"I thought the original script was great."
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom star Dolph Lundgren has spoken out to say he is “disappointed” for fans because he claims Warner Bros. abandoned an earlier cut of the movie that was “really good.”
Speaking to ComicBook.com, Lundgren said an earlier, unfinished version of the movie featured more of his character, King Nereus, and his daughter Mera (Amber Heard). But Lundgren said when a “corporate” decision was made to “try to limit Amber Heard,” his character’s screentime was scaled back as well.
“I was just disappointed for the moviegoers, because I thought the original script was great and the original cut–I saw a little bit of it, it was really good, so I didn’t see any reason to start reshooting and reshaping the story, which obviously led to disappointment in the moviegoers and not just me,” Lundgren said.
Reshoots, of course, happen all the time with all types of movies for all variety of reasons. For his part, director James Wan said he always planned for Mera to have less screen time in Lost Kingdom.
Earlier, it was reported that WB considered recasting Mera with a different actress, not due to the controversy surrounding her lawsuit with Johnny Depp, but instead because of a lack of chemistry between her and Jason Momoa.
The Lost Kingdom made more than $377 million worldwide, which is just a fraction of the $1.1 billion that the 2018 Aquaman movie earned.
Looking ahead, Momoa has said he does not feel optimistic about being asked to come back to play Aquaman again.