James Wan holding off on diving into Aquaman sequel until a proper script floats along: Report

Let's be real for a sec: James Wan accomplished the near-impossible with Aquaman. He turned an oft-ridiculed comic book character into the star of the soon-to-be-highest-grossing DCEU film ever. 

That's not an easy feat, but a guy like Wan knew exactly how to handle Arthur Curry (Jason Momoa) and the wet mythos around him, which means he needs to return for the sequel, which is already in the works at Warner Bros. According to Deadline, however, the filmmaker isn't signing any follow-up contracts until the right script comes along. Not that that will be hard; plenty of loose ends, particularly Black Manta (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) and Dr. Stephen Shin (Randall Park), are practically begging for their time in the main spotlight.

Right now, Wan is taking a well-deserved break after the stress of making Aquaman, which required never-before-seen CGI and camera tricks to simulate an underwater universe. Almost none of the film was actually shot underwater. Shocker, right?

"The way he shot the movie is pretty revolutionary and it’s also why we didn’t see anything from the movie for a long time," author and SYFY WIRE contributor Mike Avila, who wrote the book on the film's production — The Art and Making of Aquaman — told us in November. "The special effects in this movie are so important to it, that I think he was smart to wait before revealing everything."

Getting the director back on board for the sequel will also be somewhat hampered by a first-look deal Wan recently signed with New Line Cinema. But as Deadline's report points out, it would be quite the shock if Wan doesn't return for Aquaman 2. 

This weekend, Aquaman is expected to top The Dark Knight Rises at the box office and become the highest-grossing DC film in history.