Jason Momoa is known as Aquaman, but he almost played a role in one of the best Marvel film series – but he declined.
Who is it about?
- Jason Momoa is a 43-year-old American actor born in Honolulu, Hawaii.
- Momoa is primarily known for his role as Aquaman in the titular superhero film as well as in Justice League.
- In addition to Aquaman, Momoa portrayed Khal Drogo in Game of Thrones, Declan Harp in the series Frontier, and Ronon in Stargate Atlantis. He also played Duncan Idaho in Dune (2021) and takes on the role of antagonist Dante Reyes in Fast and Furious X.
Which role did he decline? In an interview with FandomWire, Jason Momoa explained that he turned down the role of Drax the Destroyer in the popular film series “Guardians of the Galaxy.”
The director James Gunn had Momoa, Isaiah Mustafa, Patrick Wade, and Dave Bautista, who ultimately got the role, on a shortlist, but the Aquaman actor ended up declining it.
Why did he decline the role? Momoa told FandomWire that he declined the role of Drax because he did not want to play the “shirtless guy” again who doesn’t say much and has a painted body.
He subsequently referred to his role as Ronon in Stargate Atlantis. He was not happy with the character he had played for years and did not want to experience that again.
How successful is Guardians of the Galaxy? Guardians of the Galaxy became one of the best and most successful Marvel film series.
The third installment, released in May 2023, was able to reach a box office total of 500 million US dollars just on the second weekend after its release, surpassing earnings of “Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania” (via Filmstarts).
The first part of Guardians of the Galaxy achieved a strong seventh place among all Marvel films on Rotten Tomatoes with a rating of 91%.
The third part of the series still ranks above movies like Thor (2011), Captain Marvel, and Captain America: The First Avenger at place 19 and shows a new trend despite the box office success: Video games are replacing Marvel as the eternal star on the big screen.
