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David Leslie Johnson has been hired to write Aquaman, Warner Bros.’ big-screen take on the water-breathing DC Entertainment superhero character.

James Wan is developing and on board to direct the title, which has Jason Momoa attached to star as King Atlantis for the movie, which is swimming towards a 2018 release.

What is unclear is the extent of Johnson’s involvement. The project was being developed on dual tracks with writers Will Beall and Kurt Johnstad penning separate scripts.

One source said that Johnson would be a third rail on the development track however several sources said Johnson is working with Wan to streamline the project. Warners had no comment.

Johnson, whose early breaks included a stint as Frank Darabont’s assistant, is a Warners' favorite having worked on the studio’s Wrath of the Titans and Red Riding Hood.

He is also already well acquainted with Wan as he worked on The Conjuring 2: The Enfield Poltergeist, which Wan is currently directing.

Johnson is repped by Paradigm and Behr and Abramson.

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Amber Heard Circling Aquaman’s Love Interest in ‘Justice League’ (Exclusive)
JANUARY 13, 2016 | 09:36AM PT
Justin Kroll
Film Reporter
@krolljvar

While “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” is still two months away, Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment are already gearing up their “Justice League” pic, adding another A-list actor to the ensemble.

Warner Bros. Had no comment.

Amber Heard is in talks to join the cast of WB’s “Justice League” pic as the love interest of Jason Momoa’s Aquaman, sources close to the project tell Variety. Insiders go on to add that she would not only appear in “Justice League” but would also co-star with Momoa in the studio’s standalone pic that currently has James Wan on board to direct.

If a deal does close, Heard would join an ensemble that already includes Momoa, Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Gal Gadot and Ezra Miller, all of whom are expected to make some sort of appearance in “Dawn of Justice” before reprising their roles in “Justice League,” which is set to bow on Nov. 17, 2017. Production is set to begin this April with Zack Snyder directing from a script by Chris Terrio.

Heard would be playing Mera, an undersea queen who eventually marries Aquaman in the comics.

The role would mark Heard’s first venture into the comic book realm and comes on the heels of one of her busiest years. She appeared in “Magic Mike XXL,” “The Danish Girl” and “The Adderall Diaries” in 2015.

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JANUARY 13, 2016 9:37am PT by Borys Kit
Amber Heard in Talks to Star in 'Aquaman' (Exclusive)

Her character will first appear in 'Justice League.'
Amber Heard is in negotiations to join Warner Bros.’s DC Universe.

If a deal makes, Heard will star opposite Jason Momoa as the female lead in Aquaman, several sources tell The Hollywood Reporter.

She will make her appearance first in Justice League, the movie that introduces various characters and story threads to fully launch the cinematic universe based on the DC Entertainment characters.

Warners had no comment.

Heard will play Mera, the love interest of Aquaman and eventual queen of Atlantis. First appearing in 1963, the character’s powers include the ability to control and even solidify water.

James Wan is attached to direct Aquaman, which is being undergoing a dual track development, meaning that there are two separate scripts that are being worked on concurrently.

David Leslie Johnson, who is Wan’s writer on The Conjuring 2, is working on one while the other one is being penned by Kurt Johnstad, who wrote 300 with Zack Snyder, who is directing Justice League, producing Aquaman and is one of the architects of the DC movieverse.

Justice League is due to begin shooting April 2016, swimming towards a Nov. 17, 2017 release date. Aquaman is due to hit shore eight months later, July 27, 2018.

Heard, last seen in Magic Mike XXL, is on screen with Eddie Redmayne and Alicia Vikander in awards player The Danish Girl. She also has crime thriller London Fields in the can.

Heard is repped by WME and Karl Austen at Jackoway Tyerman.

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Rumor: ‘Aquaman’ Might Lose Director James Wan
Britt Hayes | 4 hours ago

Warner Bros.
It’s difficult to ignore rumors when they’re so consistent — and persistent. Following the negative critical response to Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, which didn’t perform as well as Warner Bros. expected at the box office, reports have surfaced that there’s some turmoil at the studio regarding the future of the Justice League franchise. Last night, news broke that Seth Grahame-Smith exited The Flash solo movie over “creative differences,” and a subsequent rumor seems to support the idea that WB’s DC plans aren’t going very smoothly.

In their article on Grahame-Smith’s departure from The Flash, Birth.Movies.Death reports that multiple sources are saying that James Wan could be the next to go. The director of The Conjuring and Furious 7 is allegedly considering dropping out of Aquaman, and is currently “trying to decide if he needs that hassle.” Wan had a difficult time on Furious 7, and as the article notes, he has both The Conjuring 2 (which he directed) and Lights Out (which he produced) hitting theaters this summer, with both films coming from Warner Bros.

The report also claims that there is some tension between WB and Zack Snyder, as the studio is questioning the director’s overall creative vision for the Justice League universe. Grahame-Smith’s departure from The Flash and Wan’s rumored potential exit from Aquaman support the notion that the studio is definitely experiencing some problems with their DC slate — though the exact nature of these difficulties remains speculative.

Snyder is currently filming Justice League: Part One in London, and it’ll be interesting to see how that production plays out, to say the least.

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Will Beall is going back into the ocean.

The Gangster Squad scribe is once again writing Aquaman, Warner Bros.’ feature project based on the iconic DC Comics character. This time however, he is working off a detailed treatment from filmmaker James Wan, who is attached to direct, and comics author and co-head of DC Films, Geoff Johns.

Jason Momoa barnacled to star as the half-human, half-Atlantean King of the Seven Seas. July 27, 2018 is the release date.

Warners was developing Aquaman on dual tracks, hiring multiple writers to develop scripts simultaneously. Beall and Kurt Johnstad, a frequent collaborator of Justice League director Zack Snyder, then a major architect of the DC cinematic universe, were hired in summer 2014. Late last year, when Wan came circling the project, Wan’s Conjuring 2 scribe David Leslie Johnson became another track.

In the meantime, Beall moved off the project and became the writer and exec producer of the Training Day television pilot, which has been ordered to series by CBS.

Recently, all Aquaman development tracks were deep six-ed as Wan and Johns focused on getting the story in ship shape. Beall was then rehired to write the script, this time as the only writer. He is working with Wan and Johns.

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