The final installment of Zack Snyder’s DCEU, Aquaman 2, pits Amber Heard’s Mera against Abdul-Mateen II’s Black Manta, with Jason Momoa playing Arthur Curry/Aquaman. Fans had been waiting impatiently for the movie because the first one was such a box office success. But the sequel didn’t win over DC fans given the movie’s delays and related scandals, like the Heard v. Depp case.

It’s ironic that Aquaman 2 has outperformed Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam, even though the sequel had a dreadful run in theaters, with Forbes counting it as one of DC’s worst reviews. The DC fandom was divided by this announcement since they expressed divergent views on social media.

Black Adam is surpassed by Aquaman 2. Despite a Few Obstacles

2024 has proven to be a challenging year for superhero movies, with some experiencing great success and others experiencing severe box office setbacks. Among the movies is James Wan’s Aquaman 2, which has struggled at the box office because of the obstacles it faced.

Because of the conclusion of the Heard v. Depp trial, the movie, which starred Jason Momoa, was reshot, and the actress’s role was reduced to a few minutes. The sequel was delayed and met with fan backlash because of the slander prosecution.

Nevertheless, despite all of these difficulties, the sequel managed to outperform Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam at the box office. Wan’s movie, which has managed to stay afloat at the box office with $396.1 million, has outperformed Johnson’s film, which only brought in $390.4 million. Fans’ thoughts on Aquaman 2’s box office performance overtaking Black Adam, however, were divided.

Regarding the announcement, some DC fans expressed happiness, while others expressed dismay. Dolph Lundgren, who played King Nereus in the Aquaman film series, was obviously incensed. The Red Scorpion actor has attacked DCU for making business decisions and said that the sequel’s box office failure was caused by a last-minute script change.

Dolph Lundgren blasted DCU in an exclusive interview with ComicBook for reducing Amber Heard’s screen time in the movie, claiming that a corporate decision changed the version of the movie he had first seen. The choice was made immediately following the Heard v. Depp trial’s final conclusion.

“I just realized that I was playing with Amber Heard’s dad and I went along with them trying to limit her because it was some kind of corporate decision.”

The actor went on to say that he felt bad for movie buffs who were unable to view the original version and could relate to their sadness that it didn’t live up to their expectations.

I simply felt bad for the moviegoers because I thought the original script and cut were fantastic. I had seen a little bit of it, and it was really good, so I didn’t see the need to begin reshooting and changing the plot, which clearly disappointed everyone, not just me.

The Swedish actor’s indignation is reasonable given that the 2018 movie was a huge hit and a global box office success, taking in $1.14 billion. However, the sequel’s success pales in comparison to that of the first movie.