Jason Momoa's Salary for Aquaman 2 Revealed
The King of Atlantis is making the big bucks. Following the billion-dollar success of 2018's Aquaman, leading man Jason Momoa renegotiated his deal to "essentially double his salary" for the sequel. According to Variety, Momoa is set to make $15 million for Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. Arthur Curry is far from alone in pay raises for DC Comics' most popular characters, as Joaquin Phoenix is eyeing $20 million for the upcoming Joker: Folie à Deux. That's over quadruple what the actor earned for his Academy Award-winning performance in the first Joker. While Joker 2 is still in development, Momoa's sophomore Aquaman has been shot to completion and aims to release next March.
By comparison to his Marvel counterparts, Momoa's $15 million is firmly in the range of many of Earth's Mightiest Heroes. Chris Hemsworth and Scarlett Johansson are said to have earned $20 million each for their starring roles in Thor: Love and Thunder and Black Widow, respectively.
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is one of numerous DCEU projects to be bumped by the domino effect of delays earlier this year. While The Batman successfully met its March drop date, Black Adam, The Flash, and the aforementioned Atlantean sequel all suffered setbacks. Aquaman 2 director James Wan noted that he is "thankful" for the delay as it gives his team more time to polish the visual effects.
"Working nonstop, day and night (at least 15 hours each day), on my director's cut from my home set up. Thank god for the big desk!" Wan wrote regarding the new release date. "For a movie that is nearly all visual effects, I'm thankful for the extra time needed to craft this thing right. Working with groundbreaking new technology, I'm blown away by some of the early tests coming in. I'm cautiously optimistic and excited, and can't wait to share when the time is ready."
Star Patrick Wilson also championed the VFX, teasing that the sequel does things that will leave fans shocked.
"So you take those things that you think people responded to, even if it was, 'Oh my God, can you believe they did that?' Yeah, we did that. Now we're going to do more of that," Wilson said. "I think we found our niche. I think DC has found their way to understand where each movie can fit, even in a multiverse, which is so overused now, as a term. Clearly the movie went beyond a fanboy demographic, because it made whatever; billion dollars, right? So that affords you a freedom of, 'You know what? Let's keep it fun. Let's make it fun.'"
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom arrives in theaters on March 17, 2023.