It’s claimed that Aquaman 2 may be in trouble as it is said Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav is not happy with the film.
The info comes from World of Reel in their report how about how a recent test screening for The Flash scored the highest test rating in DCEU history and that it’s said Zaslav is actually a big fan of the flick.
Regarding the potential problems with Aquaman 2, the site doesn’t mention specifics other than David Zaslav is not happy with what he has seen from the movie, which is currently in post-production, and it’s said though Zaslav is unhappy with Aquaman 2, it’s not to the point of canceling it like he did with the Batgirl movie.
It should probably be pointed out that Aquaman 2 has a budget of around $200 million or more and Batgirl only around $100 million, so much like The Flash, Zaslav isn’t going to shelve any high-budget projects that are already completed.
Update: Aquaman 2 release date has been pushed back.
Related: Black Adam rumored to open the door to new Superman movie possibly starring Henry Cavill.
Ben Affleck replaces Michael Keaton as Batman in Aquaman 2
Interestingly enough, the rumors of the Aquaman 2 troubles follow Ben Affleck joining the movie and replacing Michael Keaton as Batman, as if The Flash isn’t getting released first, how could Keaton appear in the film? And the same goes for Batgirl.
It’s now thought David Zaslav and Warner Bros. Discovery are moving away from having Michael Keaton sticking around as Batman in the DCEU where he basically gets replaced by Batgirl.
It has also been said that Zaslav wants to bring in the Matt Reeves and Robert Pattinson Batman into the DC Cinematic Universe where he is butting heads with Reeves about it.
Amber Heard Aquaman 2 troubles
Another potential issue is the Amber Heard and Johnny Depp trial saw spoilers revealed about the movie including that the head of DC films, Walter Hamada, described the sequel as a buddy comedy starring Jason Momoa and Patrick Wilson, which seems like quite a different tone from the first film (oddly, nothing is being said about Yahya Abdul-Mateen II’s Black Manta).
Amber Heard also testified that her role has been drastically reduced where she doesn’t even know if she made the final cut, and she testified originally she had a much larger role involving a big battle at the end of the movie. Hamada testified and said Heard’s role was reduced because of concerns during the first movie that Heard and Momoa didn’t share onscreen chemistry.
A witness for Amber Heard also testified that Mera was being written out of the film at the start of the movie involving something about a baby and a hospital where Mera would return in the final act.
Following the trial, it has also been said test screenings saw Heard’s screentime doubled, so it seems as if lots of things are changing surrounding Aquaman 2.
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom gets released on March 17, 2023, directed by James Wan.
