Jason Momoa might be the most famous actor to play Aquaman on the big screen, but he’s not the first. That honor goes to the fictional Vinnie Chase (Adrian Grenier), who made the jump to superstardom when he was cast as the King of Atlantis in a big budget blockbuster by the one and only James Cameron. Well, on “Entourage,” that is. HBO’s satire produced by Doug Ellin pushed Vinnie onboard the blockbuster that was just as likely to make him a movie star as it was to be a gigantic bomb. In fact, the fictional “Aquaman” movie was meant to be a bomb before Cameron himself changed course.
“I thought ‘Aquaman’ sounded like the most ridiculous movie in the world,” admitted Ellin in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. “The only way to make it work was if James Cameron was directing it.” Thanks to a personal connection through post-production supervisor Janace Tashjian, Ellin was able to get in touch with Cameron, who took the task of bringing this fictional Aquaman movie to life extremely seriously, joining the cast of the show as a recurring guest star.
Cameron took the role so seriously, in fact, that when Ellin shared how his plan was for “Aquaman” to be a gigantic box office bomb that would tank Vinnie’s hopes and dreams, Cameron wrote a long letter to the series creator explaining all the reasons why his fake movie “couldn’t be a bomb.” Ultimately, Ellin agreed to Cameron’s changes (“It was genius.”), and with “Entourage’s” fake “Aquaman” now christened as a hit, Vince’s journey to the Hollywood A-List took off in earnest.
Entourage’s storyline is one more reason why you should never doubt James Cameron
Only a few years removed from Sam Raimi’s original “Spider-Man,” Ellin admits that making a superhero movie at the time was still seen as ridiculous. “I’m not a big comic book or superhero person, but it just seemed very silly,” he added. It’s no wonder that even Vince pushes back against the idea of donning the Aquaman costume. But in putting Cameron at the helm, it helped the story play off in both directions. Yes, he’s one of Hollywood’s biggest hit makers, but could “Aquaman” sink his historic run? Thanks to Cameron’s interference, the answer was no.
Of course, the real life the answer to that question was far less certain when Warner Bros. announced it was making an actual “Aquaman” film with Jason Momoa. In an example of art and reality blending together, James Wan’s “Aquaman” was a smash hit at the box office. In fact, it holds the record for the highest grossing film based on any DC character. While not James Cameron’s take on the character, “Entourage” predicted Aquaman’s Hollywood success.
The hit HBO series came to an end in 2011 with a melancholic series finale, followed soon after by a lackluster feature film return. Despite Ellin’s belief that “Entourage” has been since hidden by HBO, its most enduring lesson is one the rest of Hollywood should take to heart: never doubt James Cameron.
This story originally appeared on TVLine
