Instead of James Wan, Jeff Nichols was actually supposed to direct “Aquaman.” But in the hands of the indie director, the DC hit probably wouldn’t have become a billion-dollar blockbuster…
It’s just one of the many revelations that came to light as a result of the infamous Sony email hack in 2014 (even though the studio wasn’t even involved in the film): Before Warner Bros. decided to hire “Fast & Furious” and “Saw” director James Wan for “Aquaman,” there was a conversation with another filmmaker – but it fell through due to the studio’s veto.
Whether Marvel or DC: It is a common method to entrust celebrated indie directors* with the direction of upcoming superhero blockbusters. These are usually cheaper than fully established directing stars, and one can adorn oneself with the good reputation that the filmmakers already enjoy with the critics. For example, Marvel hired Oscar winner Chloé Zhao (“Nomadland”) for “Eternals,” and DC brought in Patty Jenkins (“Monster,” which earned Charlize Theron an Academy Award) for “Wonder Woman. “
And “Aquaman,” which grossed over $1 billion at the box office in 2018, was also supposed to be the responsibility of an indie darling: Jeff Nichols, who made a splash in 2011 with the apocalyptic drama “Take Shelter – A Storm Is Gathering” and a year later with “Mud – No Way Out” (starring Matthew McConaughey and Reese Witherspoon).
But his involvement did not go beyond a conversation. On the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast, Nichols talked about the failed “Aquaman” negotiations and his ideas for the blockbuster.
AQUAMAN AS OLD MAN IN MOURNING?
“I still have scenes from ‘Aquaman’ in my head that would have been really good,” the director told us. “It would have been a very different movie than the one that was made. It was never feasible. I had an older Aquaman in my head who had a harpoon for a hand. He was a fallen king, and his son died. He was in mourning. Based on that short pitch, you can obviously see that the movie probably wouldn’t have sold millions of tickets that way.”
Nichols acknowledged that he would have thoroughly enjoyed the finished “Aquaman” film. “But we have a lot of movies like that now,” he added. “There are a lot of stories in the world. And I think you might as well spend your time telling others. “
After Warner quickly rejected his “Aquaman” pitch, Nichols instead shot the Oscar-nominated drama “Loving” and also made his first major studio production with “Midnight Special” that same year. In an interview about the sci-fi film, which stars his regular actor Michael Shannon, Nichols also commented back in 2016 on why nothing came of directing “Aquaman.”
“(…) With “Midnight Special, even though the film was shot in the studio, they gave me a lot of control over the process,” the filmmaker told online magazine ScreenCrush. “And I don’t just mean control over the final cut. It felt like we were making one of my films. I had my team, I had my family with me, my crew. We were making the movie we all wanted to make. With the DC universe, so many (…) decisions had been made before that it felt more and more – and Warner agreed – like I was jumping on a bandwagon. I’m not so good at that. I’m more of a start-from-the-ground-up kind of guy.”
After being a little quieter around Nichols in recent years, he recently unveiled his new work, “The Bikeriders,” at the Telluride Film Festival. In addition to Shannon, the film stars Tom Hardy and Austin Butler, among others, and already the ’68 film is considered a hot Oscar contender. So in the end, it was probably the best decision for everyone involved that Nichols stayed away from the superhero mainstream.
