James Wan, director of Aquaman, has commented on why he chose to bring horror to the DC movie with the Trench creatures.

Aquaman is by and large a light-hearted affair, just what you would expect from your usual modern day superhero romp. But the film also has some darker moments, brought to the forefront by horror director James Wan in sequences set in the Trench.

The grotesque water creatures of the Trench certainly demand your attention but what was the thinking behind these moments? Did Wan simply want to bring his horror pedigree to the table? The director explains all (via Screen Rant):

“I really wanted the hero to see the different kingdoms that eventually he’ll be king of, right? So he needs to see his subjects, and he needs to see that there are all kind of races of people down there. And one of the races are the Trench people. Going into it I knew that I wanted Atlantis to be very vibrant, to be very sort of magical and wondrous, and all that.

“But I also wanted to portray, or rather to capture the tone and feel of the ocean to me. The ocean is big and magical and all of that, but also we’re terrified of the ocean as well. I felt that moment allows me to lean back into my horror roots to do something like that. And ultimately it allows me to really showcase one of my signature shot designs of the film which is a cross-section of the ocean. And you get to see what’s above the surface and what’s below the surface.

“That was one of the first images I came up with during pre-production, which is Arthur and Mera swimming down, with a cross-section of the ocean. It’s a big wide shot, and we just see them swarmed, surrounded by the Trench creatures. And the only thing that’s holding them back is this flare, the bubble, within the safety of the flare light. So I just thought from a visual standpoint it was something that was very captivating.”

The shot in question is certainly striking and it sounds like Wan was able to achieve exactly what he had intended with this section of the film. Did you enjoy the more horror-tinged moments found in Aquaman?

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From Warner Bros. Pictures and director James Wan comes an action-packed adventure that spans the vast, visually breathtaking underwater world of the seven seas, “Aquaman”, starring Jason Momoa in the title role. The film reveals the origin story of half-human, half-Atlantean Arthur Curry and takes him on the journey of his lifetime — one that will not only force him to face who he really is, but to discover if he is worthy of who he was born to be … a king.”

Aquaman is directed by James Wan (The Conjuring) and stars Jason Momoa as the titular hero, reprising his role from Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League, along with Amber Heard as Mera, Patrick Wilson as Ocean Master, Willem Dafoe as Dr. Vulko, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as Black Manta, Dolph Lundgren as King Nereus, Nicole Kidman as Atlanna, Temuera Morrison as Tom Curry, Ludi Lin as Murk, Michael Beach as Jesse Kane, Djimon Hounsou as the Fisherman King, Randall Park as Dr. Stephen Shin, Otis Dhanji as a young Arthur Curry, Julie Andrews as Karathen and Graham McTavish as King Atlan.