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Film

Jason Momoa: "I can't wait to sit in the Batmobile!"

Game of Thrones barbarian Jason Momoa reveals a different side in directorial debut Road to Paloma, and talks about playing Aquaman


People who know you from Game of Thrones and as Conan the Barbarian, might be surprised that you’ve written and directed your first film Road to Paloma.


A lot of people don’t know who I am, and that’s fine. I grew up in a very small town in Iowa. Not a lot of race, no one gives a shit about your looks, nor did I. I grew up with a single mother watching Gone With the Wind and Barbara Streisand movies, not Conan and people getting their heads lopped off. After being in Game of Thrones, I was tired of waiting by the phone and getting roles I didn’t want. So that’s why we went out and did Road to Paloma.

The film is based around a loophole in the justice system, where non-Native Americans committing crimes like rape on reservations often escape prosecution.


If they’re not from tribal land they can’t be prosecuted by tribal law. It has to go to federal court so a lot of cases are thrown out. Over 80 per cent of reported rapes are by non-natives. That’s fucking scary. If someone hurt my wife or my daughter or my mother and the law didn’t take care of it, what would I do? I know what I would do, for me that person is not going to be around.

And so your character in the film Robert Wolf takes justice into his own hands.


As an actor you think that would be something amazing to play, and I wanted to play something different, not do a chase movie or a revenge movie. I wanted to make something deeper and soulful. It’s about a guy saying goodbye to his life.

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Were you tired of playing straight action roles?

It’s not that I’m tired of action roles, they’re fun. Playing Conan was an honour and Game of Thrones was an exceptional role. Those are two major amazing things but you find yourself going, this isn’t me. I wanted to stretch. So we wrote this. It’s a meaty, juicy, contemporary piece. There are no dragons and no swords. I do have a knife, but it’s nice wearing clothes and saying dialogue. And now it’s really cool I get to be a superhero.

Yes, you will be Aquaman in the new Batman v Superman film and subsequent Justice League franchise. I guess you’re a pretty good swimmer…


I’m Hawaiian man, I can swim.

Your first acting role was as another kind of lifeguard on the short-lived spinoff show Baywatch Hawaii.


Ain’t that a coinkydinc.

Baywatch aside perhaps, there has never been a truly exciting underwater action scene in cinema history. Are you going to change that?


Well, I’d like to think so buddy. My kids don’t get to watch many things I do so that’s going to be a bonus. You’re really peaking out there – Batman and Superman onscreen together for the first time in history. That’s pretty rad.

Your kids are aged six and seven. Are you now the coolest dad in the world?


They love Batman. Someday they’re going to be able to sit in the Batmobile. I’m a big geek, I can’t wait to sit in the fucking Batmobile!

Road to Paloma is out now on DVD and Blu-ray

 

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