James Wan’s AQUAMAN Villain Rumored to be Black Manta
A couple months ago director James Wan was talking about his Aquaman film and said that there were going to be multiple villains. He didn’t say who exactly the villains would be, but he did say:
"I gotta say, one thing I love about the Aquaman world is all the really different, really interesting characters. They are interesting characters, including the villains – I’m not going to tell you which villains I’m going to play with! [laughs] But they’re super cool. They’re very larger than life, but they’re unique."
The Wrap is not reporting that they’ve learned that one of the main villains in the film will be Black Manta. This is kind of obvious because Black Manta is Aquaman’s mortal enemy. The character is a notorious pirate and assassin; Black Manta is one of the most ruthless and feared supervillains on Earth.
The interesting thing about Black Manta is that he has no superhuman powers or abilities. He has just honed several skills to near perfection. Some of these skills include strength, stamina, agility, fighting, leadership, strategy, intelligence, and even mechanical engineering. He’s created several of his on vehicles and weaponry. Oh yeah! He’s also wealthy thanks to the fortunes he’s acquired through treasure hunting over the years.
He also wears a diving suit that allows him to survive in the water for long periods of time in extreme depths. Here are some additional details on his suit:
It insulates him against the cold and protects him from pressure changes. It is completely waterproof and bulletproof, and is so completely sealed that it cannot be entered even at the atomic level. It also grants him a level of superhuman strength and durability, allowing him to survive major traumatic injuries. It greatly increases his underwater mobility, primarily through the use of some sort of diver propulsion vehicle, and allows him to leap great heights when shooting out of water. It is also effective as a means of camouflage in dark water. He wears a distinctive manta-shaped helmet with two large eyes that allow for infrared and scope vision, as well as powerful optic blasts capable of hurting or killing metahumans. His helmet connects to an oxygen system that allows him to breathe underwater indefinitely. It also protects his head from trauma.
So, Black Manta is like a villainous Batman of the sea. This is such a cool character, and it will be fun to see how Wan brings him to life in this movie. Personally, I think Black Manta is a more interesting character than Aquaman.
Aquaman swims into theaters July 27th, 2018.