DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran appeared to lend credence to rumors that Jason Momoa will exit the role of Aquaman following the release of Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.
Back in February, alleged scooper ViewerAnon claimed test screenings were “not looking great” for Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.
The scooper specifically noted, “I’ll be honest, we’re half a dozen test screening in and it’s not looking great. I’ve consistently heard over the last half ear or so that it’s boring, not as good as the first, and potentially one of the worst DCEU movies.”
RELATED: Jason Momoa Doubles Down On ‘Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom’ Pushing A Climate Change Narrative
This was seemingly corroborated by fellow scooper bigscreenleaks who tweeted, “There’s a reason I’ve been avoiding any questions about AQUAMAN AND THE LOST KINGDOM but since ViewerAnon put it out there, It brings me no joy to back him up and tell you that test screenings for this film have not been good.”
“Really hoping Wan fixes his movie before December,” the scooper added.
The scooper added in a follow-up tweet, “I heard that something that almost never happened in test screenings happened with this movie. They’re really going to need to fix this one and fix it fast.”
RELATED: Jason Momoa Rumored To Exit Role Of Aquaman Because ‘Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom’ Is “Terrible”
Both of these scoopers would also be backed up by The Ankler’s Jeff Sneider. However, Sneider also indicated that Momoa would be exiting the role of Aquaman in favor of Lobo.
He tweeted, “I hear it’s terrible and that’s why Momoa is gonna be Lobo going forward. But they can’t say that yet because then it would be a lame duck… and DC is hoping to wring another billion out of the box office. First one was awful too, so not a huge surprise.”
Now, DC Studios CEO Peter Safran heavily hinted that Momoa might be out as Aquaman following the release of Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.
He told Men’s Health, “I look forward to working with Jason for many years to come. I would be happy for it to be in Arthur Curry’s world, but if/when another opportunity came up, I’d find another great character for him to create.”
However, in a bizarre twist, Safran would also inform the outlet that he believes “there are few superhero casting that are more perfect than Momoa as Aquaman.”
According to Men’s Health’s Ben Court Safran informed him this is because he views Aquaman as “the ultimate outsider” given he doesn’t belong to either the surface world or Atlantis, and Momoa has a similar personal story given he was born in Hawaii and then moved to Iowa at six months old following his parents’ divorce.
This is a huge red flag for the future of DC Studios and shows Peter Safran does not actually understand the character of Aquaman. Aquaman is not a character trying to fit in. He literally marries Mera and has a daughter with her.
Aquaman is a character who is trying to lead his people to a better future, and he is burdened with a heavy crown as he has to manage multiple different interests not just from within Atlantis, but also from the Justice League, the United States, the United Nations, Themyscira, and others.
The way Momoa portrays Aquaman and thus his casting was one of the major missteps Zack Snyder made with Justice League. Aquaman does not have a carefree surfer bro mentality as the films depict him. He is a character who takes his responsibilities seriously.
Momoa previously indicated he would stay on in the role of Aquaman, but indicated he might be taking on other roles as well.
“I love [James] Gunn and so there’s gonna be some really cool things, what they’re doing with DC, and I definitely will be in more than just one,” he told Deadline. “There’s room for me to play a couple different [roles]… I’ve seen other actors do it. Yeah. I want a shot.”
He reiterated this to Variety saying, “I’ll always be Aquaman. Ain’t anyone coming in there and taking shit. There might be some other characters, too. I can play other things, too. I can be funny and savage and charming.”
“I’ll always be Aquaman.” Jason Momoa opens up about his meeting with James Gunn and Peter Safran: “We’ve got a lot of good things coming.” https://t.co/m6i0OuZtEC pic.twitter.com/jDFss3gojB
— Variety (@Variety) January 20, 2023
Not only did Safran claim that Momoa was perfectly cast as Aquaman, but he also claimed that Momoa’s inner asshole has never shown itself.
He said, “What you see is what you get with Jason. I have been working with him for six or seven years, and I keep waiting for the proverbial other shoe to drop. If there is an inner asshole in him, it has never come out. That, to me, is a surprise . . . albeit a very pleasant one.”
Safran clearly was not paying attention to Momoa’s actions back in 2020 when he endorsed violent crime.
On June 7, 2020 Momoa reshared an Instagram post from activist Shaun King celebrating and encouraging violent crime. In fact, Momoa described this criminal behavior as “AMAZING.”
Momoa also appears to be an insufferable activist as evidenced by his criticism of Chris Pratt for drinking out of a plastic water bottle.
Back in December 2019, Pratt shared an ad for a fitness store based on the equipment he claims to use in his own personal workouts. In the photo he happened to be holding a plastic water bottle.
Momoa took issue with him holding a water bottle commenting on the post writing, “Bro i love u but wtf on the water bottle. no single use plastic. come on.”
It’s probably for the best that Momoa does indeed exit the role of Aquaman given his horribly miscast and the platform allowed him to encourage extreme political violence and insufferable activism.
What do you make of Safran’s comments? Do you think Momoa continues on in the role of Aquaman?
NEXT: ‘Aquaman’ Actor Jason Momoa Excitedly Teases Secret Project That May Be DC-Related