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Patrick Wilson theorizes on what the future might hold for Orm in Aquaman 2
By the end of James Wan's live-action Aquaman film, Orm/Ocean Master (Patrick Wilson) was arrested by his half-brother, the new king of Atlantis, Arthur Curry (Jason Momoa). Arthur said that they could have a heart-to-heart whenever Orm was ready, and the villain was then hauled away, presumably to a jail cell beneath the waves.
What will happen next for the antagonist who tried to unite all of Atlantis' kingdoms and instigate an all-out war with the Surface World? With the sequel recently announced for theatrical release on Dec. 16, 2022, Wilson offered up some of his theories (strictly as a fan, of course) on where we might find the character in the next water-logged outing.
"I don’t know what the future holds for Orm … You can’t kill him. He’s too important to [Arthur’s] journey … he’s a foil to [his character]," the actor said at an event to promote The Art and Making of Aquaman at the independently owned Word bookstore in Jersey City, New Jersey. The book itself was written by SYFY WIRE's own Mike Avila, who co-hosted the event.
"He’s not gonna be a main villain in another movie," added Wilson. "I don’t think Orm ends up in Belle Reve like he does in the New 52. I assume they’re gonna keep him in some kind of jail below the surface. If [James] wants me back, I’m certainly happy to come back.”
Mike brought up a good point that the door was left open for the erstwhile Ocean Master to make a Loki-esque turn, as Tom Hiddleston did in the MCU.
During a "show-and-tell" portion of the Q&A, Wilson brought out one of the silver, red-eyed Ocean Master masks he wore in the picture, allowing certain members of the audience to handle the props. Personally, we got to hold two different kinds of Orm's armored gloves, which you can check out below.
Speaking of costume-based props, Wilson discussed the suits of armor worn by Orm's Atlantean guard. While they were made of a lightweight plastic (which were meant to resemble metal scales), the material would absorb a lot of water and fog up the costumes' masks, prompting Wan to call "CUT!" quite a lot because the performers wearing them couldn't see what they were doing.
Talking about the movie's climactic battle, Wilson revealed that the ending was originally comprised of two fights, one with the Fishermen Kingdom and one with the Brine Kingdom. These were eventually combined to make the pacing a little better. After all, the original cut of the film ran about three and a half hours long.
Since Jason Momoa had shot Justice League before doing principal photography, he was in a much darker mindset when he began to film Aquaman. Since the latter is much more lighthearted and funny, the actor had a time reconciling the jarring tonal shift. Luckily, he was able to figure it out in the end and turn Arthur into an extremely charismatic protagonist.
“He was arguing with James all the time," Wilson continued good-naturedly, assuring the gathered audience that he didn't really profess to put words in Momoa's mouth. "I know [Jason] was trying to figure out what the tone was … It’s the most of him that you’ve seen in a movie … I know he was so happy with the end result."
Even with Arthur and Orm, however, Wilson credits the movie's momentum to the strong female characters like Mera (Amber Heard) and Queen Atlanna (Nicole Kidman). He's not wrong, since one kicks off the plot (by giving birth to the main character), while the other draws the hero in the middle of the growing conflict with Ocean Master.
“The movie’s really driven by the women," said Wilson.
Now available to watch and/or rent on digital platforms, Aquaman reeled in more than $1 billion at the international box office, becoming the highest-grossing DC movie of all time. In addition to the direct sequel currently in development (Wan is expected to return as director), Warner Bros. is also fast-tracking a horror spinoff revolving around the Lovecraftian Kingdom of the Trench.
Published by Insight Editions, The Art and Making of Aquaman is now on sale everywhere. The film doesn't arrive on DVD and Blu-ray until March 26.
