ALMOST two months after the billion-dollar hit “Aquaman,” Warner Bros. Pictures has drafted a writer to begin work on the sequel.

The studio has tapped David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, who co-wrote the first movie, to begin writing a new installment, confirmed The Hollywood Reporter.

James Wan, who directed the first movie and worked with Johnson-McGoldrick on “The Conjuring 2,” is returning as producer. It is unclear if Wan would return as director.

Released last December, “Aquaman” made US$1.121 billion on a US$200 million budget. It is Warner Bros. Pictures’ first DC movie to pass the US$1 billion mark since 2012’s “The Dark Knight Rises.”

The hiring of Johnson-McGoldrick finally kick-started the sequel into development — highly unusual for Warner Bros. as studios typically develop follow-ups even before a franchise picture rolls out.

With “Aquaman,” Wan was reportedly in no rush to re-enter the franchise and still remains noncommittal to directing at this stage. The studio did not want to pressure him or his collaborators.

Reports of a horror spin-off titled “The Trench” surfaced earlier this week. Comic and sci-fi movie news site Heat Vision reported that the film will focus on the creepy deep-sea monsters revealed in “Aquaman.”

“The Trench” was only introduced to the “Aquaman” comics in 2011 as part of a DC revamp of its publishing line. These amphibious creatures were part of the kingdom of Atlantis but evolved into terrifying monsters when it sunk.

(SD-Agencies)