Momoa, Heard take to seas in superhero film ‘Aquaman’

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‘Lion King’ adds Sedaris in original voice role

LONDON, Nov 27, (RTRS): “Game of Thrones” actor Jason Momoa brings the latest superhero spin-off to the big screen, this time “Aquaman”, to tell the story of the DC Comics half-human, half-Atlantean character.

The 39-year-old first made an appearance in the role in 2016’s “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” but now has his own movie exploring the superhero’s origins.

Momoa portrays the character, known as Arthur Curry, as he embarks on a journey of self-discovery, and with plenty of action and special effects, viewers are taken to the underwater world of the seven seas.

Walking a blue carpet – in line with the film’s aquatic theme – at the film’s world premiere in London on Monday, Momoa said the role was the toughest he had undertaken so far.

“Physically it’s just really challenging and demanding to do the stunts and then stay in shape,” the actor told Reuters, adding he identified with the character for various reasons including “being an outcast”.

“I had two stunt doubles. I’ve never had stunt doubles really ever…This had so many stunts.”

The film also stars “The Rum Diary” and “Magic Mike XXL” actress Amber Heard as warrior Mera. Dressed in a floor-length green dress with matching head cap, Heard said she was not keen at first on doing a superhero film.

“I was pretty allergic to the idea…In my very limited experience with that world, I didn’t see intuitively what that would have to appeal to me,” she said.

“I’m interested in complex nuanced roles that depict women in more accurate and more organic ways. And then the creators called me (saying) she’s a warrior queen. I was like… ‘OK, I’m interested’.”

Also:

LOS ANGELES: Comedian Amy Sedaris has joined the cast of Disney’s live-action “The Lion King” remake, numerous individuals close to the project tell Variety. She will voice an animal brand new to the kingdom that was established in the 1994 animated classic.

Under the purview of director Jon Favreau, Sedaris will play an elephant shrew – so named for long noses that resemble elephant trunks, the tiny mammal is native to Africa and known for its top speed.

The actress joins an impressive ensemble that includes Donald Glover, Beyonce, James Earl Jones, Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, and Alfre Woodard. The film’s first teaser trailer dropped on Thanksgiving Day to great fanfare, generating 224.6 million global views, making it the second most-viewed trailer in history within 24 hours (Disney also owns the No. 1 title, “Avengers: Infinity War”).

Favreau and Sedaris previously worked together on his 2014 food-truck drama “Chef”. She is no stranger to animated voice work, having appeared in all five seasons of Netflix’s “BoJack Horseman” and the acclaimed 2016 indie “My Life as a Zucchini”. She was also a regular on Tina Fey and Robert Carlock’s Netflix comedy “The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”.

She currently stars on the TruTV series “At Home With Amy Sedaris”, a sketch series for which she serves as co-creator, executive producer, and star.

Sedaris is repped by UTA and Schreck Rose Dapello Adams Berlin & Dunham.

LOS ANGELES: Earlier this year reports emerged of Donald Glover and Rihanna filming in Cuba, and it looks like the fruits of that effort, a film reportedly called “Guava Island”, were previewed at Glover’s PHAROS festival in New Zealand last weekend. Fan footage of the trailer, first posted by Stereogum.

The film, credited to Glover’s alter ego as “A Childish Gambino Film”, was directed by his longtime collaborator Hiro Murai, who has worked with him on his FX show Atlanta as well as the videos “This Is America” and “Sober”.

The clips feature Glover and Rihanna in a setting that is apparently deceptively idyllic: “We live in paradise but none of us actually have the time or the means to live here,” he says.

The film also stars Letitia Wright and Nonso Anozie.

Reps for Glover did not immediately respond to Variety’s request for comment.

Glover has announced that his forthcoming album and current “This Is America” tour will be his last as Childish Gambino. This latest installment of his PHAROS festival was intended to close the tour, but Glover suffered a foot injury midway through the tour and was forced to reschedule a number of dates.

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