Aquaman is surfing into theaters this Christmas, and Screen Rant's Ryan George is here to reveal just what happened in the original pitch meeting. Directed by James Wan, Aquaman stars Jason Momoa in the title role as Arthur Curry, a half-Atlantean, half-human superhero who is forced to confront his destiny as the rightful heir to the throne of Atlantis.

Before Arthur can rule the seven seas, however, there are a few roadblocks - starting with his half-brother, King Orm (Patrick Wilson), the current ruler of Atlantis, who is planning to wage war on the surface world. Then there's Black Manta (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II), a pirate with a serious grudge against Aquaman, and an Atlantean super-suit to back it up. Finally, Arthur must locate the lost trident of King Atlan - a powerful weapon that will allow him to defeat Orm... if only he can find out what happened to it.

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An Aquaman movie is a bit of a tough sell, considering that the character is one of the most widely-mocked superheroes in DC's main roster. Even Batman, who isn't exactly known for his wisecracks, got in a dig at Arthur in Justice League, saying, "I hear you can talk to fish" (he can). However, by casting a beer-chugging, tomahawk-throwing, certified Hawaiian badass in the role of Arthur Curry and giving him such classic lines as "Yea-yuh!" and "My man!", the DC Extended Universe has managed to make Aquaman cool. So, what happened in the pitch meeting?

Though Aquaman has opened lower at the box office than other movies in the DCEU, it's expected to do well over the five-day Christmas holiday period, and had already done massive business overseas before it even reached domestic theaters. It's also one of the best-reviewed DCEU movies so far, with critics praising its dedication to fun and weirdness (like the above-mentioned drumming octopus). The response to Pitbull's tie-in song "Ocean to Ocean" has been a little more mixed, but its ridiculousness somehow works in the context of the movie.

Next up on the DC agenda is Shazam!, based on the comics about a foster kid (Asher Angel) who is gifted with the ability to turn into a fully-grown superhero (played by Zachary Levi) whenever he shouts the magic word, "Shazam!" The pitch meeting for that movie must have been pretty interesting...

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