Aquaman 2 ending explained

Arthur Curry returns in his new role of King of Atlantis – here’s the ending of Aquaman 2 explained in full.

It’s been a long five years since the original Aquaman movie graced our screens, and the sequel hasn’t been without its issues in getting made.

From continuing controversies surrounding Amber Heard’s involvement to a supposed Batman appearance from Ben Affleck, details of Aquaman 2 have changed more times that Arthur has had fights.

Now that the movie is here for all to enjoy, here’s the full ending of Aquaman 2 – fully titled Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom – explained. Warning – spoilers ahead!

Aquaman 2 ending explained: Black manta is back

As Aquaman 2 begins, Arthur Curry (Jason Momoa) is struggling to juggle his life on land with his duties of the sea. Now the King of Atlantis, Aquaman has married Mera (Amber Heard) and has a son of his own. The council believes that Arthur isn’t spending enough time on his throne, looking to remove his power from him by any means that they can. At the same time, David Kane – also known as supervillain Black Manta (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) – is looking to repair his suit following his last meeting with Aquaman. To do so, he’s in the Arctic with Dr. Stephen Shin (Randall Park,) closing in on something strange.

While there, Dr. Stephen investigates the strange presence further, causing the ice to crack and strand him. His colleague gets taken by an unknown tentacled creature before David can get there to rescue him. Checking out the creature’s lair, the group finds a frozen kingdom, where the creature is lurking. Wiping out half of them, David takes a direct hit that coincidentally leads him to find a broken black trident. Once he touches it, he sees the life and vengeance of the kingdom’s former king, who tells him he can kill Aquaman once and for all if he wields its power.

Meanwhile, Aquaman’s problems are piling up, with frequent plague outbreaks across the kingdom a rising concern. On land, news channels are reporting on rising temperatures, which Arthur believes is linked to the problems of the sea. After David’s connection to the black trident, he suddenly knows a lot of ancient information, leading him to resurrect technology from gone by. To do so, he begins to steal a substance known as orichalcum, which Aquaman catches wind of.

Aquaman and Orm reunite

Keen to know more, Atlanna (Nicole Kidman) and King Nereus (Dolph Lundgren) tell Arthur that orichalcum is considered so toxic that even the sea kingdoms no longer touch it, storing it in vaults beyond the depths instead of destroying it. Sure enough, David gets caught robbing the vaults, injuring Mera in the process of escaping. Keen to track him down before he destroys the world, Arthur and Atlanna decide that Orm (Patrick Wilson) – who is currently being held in a secret desert prison – is the only person who can help.

Using Topo technology, Aquaman breaks Orm out of prison, with a brooding sense of distrust between the two. Orm says that his contacts will know where David is, heading to the sunken citadel to find out more. A fight breaks out, leading to Aquaman learning that David is somewhere called the Devil’s Deep in the South Pacific. The pair reluctantly head there together, trying to reestablish their bromance along the way.

Devil’s Deep isn’t as it seems, with mutated creatures manifesting from the high orichalcum levels. They eventually find David’s lair, where Dr. Stephen gives them the rundown on the black trident. As Stephen says that he doesn’t want to be involved, the rest of the team attacks, with the brothers able to fend them off by working together. In doing so, Orm touches the black trident. David shows up in a full Black Manta suit, once again escaping with the rest of the team.

The lost kingdom gets taken down

Arthur and Orm work out that David needs royal blood to take his black trident power to the next level, meaning that either Arthur, Orm, or Atlanna are the next targets. Orm reveals what the trident showed him, revealing that the lost kingdom of Necrus had two brothers go to war over it, with the ‘evil’ brother Kordax frozen to keep his black magic from coming to light. What the pair have forgotten is that there is a fourth contender for royal blood – Aquaman’s son. The Black Manta heads to the lighthouse, stealing the baby and burning the house down, leaving Tom (Temuera Morrison) for dead.

From there, it’s a race against time to stop David. As the kingdoms come together to take him down, Stephen slyly sends out a signal of David’s location. Speaking to the creatures of the water, David’s main ship is taken out using sonar radar – something David has been continuously weaponizing against Aquaman. David as the Black Manta and Stephen make their way to Kordax’s throne to reach full power, with the kingdoms in hot pursuit.

Orm and Aquaman eventually find him thanks to Arthur’s son emitting the same sonar beam as him. Mera is able to swoop in to retrieve the baby while Aquaman engages with a weakened David. Awakening Kordax, Orm almost falls prey to his black magic, with Arthur reminding him of their brotherly love. By throwing the golden trident through the black trident, Kordax and his black magic disintegrate – with David deciding he’d rather fall to his death than be saved by Aquaman. All is well once more, with Atlantis choosing to reveal itself to the world, using Aquaman as an ambassador.

Aquaman 2 is in cinemas now. For more on the movie, head here, or check out the below articles:

• Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom review
• How to watch the sequel – is it streaming?
• How strong is Aquaman?
• Cast and characters
• How much is Amber Heard in Aquaman 2?
• How strong is Black Manta?
• Rotten Tomatoes score
• Is it the end of the road for Jason Momoa’s Aquaman?
• How long is Aquaman 2?
• Why Aquaman’s future doesn’t look good
• Is Batman in Aquaman 2?
• Does Mera die?
• Ending explained
• Is Aquaman 2 part of the DCU?