‘Aquaman 2’ Was ‘Less Painful’ for Jason Momoa, Says James Wan

Don’t worry, production for “Aquaman 2” went just swimmingly — at least when it came to special effects.

Director James Wan told audiences at CinemaCon in Las Vegas during the Warner Bros. Discovery showcase that “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom,” in theaters March 17, 2023, utilized new technology to craft the underwater sequences.

“It’s less painful for the actors, which makes it easier for me as well, because they’re not screaming and yelling at me,” Wan said on stage (via CinemaBlend). “But the most important thing is it really frees up the filmmaking to really do things I’ve never been able to do before, and that is exciting.”

Wan added that during the first film, the actors endured “a lot of physical pain” due to hanging on wires and tuning forks. “It was not the most comfortable apparatus to be strapped into,” Wan admitted.

However, “The Lost Kingdom” made substantial differences on set by employing the latest tech.

“With this film we were able to now embrace new technology where we were literally putting like 100 cameras on the actors, capturing their performances, and then taking what they do and then applying that to 3D version of themselves,” Wan shared.

The “Aquaman” sequel follows the title hero, played by Jason Momoa, as he teams up with an unlikely ally to save Atlantis. Returning stars Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson, Nicole Kidman, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Randall Park, and Dolph Lundgren reprise their respective roles.

According to Wan, lead star Momoa previously complained about the swimming rig on the 2018 set.

“It’s not the most comfortable rig for actors. It puts a lot of pressure around the crotch,” Wan recalled at the time. “So for someone like Momoa, who is more than 200 pounds, it’s not the most pleasant experience. Jason would to say to me, ‘James, I don’t think I’ll be having more kids anytime soon.’”

Warner Bros. announced in March that its latest DC installments would have delayed theatrical releases, with “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” pushed from a December 2022 release to the March 17, 2023, date. “The Flash” also moved from November 2022 to June 23, 2023.

“Black Adam,” starring Dwayne Johnson, moved from July 29 to October 21, 2022, with “Shazam! Fury of the Gods” the only Warner Bros. title to get an earlier release date, moving from mid-2023 to December 16, 2022.

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