Kevin Smith Comments on Aquaman 2 Controversy, Says Jason Momoa Would Be Perfect as Lobo
Smith doubts reports that Momoa intentionally dressed like Johnny Depp to antagonize Amber Heard, suggesting the two basically just dress alike anyway.
According to a recent report, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom has had a troubled production, poor test screenings, and a mountain of behind-the-scenes drama. Combined with the slow death of the "DC Extended Universe" in favor of James Gunn's new DC Universe (which is set to launch in 2025), fans and studio executives alike are worried that the film might be DC's next movie to be dead on arrival, in spite of being a sequel a billion-dollar blockbuster that had the highest gross of any movie in the DCEU. Meanwhile, rumor has it star Jason Momoa is already looking forward to his next role, as the DCU's Lobo.
On the latest episode of Fatman Beyond, filmmaker Kevin Smith chimed in on a recent report from Variety, which claimed among other things that Jason Momoa showed up drunk to set, and intentionally dressed like Johnny Depp in order to antagonize co-star Amber Heard, who used to be married to Depp and has been embroiled in a series of high-profile legal fights with her ex-husband for years.
"I don't think he just dressed as Johnny Depp. I think he just kind of dresses like Johnny Depp, layers and s--t like that," Smith said, which echoes a defense that Momoa's representatives have voiced, according to co-host Marc Bernardin. He added, "I saw, the one thing that I read in the news that I was like, 'Well, I guess I can understand that,' was that they were having test screenings and...in the comics, Black Manta killed Aquaman's son, him and Mera's baby. That's a pretty famous comic book storyline, and it sounds like they included a version of that in this movie, where Black Manta kills Aquaman and Mera's baby, and audiences walked out. They were like 'f--k this.' I can get my head around that, if some audience is like, 'I don't come to no superhero movie to watch a f--king baby die,' but the comic book guy in me was like, 'Well, that's what they did in the comics. It sounds like they've been changing this movie so much. Dude, they've had, minimum, two Batmans in this movie. They had Michael Keaton Batman and they also had Ben Affleck Batman."
Bernardin read more of the article, which included rumors that Momoa could be recast as Lobo. Smith said that the actor was perfect for the role.
"That honestly makes absolute sense," Smith said. "He looks like Lobo."
You can see the full podcast below.
In Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, which arrives in theaters on December 20th, when an ancient power is unleashed, Aquaman must forge an uneasy alliance with an unlikely ally to protect Atlantis, and the world, from irreversible devastation. Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom will see the return of Jason Momoa as Aquaman, Patrick Wilson as Orm, Amber Heard as Mera, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as Black Manta, and Randall Park as Stephen Shin. Jani Zhao will play new character Stingray, Indya Moore will play Karshon, and Vincent Regan will play Atlan, who was previously portrayed by Graham McTavish in Aquaman. Pilou Asbaek has also joined the cast in a mystery role.
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is directed by James Wan, with a script from David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick. Producers include Wan and DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran.