The highly-anticipated “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” is finally here! Starring Jason Momoa (Arthur Curry/Aquaman), Owen Wilson (Orm/Ocean Master), Amber Heard (Mera), and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Black Manta), the movie serves as a direct sequel to the first instalment released back in 2018. Picking up where it left off, David Kane aka Black Manta, is still seeking revenge against Aquaman for the death of his father.
Arthur, on the other hand, seized the throne from his brother and assumed the position of King of Atlantis. Just like the first movie, the sequel is filled with action-packed scenes as well as heartwarming moments but the ending was quite interesting as it didn’t really feel like it was explicitly setting up for a third movie. Before we dive into the depths of possibilities, be warned, there will be spoilers ahead.
Ending Explained
“Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” does not have a post-credit scene, but rather a mid-credit scene, that is actually not worth sticking around for. If you’re not a fan of insects, more specifically cockroaches, you should sit this one out. However, that’s not what we’re here to discuss. By the end of the movie, just before they roll the credits, Arthur/Aquaman decides that it is time to reveal the existence of the Kingdom of Atlantis to the surface world after defeating Black Manta and destroying the lost ancient cursed kingdom of Necrus.
An Atlantean ship appeared out of the water somewhere in the United States, witnessed by millions of onlookers, including the US Army as it was announced by news anchors all over the world that the King of Atlantis would be meeting with the United Nations and address the global catastrophe that was caused by Black Manta. While he didn’t specify what caused the number of natural disasters that were happening at an alarming rate, he promised that Atlantis would provide technological aid to humans in order to reverse the damage done to the planet.
The entire speech was being broadcasted everywhere, including Atlantis where we could see the High Council being visibly concerned as they were against the notion from the very beginning. After his moving speech, the movie ended with Arthur simply listing down his titles as a father, a brother, the King of Atlantis and finally Aquaman. That was it. While there wasn’t a dramatic cliffhanger of some sort, there was a saying that was mentioned in the movie a few times and that was, “A true king builds bridges”. We personally believe that this phrase may be a clue of what could be the next plot of a third “Aquaman” movie, should there be one.
Theories & Predictions
From how things ended, the next instalment would probably focus on the conflict between the surface-dwellers and the people of the underwater kingdom. This would mean that Atlantis’s High Council would play a much bigger role as they never trusted the human world since humans were the ones polluting the ocean, and poisoning marine life for hundreds of years.
As for the human side, how would Arthur, who is basically the bridge between both worlds, convince them to put their trust in unknown beings that have been in hiding underwater for centuries? How would he use his authority as King and his status as half-human to bring the two worlds together in harmony?
Now, another question is, will there be a new supervillain – one that would lead to both surface and sea dwellers working together to fight as one? Or perhaps the threat is just a civil war between humans and Atlanteans? That plot may be a little too obvious and simple but it doesn’t necessarily mean it would be a bad movie as it would still revolve around Arthur/Aquaman trying to bring peace in both worlds.
It is also worth noting that this may actually be the last time Jason Momoa will be playing the iconic superhero as the fate of future “Aquaman” movies is still hanging in the air as far as the current DCEU slate is concerned.
