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7 interesting things about 'Aquaman,' according to Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, and director James Wan


At the Asian press conference of DC film "Aquaman" Tuesday, stars Jason Momoa and Amber Heard with film director James Wan on Tuesday revealed seven interesting things about the movie.

RELATED: Jason Momoa on his first time in the PHL: 'We're kinda basically family'

The Warner Bros. Pictures film follows the adventure of half-Atlantean and half-human Arthur Curry starring Jason, as he discover his second world, side by side with warrior princess Mera starring Amber, who has empowered him to embrace his destiny to become the King of Atlantis and the bridge between the surface world and the underwater kingdom.

1. Jason had to drink a lot for the role

According to Jason, film director James required him to "drink a lot" to portray better his character Arthur Curry, who was a big drinker.

"Preparing for the character, I think you have to be trained to do stuff, things like that. Arthur's a really big drinker and I'm not really a fan, but James was a stickler  about it and he wanted me to drink a lot, so for my character I did," Momoa told the press.

Wan did not deny Momoa's statement and said, "That's right it was me. I was the one, I pushed him." 

 


2. Their costume does not feel as comfy as it looks

In the film, Amber (Mera) looked effortlessly badass as she fought and swam in a green sparkly scaled suit. But the actress shares it's not as comfortable as it looks.

"To credit filmmakers and wardrobe designers, it looks so cool and effortless but in reality, it is a complete opposite of that. It was a skin-tight, scaly, aquamarine vacuum-sealed, corset that I'm basically wearing and it's as forgiving as we can probably imagine that would feel to it," Amber shared.

 


Meanwhile, Jason who previously told Entertainment Weekly that bathroom breaks while wearing the suit was a challenge, told the Manila press that he had no problems with his trips to the bathroom.

"It was a silly question when they asked me, if I could go to  the bathroom, but yeah I could go to the bathroom in the outfit. There's no problem going to the bathroom," Jason said. 

On the other hand, James joked and said he had the most comfortable costume in the film.

"My costume was really comfortable, I don't know what these guys are complaining about, it was so easy," James said.

 


3. There's a bit of his horror in the movie, thanks to Director James Wan

Widely recognized for films like "Conjuring," "Insidious," "Saw," "The Nun" and "Annabelle," James couldn't help but put a whiff of horror in the superhero film.

"There is actually a bit of a horror within Aquaman itself. If you guys have seen it, that's the sequence where the trench  was really scary, and I dug deep into my love for genre film-making," James said.

The Malaysian director also applied to "Aquaman" one of his learnings from doing horror movies, that is, creating characters that the audiences will want to root for.  

"I would say that every movie I make regardless of what genre  it is, I learn stuff from it and then I carry on to my next project. What I've learned from making scary movies is creating characters that people really care about. That's super important," he said.

 


"Making and creating likeable characters and finding the best actors and point them out and find interesting drama within the characters themselves to kind of cultivate an emotion... it kinda doesn't matter  what genre it's in," James pointed out. 

4. It's tackles environmental issues

Other than the excitement and thrill that superhero movies bring, James intends for the audience to come in enthusiastic and come out with insights about the film's theme.

"I want them [to go] into this movie with the sense of excitement. I want them to enjoy the movie and go into this crazy fun ride, but I want them [to come out] of it realizing that the thematic message of the movie is something that's very important," he said.

And one of those messages is family and unity. "The movie is about the guy who loves his dad who never got to know his mother and so it's the completeness of that family unity."

 


James pointed out another essential message of the film: the environment.

"I think this is one of the few rare superheroes that has an environmental aspect. I don't think you can make an Aquaman movie and not touch on the environmental message at all," James said.

In the film, Aquaman's Atlantean half-brother Arthur plots a war against the surfacers (humans) who has been polluting and abusing the ocean for years.

5. The lead female character Mera is a warrior princess, not another 'damsel in distress'

In a recent interview, Amber said she was sold to the role of Mera when she learned that Mera was a warrior princess and not another damsel in distress.

"It sets her apart, Mera is different only in the sense that like Wonder Woman, she is  empowered, strong. She has her own narrative and in our story," Amber said, adding it's actually Mera who empowers Aquaman and helps him recognize his true identity.

 


"Mera is our driving force to the whole story. She is what makes Arthur and Aquaman. She not only empowers him to realize his destiny but she's really a driving force to the whole story. She figures everything out first and then she acts on it with her strong will and decisive force," she said.

6. The story encourages embracing multiracialism

Aside from family unity and its environmental aspect, the story also spreads awareness about embracing mixed races.

"This story is about a hero who is from two separate worlds and he doesn't  quite feel like he belongs to the either world. But what he ultimately discovers and realizes is he is the best of both worlds and he ends up embracing his identity and that's something that as I grew older, something that I've embraced more as well and I think Jason has the same feeling as well," he said.

 


Jason is both Hawaiian and German-Irish and grew up in two different cultures. This allowed him to related very well to Aquaman, who lived on earth but grew up learning about his Atlantean superpowers.

"My upbringing was 100% two different worlds. One race, another race, so I  can identify [with him]. I love both places very much and I'm surrounded by people who love their home and wanna leave  their home. I'm just one of the people that wanders,"

Jason feels proud of playing a superhero who is not just all about saving the world and being good but also someone who sets an example to younger generations and sending them the message that being a mixed race is something to be delighted about.

"It's really  cool to play a superhero who's sometimes or sometimes he's I don't want to be a goody good or baddy bad. This is something I can relate to and pass on  to children, who may have single parents. It's really cool that they are mixed race, it's a need to be the face of that it's perfect timing, maybe it's meant to be,"

"Who knows," Jason added using his Aquaman voice. 

7.  An "Aquaman" sequel might happen

When the reporters asked if a sequel is set to happen, Jason answered, "I think we'd all be very very excited if it did well, then I think we would all do our best to try and make that happen."


“Aquaman” premieres in Philippine cinemas on December 12. — LA, GMA News

 

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