Jason Momoa
Birthdate: Aug 1, 1979
Birthplace: Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
Jason Momoa (birthname: Joseph Jason Namakaeha Momoa) is a rising action star most associated with the DC Comics superhero, Aquaman, and one of the biggest Polynesian-ethnic movie stars since the rise of Dwayne Johnson.
Having broken into show business with a running role in the TV series, Baywatch Hawaii (1999-2001), Momoa broke into movies with a supporting role in the road comedy, Johnson Family Vacation (2004), starring Cedric the Entertainer, Steve Harvey, and Vanessa Williams.
Momoa’s first starring title role was as Conan in the commercial and critical bomb, Conan the Barbarian (2011), with Rachel Nichols, Stephen Lang, Rose McGowan, and Ron Perlman, followed by a main supporting role in another bomb, the Walter Hill-directed Bullet to the Head (2012, and not related to John Woo’s 1990 action masterpiece, Bullet in the Head) and starring Sylvester Stallone, Sung Kang, and Sarah Shahi.
Jason Momoa stepped up as star/co-writer/director of the thriller, Road to Paloma (2014), with Shahi, Lisa Bonet, and Wes Studi, then continued with his first role in a sci-fi movie with Debug (2014), from Canadian writer-director David Hewlett and co-starring Jeananne Goossen, Adrian Holmes, and Adam Butcher.
Momoa stayed with Canadian filmmakers for the horror movie, Wolves (2014), with Lucas Till, and was dismissed by critics and audiences. After a cameo in director Zack Snyder’s DC Comics movie, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)—which marked Momoa’s debut as his Aquaman character—Momoa appeared in a supporting role in the Alaska-set action movie, Sugar Mountain (2014), with Cary Elwes.
Jason Momoa matched forces with Bruce Willis in one of Willis’s least-seen movies, Once Upon a Time in Venice (2017), from writer-producers Robb and Mark Cullen (with Mark directing), and co-starring John Goodman and Famke Janssen. Unfortunately for Momoa, he was then co-star in yet another bomb, writer-director Ana Lily Amirpour’s The Bad Batch (2016), winner of the Special Jury Lion Prize at the Venice Film Festival, and with Suki Waterhouse, Giovanni Ribisi, and Keanu Reeves.
Jason Momoa’s next movie was another commercial disappointment—and his first full performance as Aquaman/Arthur Curry—writer-director Zack Snyder’s DC Extended Universe all-star epic, Justice League (2017), co-starring Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller, Jeremy Irons, Diane Lane, Connie Nielsen, and J.K. Simmons. The bad commercial run for Momoa continued with the little-seen Canadian-U.S. action movie, Braven (2018), in which Momoa played the title character opposite Garret Dillahunt and Stephen Lang.
Momoa finally had his global blockbuster success with his own DCEU movie, Aquaman (2018), with Amber Heard, Willem Dafoe, Patrick Wilson, Dolph Lundgren, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and Nicole Kidman under James Wan’s direction, and grossing $1.15 billion on a $200 million budget, making it the highest-grossing DCEU movie, spawning an animated series and a long-delayed sequel (whose idea was pitched by Momoa, who receives a story credit), Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023), reuniting the original’s director and cast.
Momoa also performed his Aquaman character on two other platforms—in a voice performance in Phil Lord’s and Christopher Miller’s The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part (2019), and in Zack Snyder’s expanded, director’s cut titled Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021), which was favorably compared to the widely derided and troubled 2017 movie.
Jason Momoa joined another, more prestigious series as part of the ensemble of Denis Villeneuve’s spectacular, Oscar-winning (six) version of Frank Herbert’s Dune, made and released in two separate features, with Part One released in 2021 and Part Two in 2023, but with Momoa’s Duncan Idaho character appearing only in Part One, opposite Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgård, Charlotte Rampling, and Javier Bardem.
As producer and actor, Momoa took on a re-telling of the notorious pursuit of a Paiute man in Southern California’s Mojave desert (previously told in Abraham Polonsky’s Tell Them Willie Boy is Here (1969)), The Last Manhunt (2022), cast with indigenous actors and directed by Christian Camargo.
Jason Momoa took a turn with his next project--the colorful role of the chief bad guy in Fast X (2023), the tenth entry in the Fast & Furious franchise starring Vin Diesel. By April 2023, Momoa was reported to be the star of the long-delayed big-screen version of the massively popular computer game, Minecraft, directed by Jared Hess and for release in 2025.
Personal Details
Jason Momoa was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, to parents Coni (photographer) and Joseph Momoa (painter). Coni Momoa’s ethnicity is a mix of German, Irish, and Pawnee heritage, and Joseph’s ethnicity is Hawaiian and Samoan. Momoa is an only child. His parents divorced shortly after he was born; Momoa moved with his mother Coni to Norwalk, Iowa, where he grew up and attended Norwalk High School. Momoa moved to his birth city, Honolulu, where he attended the University of Hawaii. While at university, at age 19, Momoa got his acting break when cast in the TV series, Baywatch Hawaii (1999-2001).
On the show, Momoa met future fiancée and actor Simmone Jade Mackinnon, with whom he was engaged in 2004. Momoa became involved with actor Lisa Bonet in 2005 when he called off his engagement with Mackinnon. Momoa and Bonet were in a relationship from 2005 to 2017 when they finally married (after erroneous reports that they had married in 2007). The couple has two children, daughter Lola, and son Nakoa-Wolf. Momoa and Bonet announced their separation in 2022. Momoa’s height is 6’ 4”. Momoa’s estimated net worth is $25 million.
Filmography
actor
Upcoming (1)
- 2025 | A Minecraft MovieasGarett Garrison
A Minecraft Movie
The malevolent Ender Dragon sets out on a path of destruction, prompting a young girl and her group of unlikely adventurers to set out to save the Overworld.
Previous (11)
- 2023 | Aquaman and the Lost KingdomasArthur
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
Black Manta seeks revenge on Aquaman for his father's death. Wielding the Black Trident's power, he becomes a formidable foe. To defend Atlantis, Aquaman forges an alliance with his imprisoned brother. They must protect the kingdom.
- 2023 | Deep RisingasSelf - Narrator
Deep Rising
The fate of the planet's last untouched wilderness, the deep ocean, is under threat as a secretive organization is about to allow massive extraction of seabed metals to address the world's energy crisis.
- 2023 |
- 2022 |
- 2021 | Dune (2021)asDuncan Idaho
Dune (2021)
A noble family becomes embroiled in a war for control over the galaxy's most valuable asset while its heir becomes troubled by visions of a dark future.
- 2021 | Sweet Girl
Sweet Girl
A devastated husband vows to bring justice to the people responsible for his wife's death while protecting the only family he has left, his daughter.
- 2019 | The Lego Movie 2: The Second PartasAquaman
The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part
It's been five years since everything was awesome and the citizens are facing a huge new threat: Lego Duplo invaders from outer space, wrecking everything faster than they can rebuild.
- 2018 |
- 2017 | Justice LeagueasAquaman
Justice League
Fueled by his restored faith in humanity and inspired by Superman's selfless act, Bruce Wayne enlists the help of his new-found ally, Diana Prince, to face an even greater enemy.
- 2017 |
- 2013 | Bullet to the HeadasKeegan
Bullet to the Head
After watching their respective partners die, a New Orleans hitman and a Washington, D.C. detective form an alliance in order to bring down their common enemy.
Some Facts About Jason Momoa
Tattoo You: Famous for his plentiful tattoos, Jason Momoa has explained that his markings are full of symbolism embedded in Polynesian culture.
Activities: Momoa’s activities include Brazilian jiu-jitsu, heavy metal music, and musical instruments including ukulele, guitar, mandolin, and bass guitar, as well as singing.
Shingle: Jason Momoa’s production company is On the Roam.
