] type='image/vnd.microsoft.icon'/>

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Jason Momoa as Aquaman?

sg
Well, as any Aqua-Fan knows, teh internets went a-buzzing this weekend, with the sounding-official-but-not-yet-confirmed news that A)Aquaman will be in the upcoming Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, and B)Game of Thrones and Conan star Jason Momoa will play him!

I don't have a lot of thoughts about this just yet. Because even though the casting is being treated as a done deal, Warner Bros. has yet to officially announce it, and until that happens, we don't really know if it's true. My first impressions are:

1)This will be one imposing Aquaman. In terms of sheer size and muscle, he'll be dwarfing both Superman and Batman.

2)I like a slightly less blue-eyed, beach blonde Aquaman. It makes sense he would have a more Mediterranean look.

3)This will probably not be any version of Aquaman from the comics. Much like how Zack Snyder gave us a version of Superman unique to the movies (mostly), I don't think we can draw any conclusions from this casting that Momoa will be playing any particular iteration of the Sea King we've seen before.

4)Aquaman will be making his big screen debut! Suck it, Namor!

5)It would be a very nice way to celebrate Aquaman's 75th Anniversary--2016--to finally show him on the Silver Screen. 

6)Judging by how many women wrote things on Facebook like "I never cared about Aquaman, now I do", I'm starting to think this casting, if true, was a pretty canny idea.

What do all of you think?


Post Script: In between writing this on Saturday and posting it today, The Hollywood Reporter all but officially confirmed that, yes, Momoa will be playing Aquaman! I guess I should change the title of this post from Jason Momoa as Aquaman? to Jason Momoa as Aquaman!

With this additional piece of knowledge, I guess this is what I think: I'm very, very happy that WB now considers Aquaman big enough to include so early on in this Justice League franchise they're trying to build. The Sea King has served his corporate masters well for seven decades, he deserves this recognition.

It will all depend, really, how Aquaman is written. If Momoa has been hired to play Aquaman as Conan of the Sea, a giant hulking savage, then it will be infinitely disappointing to this lifelong Aquaman fan. If he's written as a tough, no-nonsense King of the Sea, protector of 3/4ths of the Earth, then all will be well. 2016 can't get here soon enough!


15 comments:

Richard said...

Yes, the resemblance is truly remarkable:

http://seanhowe.tumblr.com/post/83375762769/namor-you-old-salt-from-sub-mariner-54

...oh.

Anonymous said...

I think it's a great choice. Momoa can stand toe to toe with Henry Cavill and has a commanding presence. Hes got a wide acting range from a savage badass to deeply emotional to irreverent Thor-like humor. if the script is good there's no reason to believe he won't do Aquaman justice :)

Earth 2 Chris said...

I've never seen this guy act, so I can't judge that. I have seen enough pictures to know that he has a super-heroic physique. Obviously, Snyder and company have faith in him. I'm willing to give him a shot, because I've been proven wrong numerous times about actors cast in these comic roles.

Chris

Joe Slab said...

I think its a solid casting choice. Reports indicate that all characters in the DC Movie Universe will have their core concepts congruent with the New 52 so I don't think we'll be seeing Momoa looking like 90's Aquaman. More likely a scruffy, jewel-wearing, perhaps & at least initially shirtless Arthur Curry as per Jim Lee's early Justice League designs.

Joe Slab said...

And now its officially official!

http://variety.com/2014/film/news/jason-momoa-to-play-aquaman-in-batman-v-superman-1201221554/

Jorge PR said...

Thanks Rob and Joe!

I like Jason as Aquaman, but I'm scared about what they could do with the character. I hope they keep Arthur's mythology and don't throw there a compelte new character that people dub as Aquaman.

I also like Gal Gadot as WW. But Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor? Sure the guy did well as Zuckenberg, and he has the weird geek looks, but I'm not sure if he could play an evil genius (don't get me wrong, I LOVE Jesse's work and potential, so he might surprise me).

Chris: you can see Jason Momoa in Conan (haven't seen that wshow, to be honest) and in the 1st season of Game of Thrones. He's really a good actor, judging for his job in that show.

r duncan said...

Especially like no. 4.

Diabolu Frank said...

I enjoyed Momoa in Game of Thrones and Conan, but let's not try to pretend that this isn't a Namor-In-All-But-Name casting. Maybe if they had Mera around to create some cognitive dissonance I won't just transpose Sub-Mariner into a film where he's defined by being half naked and surly while punching DC heroes like Superman (and maybe, maybe a parademon, if there's screentime.)

Lucien Desar said...

I think they made the best choice in casting thus far for this film. I wouldn't rule out that the actor will have his hair dyed blonde with blue contacts. We all know that movie comic book characters will never live up to the comic books characters on paper. That said, it still is cool Aquaman will be having a big screen appearance after how many years? we are truly in the golden era of comic books being featured in main stream tv & films. Enjoy it while it lasts!

David J. Cutler said...

I think this is promising casting, but put me in the "dye his hair" camp.

Unknown said...

Give him pointy ears and he's a perfect double for Namor...

Wil Radcliffe said...

Give him blonde hair and he's a pretty good double for the PAD era Aquaman too.

The Conan film wasn't that good. But it wasn't Momoa's fault. He played Conan as an intelligent, driven warrior. He even cracked a smile once in a while. A very different portrayal from Arnold's. And very different from his work on "Thrones".

I'm looking forward to seeing what he does with the role. I'm kind of on the fence about the hair dye though. I used to think Quicksilver needed to have white/silver hair too... until I saw "X-Men: DOFP" and the stills from Avengers 2. Looks cheap. The dye job for Momoa will need to be subtle in order for it to work and not look awkward.

But regardless of hair style, his acting will be top notch.

TheFlash said...

I can't wait to see the scene where Ocean Master asks for the crown of Atlantis so Aquaman pours molten gold over his head.

TheFlash said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Michael Holloway said...

I think Jason Momoa will be good casting, although I am also decidedly in the *make him blond* camp. I love Aquaman so I am just happy to see him make appearances in some forthcoming movies.