Photo: Courtesy of DCFilms

Following Christopher Nolan, the first major Hollywood figure to have visited Beijing on a promotional tour since the pandemic, Hollywood star Jason Momoa and celebrated director James Wan are journeying through China to promote the sequel to the superhero blockbuster Aquaman. Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom has been set for release on December 20 in China, two days before it opens in North America.

They visited Shanghai on Saturday, were in Chengdu in Sichuan Province on Monday, and will finish their Chinese tour after visiting Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, on Tuesday.

"We attribute a lot of the success of the first movie to our film kicking off here in China and the Chinese audience embracing it. So we're super excited to be back here doing it with this one," said Wan in Beijing. 

At the premiere, Momoa pulled off a pink suit paired with black sunglasses, and Wan appeared in a classic navy blue and gray look. While the two walked down the blue carpet, they were warmly welcomed by excited and cheering fans who were eager for selfies and autographs. 

During their tour in China, they visited attractions such as the Forbidden City and the Great Wall in Beijing. 

"I don't know how you all stay so slim! I've gained quite a bit since coming here. I really love Chinese food. My belt used to be loose and I should be keeping in shape. You've made me gain weight!" Momoa said jokingly at a press conference held in Beijing on Thursday.

After Beijing, they visited Shanghai. 

"When you look at the buildings on the banks of the river, it reminds me of Atlantis," Momoa said during a cruise tour along the Huangpu River on Friday evening. Meanwhile, Wan noted that he had watched many movies about Shanghai, but his impression of the city upon arrival was that it is futuristic and amazing. 

"It's like something you'd see in a sci-fi movie, which is incredible."

They are also promoting the movie through various events in Chengdu and Guangzhou. The scale of their promotional tour in China has been one of the largest from Hollywood this year. 

In commenting on the sequel's release in China two days ahead of North America, Zhang Peng, a film researcher at Nanjing University's National Research Center of Cultural Industries, told the Global Times, "The growth of the Chinese film market is leading the world. In China, film consumption is continuously upgrading across various segments - cinema, film criticism, film-related products, and internet platforms - all leveraging films as a cultural gateway for industrial upgrading. Therefore, from a promotional perspective, the robust vitality of the Chinese film market has a leading influence on Hollywood's industrial layout."

Chen Changye, a Chinese film critic shared Zhang's view, and also pointed out that the move also shows China's hope that the sequel will perform well at the box office. 

"I think both parties have strategized the release schedule for a common goal." 

According to Chinese online ticketing platform Maoyan, the first Aquaman grossed a staggering $281 million in China, achieving a phenomenal success. While China ranked second for the film's global box-office performance, after North America's $335 million, South Korean ranked third with a $39.10 million. As of Monday afternoon, on Maoyan alone, 239, 000 users had placed the sequel on their "want to watch" list. 

"If you liked the first one, you will like the sequel too," said Wan. He explained that the sequel is almost a continuation of the first movie, where Aquaman has now taken on different social identities, the king of Atlantis, a husband, and also a father. 

"The fun part is seeing how he balances the responsibilities of being a king and a father. Besides that, he also has to prevent a major disaster, and you will see a lot of exciting action-adventure scenes in it," Wan said.  

Wan also revealed that one of the highlights in the sequel is the new world, Antarctica, which due to its sub-zero temperatures, created a new visual aesthetic for the team to work with.

According to Variety, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is among the contenders of the top 20 finalists for the visual effects Oscar that have been notified to have made it to the next round of voting. 

As a superhero IP, Aquaman is not only a box-office stronghold in the Chinese film market but also could be a model to follow in the Chinese film industry. How to continuously create such super IPs and how to maintain a sustainable content creation ecosystem for the Chinese film industry are key focuses for future development, noted Zhang.

Looking ahead, in assessing Hollywood's performance in China, Chen said "a significant improvement next year seems unlikely." 

"The months-long strike by the Writers Guild of America along with the SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) strike that just ended will undoubtedly have a major impact on this year's production and next year's releases. Any improvement for Hollywood films in the Chinese market will have to be projected and assessed in the longer term. There is more hope that films from non-American countries might become the backbone of the imported film market next year," said Chen.