable. However, after James Gunn and producer Peter Safran took the reins over at DC, announcing that things were going to change, the remaining DCEU films were sort of left hanging without much purpose. 

In a way, it works to have this be the last DCEU entry, especially because "The Lost Kingdom" appears to have the same joyful vibe as the first film. /Film's own Jacob Hall recently got a chance to chat with Wan about the success of the first film, and how that gave him license to go fully nuts with the sequel.

The "absurd" aspects of "Aquaman" were what made it so much fun. Wan spoke about how the fact that he'd leaned into that in the first one allowed him to continue in that vein. He said:

"I think, from a creative standpoint, having done it in the first film, is really the idea that we can lean into the more absurd aspect of the Aquaman world or the sort of strange and quirky characters and the world itself. I feel like I don't have to explain myself as much as I needed to on the first film. Having seen the first one, I think everyone collectively kind of [said] 'Oh yeah, yeah, we know what we're doing now. Okay, cool. Let's do that. Oh, I'm talking to a human shark. Yeah, I get it. Okay, that's fine. I'm talking to an octopus who is on a secret mission with me. Okay, that's cool.'"

That's what made the whole thing so appealing. I love Aquaman, the ridiculous comic book character who commands fish and gets made fun of on "The Big Bang Theory." Despite Momoa giving the role more gravitas (and clearly having a blast with it), the film version never lost that "fun" element. Plus, it had Topo, who we're going to see again in "The Lost Kingdom."

Topo, the drum-playing octopus, is getting a bump up in his role this time around. Wan also spoke about getting to expand on that character. He said: 

"I am a big fan of Topo from the Silver Age comic book. And I wanted to have him have a stronger presence in the first movie, but we just couldn't kind of work it out. We couldn't cram him into the story. And so ultimately we just sort of had him do a cameo on the first film. And it was great. We were validated that when the movie came out, people spoke highly of Topo, the drumming octopus. 

"And now we know that we can actually use him judiciously as a character in this one. And I love the relationship in the comic book, which Jason gets to play up even more in the movie with Topo. He is a bit of a sidekick, but he's a really fun character for the two of them."

Look, if you have the ability to have a very intelligent octopus from the comics in your film, you put him in there. You give him drums to play, and maybe even let him babysit this time around. He can rock a cradle, bottle feed, change a diaper, and cook dinner all at once. 

"Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom" will hit theaters on December 22, 2023, when we'll all bid the DCEU farewell before we enter the age of the DCU.