“I’ve done so many things where I don’t say much”: Jason Momoa Reveals Why He Had to Turn Down James Gunn Despite Taking Aquaman Years Later
Who doesn’t want to work with one of the biggest superhero franchises in the world? It might be a dream come true for any actor to be associated with billion-dollar franchises like Marvel and DCU. However, over the years, many high-profile A-listers have turned down the offers proposed to them by the superhero franchise. Jason Momoa also comes under the same category.
The Fast X star had turned down the offer of playing the role of Drax the Destroyer in James Gunn’s directed first Marvel movie, Guardians Of The Galaxy. According to the 43-year-old actor, he did not want to be pigeonholed as someone for playing similar characters as previously he had portrayed roles like Khal Drogo in Game of Thrones, and Ronon in Stargate: Atlantis.
Why did Jason Momoa Turn Down Guardians Of The Galaxy?
The face of the Aquaman franchise was offered one of the most successful movies directed by DCU head James Gunn. He is a prominent name in the DC universe, but he could have been a Marvel guy too. He was offered to play the role of Drax, the Destroyer in James Gunn’s Guardians Of The Galaxy. During an interview with Zap2it, Jason Momoa confessed to turning down James Gunn’s offer for his much-hyped intergalactic project. He chose to back out from auditioning for the character of Drax the Destroyer because he had already portrayed similar types of roles in the past.
He was apprehensive about being pigeonholed as a brute. For the Game Of Thrones actor, the casting of Dave Bautista was totally perfect and he couldn’t have done justice to the role the way the Dune actor has done. He mentioned-
“I think it’s perfectly cast. Dave [Bautista] is perfect for that role, for Drax. It didn’t really fit in my time because I’ve done so many things where I don’t say much and I’m colored up and I have my shirt off again. I made a conscious choice to turn down some movies that were action-based to direct ‘Road to Paloma’ so people could see that side.”
While talking about turning down the role of Drax, the actor added that there was a more personal reason why he chose not to pursue the opportunity. He further added-“I want my children to see their father happy. It’s not that it’s not a good role, it just wasn’t the right thing. I was on Stargate: Atlantis for four years playing a similar character called Ronon, who was an alien who didn’t say much and grunted. I’ve been there and done that, whether people have seen it or not. You want to stretch.”
James Wan Tries To Save Jason Momoa’s Aquaman 2 After The Flash’s Disaster
After Ezra Miller’s The Flash bombed at the box office, Aquaman director James Wan is promoting his upcoming movie months before its release. Director James Wan is trying to prevent the same thing from happening to the most awaited Jason Momoa and Amber Heard starer Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom. During an interview with the media outlet Comic Book, he spoke about how Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom stands out in the crowd of previously released DCU movies. James Wan mentioned-
“You know, people love Jason Momoa; people love him playing this role; and people love the action visuals of this space and this world. And that’s what we’re doing: we’re taking it to the next level and we are still expanding. This is the next level and I’m very excited to finally put out there to show them what we’ve been working on all these years.”
As DCEU is currently headed by James Gunn and Peter Safran and the duo is looking forward to reinventing and revamping the entire billion-dollar superhero franchise. With changes taking place every day, director James Wan even pointed out that the Aquaman franchise would be unaffected by the alterations taking place under the roof. There would be no direct or indirect effect on the Jason Momoa-led Aquaman series. During an interview with the reputed media house The Hollywood Reporter, James Wan revealed-
“I’ve had to make adjustments all along the way. The DCU has been through lots of different versions, and one of the things that was challenging about this film was keeping track of what’s going on. Fortunately, the Aquaman universe is pretty far removed from the rest of the world. We’re going to many different underwater kingdoms that are not necessarily related to what’s happening with the other movies and characters, so we’re standalone in that respect. So I can just tell my story on its own without being affected too much, but at the same time, I have to be mindful of what’s been happening.”
Jason Momoa is a fan of the DCU head James Gunn and feels that with the current changes taking place at the DCU, there is a possibility that he might end up playing a couple of different roles too. The Baywatch actor feels he can be charming, savage, and funny for different characters
Source: Screen Crush
