10 Best Movies Like ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’, Ranked by the IMDb Score
As the DC Extended Universe is nearing its end, we know now that the upcoming ‘Aquaman’ sequel, officially titled ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’ will be the 15th and the last movie set in this franchise that wasn’t able to find the right course since 2017, which is way Warner Bros. and DC Studios decided to pull the plug and build up a new cinematic universe from the ground up.
Although the announcement of the reboot affected the last couple of DCEU movies in a negative way, there’s some hope ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’ could pull off a decent result, considering it’s a sequel to the highest-grossing DC movie of all time.
The original ‘Aquaman‘ was released in 2018, and it grossed $1.148 billion worldwide. After five years of waiting, we’re finally getting a sequel. So, let’s take a look at ten movies that are similar to ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’ in one way or the other to give you some ideas on what to watch while we’re waiting for it.
10. ‘Justice League: Throne of Atlantis’ (2015)
IMDb score: 6.6
What it’s about: ‘Justice League: Throne of Atlantis’ is an animated movie set in DC Animated Movie Universe (DCAMU). It tells the story of half-Atlantean prince Arthur Curry who teams up with the Justice League to prevent the war between the surface world and Atlantis, which was orchestrated by his half-brother Orm, aka Ocean Master.
Why it’s like ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’: ‘Justice League: Throne of Atlantis’ is the fourth DCAMU movie and the sequel to 2014’s ‘Justice League: War.’ While it isn’t the only ‘Justice League’ movie in this franchise, it mainly focuses on Aquaman’s story and his rivalry with Ocean Master. The movie is loosely based on the 2012-13 ‘Throne of Atlantis’ storyline from the ‘Aquaman’ comic book set in The New 52 continuity.
9. ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ (2022)
IMDb score: 6.7
What it’s about: After the death of King T’Challa, his sister, Princess Shuri, her mother, and their allies must find a way to protect Wakanda from Namor, who is the king of Talokan, an ancient underwater civilization.
Why it’s like ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’: In the Marvel Comics canon, Namor, also known as the Sub-Mariner, is the mutant son of a human sea captain and a princess of Atlantis. Although his backstory was changed in the movie, making him the king of Talokan, there’s no denying that Namor is quite literally “Marvel’s Aquaman,” with the difference that Namor is an antagonist who wants to attack the surface world, making his mindset closer to Orm’s than Arthur Curry’s.
8. ‘Aquaman’ (2018)
IMDb score: 6.8
What it’s about: Following the battle against Steppenwolf in ‘Justice League,’ Arthur Curry is invited by Princess Mera and Atlantis’ vizier Vulko to claim his rightful throne of Atlantis. But to do so, Arthur will need to prevent his half-brother, King Orm, from uniting seven underwater kingdoms in his quest to destroy the surface world.
Why it’s like ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’: 2018’s ‘Aquaman’ is the predecessor of ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.’ Therefore, you don’t need any other reason to watch it before the sequel hits theaters.
Although it isn’t the first movie with Jason Momoa’s titular character, ‘Aquaman’ also depicts Arhur’s origin story through flashbacks. With King Orm and Black Manta as the movie’s antagonists, ‘Aquaman’ is the ultimate cinematic experience for all King of the Seven Seas fans.
7. ‘Thor’ (2011)
IMDb score: 7.0
What it’s about: Thor is a powerful but arrogant God of Thunder who is set to eventually succeed his father, Odin, as the king of Asgard. But due to his arrogance, Odin exiles him to Earth, where he’ll soon become one of its defenders while also uncovering a conspiracy his half-brother Loki is plotting to take the throne of Asgard for himself.
Why it’s like ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’: The story of Thor can remind us of Aquaman’s story in many ways. As you already suspected, ‘Thor’ also tells the story of the prince and the defender of the Earth who needs to stop his half-brother from taking the throne. These types of stories aren’t unusual, but the good news is that it works equally well in both Thor and Aquaman’s case.
6. ‘The Little Mermaid’ (2023)
IMDb score: 7.2
What it’s about: Ariel is a young mermaid who wants to discover more about the surface world. After saving a young prince from the shipwreck, she makes a deal with the sea witch to trade her beautiful voice for human legs to explore the surface world and impress the man she saved.
Why it’s like ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’: We know that Aquaman is half-human, half-Atlantean, and that puts him on the line between the underwater world and the surface world. On the other hand, Ariel is a mermaid who is fascinated by the surface world, and she wants to explore it, particularly after falling in love with a human. After all, if you love movies set underwater, both ‘Aquaman’ and ‘The Little Mermaid’ must be on your watchlist.
5. ‘Black Panther’ (2018)
IMDb score: 7.3
What it’s about: Following his father’s death in ‘Captain America: Civil War,’ Prince T’Challa returns to Wakanda to be crowned king and protect his nation from the coming threat in the form of his ruthless cousin Killmonger.
Why it’s like ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’: We’ve already mentioned this movie’s sequel, ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,’ which featured Namor the Sub-Mariner as the main villain. While this predecessor didn’t feature any scenes underwater, the original ‘Black Panther’ is still a movie that tells a story about two family members that are pitted against each other.
4. ‘Wonder Woman’ (2017)
IMDb score: 7.4
What it’s about: After saving a pilot who tells her a story about the war in the outside world, an Amazonian princess Diana leaves her home island, hoping that she can stop the conflict. While discovering the outside world, Diana will also discover her true power and her destiny.
Why it’s like ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’: Both Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman and Jason Momoa’s Aquaman first debuted in DCEU in ‘Zack Snyder’s Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice,’ after which both of them got their standalone movies. Although the story of ‘Wonder Woman’ doesn’t share many similarities with ‘Aquaman’ at its surface, it is still a story about the journey on which the titular character meets their true self.
‘Wonder Woman’ and ‘Aquaman’ are still some of the better-received DCEU movies, and although ‘Wonder Woman’ was followed by a poor sequel, hopefully, the same won’t happen to ‘Aquaman.‘
3. ‘The Abyss’ (1989)
IMDb score: 7.5
What it’s about: When a submarine sinks in the Caribbean, a search and recovery team must work with an oil platform crew to race against time and recover it. The team will encounter something unexpected deep in the ocean during this underwater adventure.
Why it’s like ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’: The Abyss is one of James Cameron’s less-known movies, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth your time, especially if you like the sea and underwater adventures as much as Cameron does. Basically, the only thing ‘The Abyss’ and ‘Aquaman’ have in common is that both of them are underwater adventures, but that’s more than enough to put ‘The Abyss’ on this list.
2. ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ (2022)
IMDb score: 7.6
What it’s about: Five years after the events of the original ‘Avatar,’ the humans return to Pandora, as well as Jake Sully’s mortal enemy Miles Quaritch. Jake Sully, who is now a father, must find a way to protect his family and his adopted planet.
Why it’s like ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’: If you thought the CGI of underwater scenes in ‘Aquaman’ was impressive, just wait until you see ‘Avatar: The Way of Water.’ This sequel to James Cameron’s ‘Avatar’ takes its characters and viewers on a journey to the Metkayina clan, which is located on Pandora’s reefs. The scenes both above and below the surface of the sea are visually absolutely breathtaking. Ultimately, ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ is a family drama packed as an epic sci-fi spectacle.
1. ‘Zack Snyder’s Justice League’ (2021)
IMDb score: 7.9
What it’s about: Following Superman’s death in ‘Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice,’ Bruce Wayne recruits a team of superheroes to protect the Earth from an approaching threat known as Steppenwolf.
Why it’s like ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’: Both 2017’s ‘Justice League’ and this director’s cut from 2021 are prequels to the original ‘Aquaman’ movie. However, since the Snyder Cut is twice as long, it had more time to explore the characters and their backstories, including Aquaman’s.
The movie features underwater scenes in which we also meet some supporting characters from ‘Aquaman,’ and apart from that first movie, this crossover spectacle is a great pick to rewatch to prepare for the upcoming ‘Aquaman’ sequel.
How many of these movies have you watched? Which one is your favorite? Are there some other movies you find similar to ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’? Let us know in the comments.
