Aquaman 2 should introduce Aqualad as a new supporting player to help extend Black Manta's overall DCEU story arc. One of the next installments in Warner Bros.' massive DC cinematic universe is the sequel for Jason Momoa's Aquaman. Currently, Arthur Curry's next appearance will be in Zack Snyder's Justice League that will include the proper arc for Aquaman that was originally planned. But Aquaman 2 is in the works too, and will feature the King of the Seven Seas once more on his next adventure. The first film heavily focused on King Orm - a.k.a. Ocean Master - as the primary antagonist. While Ocean Master is one of Aquaman's biggest foes, the James Wan-directed movie also included another iconic enemy: Black Manta.
Aquaman saw the beginning of Arthur's rivalry with David Hyde, who grew hatred towards the Justice League member after his father Jesse was killed in a failed hijack of a submarine. While Arthur could have saved him, he refused, paving David's evolution into Black Manta. Aquaman ended with Black Manta, in a partnership with Stephen Shin, making it clear that he's not finished yet with Arthur - nicely establishing him as the primary villain of the sequel, which will see the pair face off against one another once more.
But this climactic battle could have far bigger stakes were Aqualad to be introduced into the DCEU for the film. There are two iterations of the young hero, but the one that the DCEU would benefit the most with is Kaldur'ahm (or Jackson Hyde, as he's also known.) This Aqualad has been a huge fan-favorite through his debut in Young Justice, and would be a useful addition to the DCEU not just for his popularity, but also because he's Black Manta's biological son - which added a complex twist due to Aqualad's relationship with both Aquaman and his own father. The DCEU version of Black Manta has, so far, not hinted whether or not he has a family - but it's not difficult to create a backstory where David discovers that he has a son who is serving alongside Arthur.
Not only does this add far higher and more personal stakes to the movie, but it also creates a character who is immediately complex and difficult to predict - as Aqualad is torn between supporting his parent, and doing the right thing and supporting his mentor Aquaman. It would even be a perfect way to develop an almost impossible to predict plot twist, as Jackson could be a spy or double agent for Black Manta who learns heroism accidentally through his time spent with Arthur Curry.
The DCEU has so far not included the sidekicks of the main heroes, with the exception of Batman's dead Robin. As the DCEU goes forward, introducing the sidekicks gives the leading heroes new responsibilities as well as helps flesh out their cinematic universe. Not only is Aqualad a solid character to bring the teen hero concept into the DCEU, but it would add so much to Black Manta's development. There's a lot of from the Aquaman mythology that is born to be told on screen and Aquaman 2 will hopefully see Aqualad get his cinematic debut as the DCEU continues to build out its universe.
