Aquaman Movie Trailer Breakdown and Secrets

As promised by director James Wan, the first trailer for Aquaman was released today at SDCC 2018. It offered viewers their first big-screen glimpse of DC's world beneath the waves, with scenes even featuring the City of Atlantis itself.

The character of Aquaman was created by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger back in 1941, and in the comics he was actually one of the founding members of the Justice League. However, it was only last year when Aquaman made his way to the big screen inJustice League, ahead of his 2018 solo movie. Aquaman will introduce us to the DC movies' version of Atlantis, with Arthur gaining key allies - and making dangerous new enemies too.

The first Aquaman trailer reveals the origin of Arthur Curry, and confirms that this is indeed the battle for the throne of Atlantis. The surface world is in terrible danger, and war will only be stopped if Arthur succeeds in claiming the throne himself. Let's take a look at the highlights.

25. Aquaman's Origin Story

Just like the trailer, the Aquaman movie will begin in the '80s when lighthouse-keeper Tom Curry discovers the body of Atlanna, Queen of Atlantis, washed up on the beach after a storm. The wind and the waves have tossed Atlanna against the rocks, and she's badly injured. As seen in the trailer, Tom rescues her and tends to her wounds. As time passes, love blossoms between the unlikely couple, and they have a child - Arthur.

Notice that the trailer doesn't show any other scenes featuring Atlanna. The Aquaman set visits confirmed that the Atlanteans ultimately came for Atlanna, viewing her remaining on the surface as a betrayal. She was taken away, and Arthur believes she was ultimately executed for this "crime".

24. Arthur Learns He Can Talk to Fish

This is one of the film's flashback scenes, revealing how young Arthur learns he can talk to fish. His school is on a trip to the Boston Aquarium, and Arthur finds himself drawn to the sea-life. This earns the ire of bullies, who mock him for talking to the fish. It's quite an entertaining nod to the fact that Aquaman is generally derided as a superhero whose primary super-power is the ability to tell fish what to do. There's an amusing parallel between this scene and Justice League, where one of Bruce Wayne's first comments to Aquaman is to observe, "I hear you can talk to fish." Little wonder Aquaman was so annoyed at the comment; Wayne's half-mocking tone would remind him of the moment he first learned his powers, and of the bullies who hounded him.

23. Young Arthur Summons the Sharks

The scene takes a brilliant twist when Arthur unwittingly summons a shark to his aid. The bullies' faces blanch in shock, and they back away as the shark hammers at the glass, desperate to get at the people who are attacking young Arthur. There's a momentary focus on Arthur's eyes, which glow with an inner light, and he turns to face his tormentors. In that moment, young Aquaman looks every bit the King of the Deep, with the beasts of the sea ready to fight in his defense.

The crack on the glass is beautifully artistic, suggesting that in Arthur the barrier between the surface world and the sea dwellers is beginning to break down. This is easily one of the most powerful and visually effective scenes in the trailer.

22. Arthur Takes A Sub

This cool action sequence is a perfect opportunity to demonstrate Aquaman's strength and fortitude. He launches a devastating attack upon a pirate sub, striking its side with the speed of a torpedo. Once the sub has surfaced, Arthur breaks in and engages with the pirates aboard. The sarcastic quip is perfectly in tune with the character as he was established in Justice League, and the bemused reaction from the two pirates he's meeting is absolutely perfect. It's not alluded to here, but this could be linked to the origin of villain Black Manta (more on that later)

21. Mera and the Call to Adventure

The film seems to follow the traditional "Hero's Journey" pattern, and this is the Call to Adventure. Mera (Amber Heard) comes to Arthur (Jason Momoa) seeking his help, believing he is the only one who can prevent his half-brother Orm declaring war on the surface world. As seen in the trailer, Arthur initially refuses, insisting he wants nothing to do with Atlantis. Ironically, as we see further on in the trailer, it's Orm himself who persuades Arthur to change his mind.

Page 2: Aquaman's Main Story & Fight With King Orm

20. King Orm's War

This call is followed by scenes that show King Orm (Patrick Wilson) in his armor, preparing to unleash the wrath of the Seven Seas upon the surface world. Orm's motives are simple; he blames the people of the surface for releasing pollution into the seas, for killing the coral reefs, for acidifying the oceans. In Orm's view, it is time for the people of Atlantis to come to the defense of all that is beneath the waves, to teach the surface world that the seas aren't just a place they can dump their pollutants without care or concern. This motivation is lifted straight from Geoff Johns's New 52 run.

19. A "Tidal Wave" Strikes Amnesty Bay

King Orm considers Arthur to be a threat to his reign. This causes him to launch a devastating and destructive attack upon Amnesty Bay, somehow generating a tsunami wave that sweeps inland. Arthur is sat driving a truck at the time, his father - who appears to be unconscious - at his side. The scene is absolutely stunning, with some of the most impressive CGI in the entire trailer. There's no way Arthur can outrun the tsunami wave, and water floods into the truck. A moment later, though, we have confirmation that both Arthur and his father survive; the next scene shows the two stood staring at the devastation, apparently having been rescued by Mera. She's a hydrokinetic, so her power would prove very useful indeed in that circumstance.

18. King Atlan

This scene is a particularly crucial one: it shows the throne of Atlantis, with King Atlan seated upon it holding his trident. Given that the King is here and the plot of Aquaman focuses on the quest to find Atlan's trident, this is likely from a flashback or prologue sequence setting up the mythology. Also note his armor: Aquaman will get his comic-accurate costume by the end of the film, which appears to be inspired by Atlan's getup.

17. The Weapon Grab: Arthur's Signature Move

Aquaman is both strong and fast, and he seems to have a signature move; the "weapon grab." In one scene, apparently while fighting on the pirate sub, Aquaman catches a sword between his hands. Towards the end of the trailer, he does the same with a trident. The scenes imply that he's trained hard to master this move, so presumably it will be one he deploys throughout the film.

16. The Aquaman Film's Humor

The Aquaman trailer carefully stresses the film's sense of humor, most notably with one piece of dialogue in which Aquaman criticizes Mera for giving the "worst pep talk ever." Earlier films in the Worlds of DC range were heavily criticized for their darker tone, and the franchise is pivoting to embrace a lighter, more humorous approach. In stylistic terms, the humor in this trailer is quite a good match for that of Justice League, following on from Joss Whedon's film.

Page 3: Welcome to Atlantis

15. A First Glimpse of Atlantis

This is probably the single most important scene in the film. Any hero is only as interesting as the world he inhabits, and the writers and directors of Justice League deliberately left our first glimpse of Atlantis for Aquaman. The design is beautiful, a blend of the comic book concepts and the sealife you find around coral reefs. In fact, it honestly looks as though the city is built into the side of a reef. This may well explain why Atlantis feels threatened by humanity's pollution; rising sea temperatures and the acidification of the oceans are killing off the reefs. It's possible pollution is literally destroying the City of Atlantis.

14. Atlantean Technology

The trailer tends to focus on the traditional Atlantean weapons - swords and tridents. However, there are still subtle signs that Atlantean science is far more developed than human science. The most visible example is the two-man sub Aquaman and Mera are in when they arrive at Atlantis. It appears almost organic, designed to resemble a fish - and so likely undetectable to the surface dwellers. The ship is presumably powered by some sort of environmentally-friendly power source.

13. The Battle for the Throne

This next sequence was described to journalists as part of the set visits last year, and seems to be one James Wan is particularly proud of. It sees Arthur Curry and Orm engage in ritual combat for the throne of Atlantis, and will remind many viewers of a similar scene in Black Panther. In this case, the duel takes place in some sort of volcanic collapse pit, presumably part of the Mid-Oceanic Ridge.

While it's quite rare, it is possible for lava to flow like this on the sea-floor. The area Arthur and Orm are battling in would be extremely hostile; it's impossible to guess what temperature the waters would actually be at. That said, in Aquaman, your average Atlantean is almost as powerful as a Kryptonian, so no doubt these inhospitable conditions wouldn't be too problematic for the combatants.

12. The Atlantean Masses

This scene appears to be set at the end of the ritual combat, and shows the crowd cheering their triumphant king. It's difficult to work out the exact sequence here; there seem to be two major battles between Arthur and Orm, and it seems likely Arthur loses the first, only to return for a rematch.

More important than that, though, it's our closest look at the peoples the pair are fighting over. It's fair to say they're a lot more human than most of the other underwater inhabitants.

11. Aquaman Takes the Sub to the Surface

This scene later in the trailer is clearly part of Aquaman's attack on the sub, giving a sense of just how out-of-sequence the trailer really is. Aquaman has already struck the pirate sub, presumably crippling its engines, and then he literally lifts it on to the surface. It's a remarkable demonstration of Arthur's brute strength. When the sub is on the surface, he leaps on top and - as seen earlier in the trailer - breaks through the airlock to fight the pirates.

Page 4: Aquaman's Other Villains

10. Aquaman's Duty

Ultimately, however unwilling he may be, Arthur is destined to take the throne of Atlantis. Fortunately, he's not alone; the film stresses the relationship between Aquaman and Mera, and while there are hints of romance, it's clear she's no mere love interest. Mera is portrayed as every bit Arthur's equal, and the relationship between the two is essentially a partnership. No doubt their romance will blossom over possible sequels, which will explore Arthur's struggle to lead the Atlanteans and make peace with the surface world.

9. Vulko

This is Vulko, played by Willem Dafoe. The chief scientific adviser of Atlantis, Vulko was originally intended to appear in Justice League, but all those scenes were cut from the final film. Vulko is a classic Aquaman supporting character, and in the comics he'd go on to become Aquaman's regent. In the New 52 continuity, Vulko's mother was murdered by Orm, and he wound up cast out of Atlantis. Given Aquaman seems heavily influenced by that run, he's likely to become one of Arthur's most important allies.

8. Young Arthur Training

In the comics, Atlanna trained the young Arthur in the ways of combat before she was eventually taken by the forces of Atlantis. This scene suggests something similar happened, although it's unclear just who is throwing this quindent at the teenage Arthur - it could conceivably be his father. Notice that this seems to be where he trained in the art of catching a blade with his hands. The weapon in question is the quindent from Justice League, which belonged to Arthur's mother. She left it with him when she was taken away, and it's a constant reminder of her love - and her loss.

7. The Trench Swarm a Ship

The Trench is one of the seven tribes of Atlantis, a brutal race who live in the depths of the Marianas Trench. Director James Wan is best known for working in the horror genre, and he's used the Trench to bring that trademark style into Aquaman. The Trench is the most physically powerful of the tribes, their bodies evolved to survive water pressures that would crush even an Atlantean. In this scene, Orm sends the Trench to swarm over a boat; they intend to kill and eat everyone aboard. Aquaman clearly intervenes, using some sort of flare or beacon to draw them off.

6. Black Manta

The trailer only gives some brief glimpses of Black Manta, the secondary villain of Aquaman. He starts off as a pirate, one who falls foul of Aquaman - and is left seeking vengeance. In a recent interview, actor Yahya Abdul-Mateen II suggested that Black Manta's first encounter with Aquaman leads to the death of his father (possibly in the submarine sequence), and Black Manta blames Arthur Curry for it. He's recruited by King Orm to work against Aquaman, and relentlessly pursues the would-be King of Atlantis. The character is return after Aquaman, with the actor signed up for other films. "I think we try to talk about him as a guy who has the potential to be a pretty big force within the world," Yahya Abdul-Mateen II explained.

Page 5 of 5: The Battle For Atlantis

5. The Ruins... of Atlantis

One land-set sequence is particularly interesting given how decidedly un-wet it is; Mera and Arthur exploring some ruins. This may actually be ancient Atlantis, with the duo going there looking for King Atlan's long-lost trident; in ancient times, the sea level was higher than it is at present, and as a result Atlantis was in a different location.

4. Black Manta Attacks

Black Manta's technology and armor is provided by Orm, and as such he's a formidable threat even for the likes of Aquaman and Mera. Manta's greatest advantage, though, is that he's equally dangerous both on the land and under the waves, meaning he can pursue Aquaman wherever he goes. In this scene, Black Manta launches a murderous attack upon Arthur, projecting devastating energy beams from his eyes. The coloration of these beams suggests they have a strong heat component, which would be particularly dangerous for beings who are dependent upon moisture for their strength and vitality.

3. The Fisherman King

The Fisherman King was revealed shortly before Comic-Con, played by Djimon Hounsou (who is playing three superhero roles in almost as many months). He's the head of one of the seven kingdoms, although it's unclear how important he'll be in the plot. What this moment does show is the varied designs of the different species that live under the sea.

2. The Big Battle

King Orm aims to unite the seven tribes of Atlantis under his own rule - by force if necessary. As a result, towards the end of the trailer we see the Xebellians prepare for war, riding their seahorse mounts in order to defy Orm and his Trench army. A hectic action scene follows, with the Xebellians and the Trench battling against one another. This gives a sense of just how formidable both of the Tribes are, with the Trench proving themselves physically powerful, while the Xebellians use weapons to shoot blasts of pressurized water against their foes.

1. Mera Doesn't Believe in Parachutes

The trailer ends with a humorous beat that shows Aquaman and Mera heading to the last place they'd be expected - the desert (and presumably the ruins from earlier). Mera's clearly still confident of her superhuman endurance, and she chooses to jump out of the plane without a parachute. When the pilot yells in shock, Aquaman just makes a sarcastic quip about redheads before jumping out after her. Ironically, the two heroes' confidence in their own endurance may actually be misplaced. Atlanteans are weaker the further away they are from water; in the middle of the desert, Aquaman and Mera's strength will be sapped to dangerous levels.