Black Manta (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) might be a side villain while Aquaman (Jason Momoa) is busy dealing with his half-brother Orm (Ocean Master), but that doesn't mean that Warner Brother's doesn't have big plans for Arthur Curry's nemesis in the DC Extended Universe.
Visiting the set of Aquaman in Australia, ComicBook.com got to talk with Abdul-Mateen II about Black Manta's role in Arthur Curry's highly anticipated standalone film. According to the actor, Black Manta's relationship with Aquaman is going to be very much like what comic book readers see in the comics.
"We meet Black Manta at a time where, it's just him and his dad, and he's riding on high, you know," Abdul-Mateen II explained. "He's just come off of his wind, and there's a changing of the guards, so to speak. And then, this guy, Aquaman, comes in, and crashes the party."
According to Abdul-Mateen, Black Manta is "relentless" and "grounded," the kind of character that doesn't really want to take over the world who also has a fixed set of ideals and a "strong moral code that he will not compromise."
The publication also got to speak with Aquaman producer Peter Safran who admits that while Black Manta is being placed in the side in the film, the team has every intention of giving him a larger role in the DCEU.
"Listen, we love Manta," Safran said. "From the early days of developing the screenplay, he's just such a great antagonist and he's such a fan favorite. And, the response every time people hear that he's in the movie or that it's confirmed that he's in the movie, they're thrilled about it. So, we always wanted to give him his storyline and if Orm is the primary antagonist, then Manta is certainly is a very strong secondary antagonist and there is a connection between Orm and Manta that will be revealed that that helps make him a more integral part of the story. We certainly have every intention that Manta plays a very large role in the DC universe. He has to. He's just too great. And we give him his origin story in this movie. We do show how Manta that we see in the comic books, became that character."
A larger role for Black Manta is definitely something fans would want to see. Black Manta is Arthur Curry's biggest nemesis, cutting his hand in the comics and leading Aquaman to have his hook hand. We definitely can't wait and see that moment on the big screen.
Aquaman swims its way to cinemas on December 21, 2018.
Read: Fans Now Agree That Aquaman Might Just Be Like Star Wars
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