Before he became DC's Aquaman, Jason Momoa was best known as Khal Drogo in "Game of Thrones." While he only appeared in a couple of episodes in the first season, he became one of the most popular and unforgettable characters in the HBO hit. However, that popularity did not necessarily play to his favor.
In an interview in "Tonight's Show with Jimmy Fallon," Momoa shared how he had a hard time booking jobs after his "Thrones" stint due to his convincing portrayal of the character. It is not that Hollywood producers were afraid of him; they actually thought he could not speak English.
"Yeah, not a lot of people thought I spoke English," he told Fallon. "It was very challenging. It was like, 'What are you going to do with Drogo? You're not going to put him in a comedy.' You're pigeonholed a little bit."
The actor, who originally hails from Hawaii, first realized how others perceived him through fellow actor Fred Armisen. The 51-year-old "Portlandia" star did not hold back on what he thought of him when they first met. As Momoa recalled, "He was like, 'I didn't even know you spoke English' and it was heartbreaking. I was like, that's why I'm not getting any jobs."
However, he revealed it was also his involvement in the hit HBO series that got him cast as Arthur Curry/Aquaman in a franchise-launching role in "Justice League." It turns out he made enough of an impression to director Zack Snyder who is also a fan of "Game of Thrones."
"Zack was the one -- I couldn't get a job -- and Zack called me in and was this huge fan, he wanted to take Aquaman who, it was funny because I had no idea who I was gonna be playing," Momoa shared. Auditioning for Batman, the actor initially thought he was going to play a villain as Ben Affleck has already been cast in the titular role. That was until Snyder broke it to him that he is up for another superhero role: "He was like 'Wait, no. Aquaman!' I was like, 'Blonde? Shaven?' But yeah, thank you Game of Thrones."
Thanks indeed to Thrones, Momoa has landed a major part of the DCEU. His performance as the sea-dwelling Arthur Curry is one of the highlights of "Justice League," and he is getting a solo superhero movie with James Wan's "Aquaman" late this year.
Also starring Amber Heard, William Defoe, Patrick Wilson, and Nicole Kidman, the movie premieres on Dec. 21.
