Arthur’s nemesis
Before returning to Atlantis, Arthur stopped a group of well-equipped sea pirates from taking over a submarine. Their leader was a man named David Kane (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) who learned the ropes of pirating from his father. Arthur defeats the father and son but shows them mercy and leaves them to escape on their own. In the chaos, David’s father dies and he blames Arthur.
We later learn that David was working for Orm to help start the war against the surface and Orm gives him a bunch of highly advanced Atlantian technology.
Adopting the nickname of his pirate grandfather, David becomes Black Manta. Manta attempts to kill Arthur and Mera on their journey for the Trident but fails. He’s saved by Dr. Stephen Shin (Randall Park), a scientist obsessed with Atlantis but never able to prove it. Manta tells Shin he’ll help him prove it if he helps him find Aquaman.
