It’s hard to imagine Jason Momoa down on his luck. The leading man is built like a classical statue, the star of a comic book movie franchise and one half of the most beautiful couple on the planet. But according to a recent interview with InStyle, Momoa went through an incredibly rough patch just a few short years ago.
To hear Momoa tell it, his big break starring as Khal Drogo on Game of Thrones wasn’t much of a break at all. (Spoilers: Do not read if you haven’t seen the series and plan to.) After his character was killed in the very first season, the show went on to be a worldwide sensation without him. Meanwhile, Momoa was struggling to take care of kids and pay a mortgage.
“I mean, we were starving after Game of Thrones,” he told InStyle. “I couldn’t get work. It’s very challenging when you have babies and you’re completely in debt.”
Momoa muddled through. He was no stranger to dry spells. His first role was on a Baywatch series and he found that the role wasn’t exactly a great one for his CV. He said he couldn’t even land an agent for years after that series ended.
His fortunes turned around permanently when he got the role of Aquaman, which turned into lucrative (and ongoing) work in the DC Universe for him. Since then he’s also landed roles on major blockbusters like Dune and the Apple TV+ series See. Momoa said he still can’t believe his luck.
“It was ‘Josh Brolin, Jason Momoa, Javier Bardem,’ and I’m just like, ‘Oh my god. I can’t believe my name was with those names,” he said of working on Dune. “I feel like I’m still a kid, freaking out.”
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