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Aquaman Director Reveals Cancelled Trench Movie Was About Black Manta


Sometime after the release of Aquaman, there were plans to have a spin-off film titled The Trench that would center on the amphibious monsters that Aquaman and Mera faced in the first film. But earlier this year, Warner Bros. announced that the project has been canceled, but they left the door open for the possibility of revisiting it again someday.

Recently, in his Instagram post, director James Wan revealed through a response to a fan question in the comments that The Trench was going to center on Black Manta. He said, "I'll let you in on a secret, the canceled Trench spin-off movie was really going to be a secret Black Manta movie."

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It makes sense that they were going to center the spin-off on Black Manta since, after all, the character became a fan-favorite after the first film was released. It is a bit unfortunate that the spin-off would no longer happen since it sounds like a great idea and fans would have also been game to watch a film that centers on Black Manta. It could have been an opportunity for them to flesh out the character futher. Fortunately, though, the character will be returning in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom so we will definitely get to see him again (which was also teased in Wan's post).

Production for the sequel is still ongoing. They recently released behind-the-scenes footage during the DC FanDome virtual event last October 16. Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson, Dolph Lundgren, Temuera Morrison, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and Randall Park are reprising their roles from the first film. They are joined by franchise newcomers Pilou Asbæk, Indya Moore, Vincent Regan, and Jani Zhao. Wan is also returning to direct.

Also Read: Aquaman Star Jason Momoa Hypes Up Zoe Kravitz's Catwoman in The Batman Trailer

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is set to be released in theaters on December 16, 2022.

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