The first thing Jason Momoa did before letting his mother watch Frontier, the new Netflix drama in which he plays a part Native American trader battling for control of the fur industry in 18th-century North America, was to prep her for the series opener. That’s when his character, Declan Harp, castrates British soldiers before skinning them alive.
“It was like ‘Mom, just stick with it,’” he said. “I’m not normally that bad.”
There’s little doubt that Momoa has delivered this speech before. In his 16-year career, this towering actor has portrayed an array of menacing brutes and killers including, most notably, Khal Drogo, a bloodthirsty warrior leader on HBO’s Game of Thrones. Drogo eventually revealed a softer side, but he still ripped out a man’s tongue for talking back to his wife, Daenerys Targaryen.
In real life, the impishly funny Momoa, 37, is married to actress Lisa Bonet and maintains an Instagram feed where you can find him doing outdoor activities — rock climbing, archery — with their two young children. Recently, he showed up at an interview in jeans, with a curved hunting knife strapped to his belt and the remnants of blond highlights from his turn as Aquaman in the movie Justice League, due this fall.
“I’m going to have to dye it again soon,” said Momoa, who will start shooting his own superhero spin-off this spring. “But I’m not a big fan of haircuts either.”
These are edited excerpts from the conversation.
What does the domesticated Jason Momoa look like?
I live up in Topanga [California] on 5 acres. I go hiking a lot. I’ve got kids, goats. My wife always wanted a donkey, so I bought her one. We walk our donkey, and we’ve got two [dogs] who are half malamute, half wolf.
Why did you invite the Frontier creators home?
I wanted them to see how I love that time period. In my man cave, I have tomahawks, throwing knives and old black-bear furs. There’s skulls, weapons everywhere. I feel like if Tom Waits walked into my man cave, he’d go, [rumbling imitation of Waits] “I could write an album in here.”
For your Game of Thrones audition, you performed a Maori war dance. What prompted that?
On Game of Thrones, [Drogo] doesn’t say much. So how do you convey him? There’s nothing in the script. So I said: “I have this idea. Is it OK to do [a dance] before the audition?” And they were like, “Oh, sure.” Then I did the Haka. It was challenging to do the audition afterward — I couldn’t stop my heart from beating. The first time I did it, they were very scared. But then they wanted me to come back in so they could put it on tape.
What’s the trick to playing a nomadic horse-lord?
You have to walk around like you’re a king. I’m not the king in my own house. I have to wash the dishes and take out the trash and say “Yes, baby.” I’m 6-foot-5, but I kind of walk around hunched over. I’m not like, “Hey, check me out.” But Drogo had to have that posture.
Most of your work is too violent for your kids to see.
That’s the tough part. That’s why I’m really excited about Justice League. This summer, [my children] came out on my birthday and they put on the Batman cowl and Lola got to put on a Wonder Woman tiara. Me and my son got pictures on the Batmobile. I’m a big kid. It’s pretty cool that Pops could make that happen.
What speaks to you about playing Aquaman?
Aquaman’s mom’s from Atlantis, and his dad’s from Earth. It’s something that I [relate to] growing up [half Hawaiian] in Iowa, raised by [a single mother]. Iowa is an amazing place. But I didn’t have much race around me. I was definitely not like everyone there. I think it’s really cool that he was raised by his mother and isn’t really accepted in either world. There’s a lot of people who can identify with that. A lot of people love [Aquaman], and a lot make fun of him. But let’s see if they’re still laughing when I’m done with it.
When fans approach, do they have odd requests?
They like it if I grab them by the throats or pretend I’m going to punch them in the face or act like they’re choking me out. But you know what? I’m appreciative. We do our job, we leave, then a year and a half [later], people watch it and they may like it or they may not. But if they do, and they say, “You did a great job.” It’s like, “Thank you very much, and if you want me to choke you and your girlfriend out at the same time, and smile, sure.” (Laughs.)
Don’t miss it
Frontier is now showing streaming on Netflix
