Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom: Jason Momoa Reveals Hero Was Inspired By Surprising Rocker

Jason Momoa made his first appearance as Aquaman in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice before having a much bigger role in Justice League and eventually starring in his own standalone movie, Aquaman. In December, Momoa returned in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, which is expected to be the final movie of the DCEU. While the sequel was met with poor reviews from critics, the movie did end up being Warner Bros.’s most successful DC film of 2023. Momoa isn’t expected to play the character again, and now he’s spilling some interesting behind-the-scenes details. It’s no secret Momoa’s version of the DC hero is different from previous iterations, and it turns out, the actor was inspired by Guns N’ Roses’ Slash.

“I built Aquaman a little bit off of Slash. Look at the first Justice League,” Momoa recently shared on Jimmy Kimmel Live. “I’m like, ‘That’s Slash.’ I mean, how do you dress up like you’re playing Aquaman? You’re not going to put him in a polo and some khakis. He was just rocking. The way that Zack [Snyder] designed him, wanted him to be was that he was rock ‘n’ roll. He punched Superman in the face and kissed Wonder Woman. He didn’t care.” 

“Slash was so important in my life,” Momoa added. “I have to interview him for the first time and I’ve never done an interview,” Momoa said, referring to his new Max travelogue series On the Roam. “Hats off, because I was so nervous. And I’m also geeking out!… I can’t talk right and I’m so nervous.”

Will Jason Moma Return To DC?

James Gunn and Peter Safran were tapped to be the co-chairs and co-CEOs of DC Studios in 2021, and Gunn’s first big project is Superman: Legacy. The movie is expected to mark the beginning of the DCU, and while Gunn has said some actors from the DECU will return to play their characters, it is unlikely fans will see the Aquaman cast again. Momoa recently said this will probably be the last time he appears in the franchise. However, there have been rumors that he could be taking on a different role in the rebooted universe. Safran recently spoke to The Independent about Momoa’s future at the company.

“What I hope is that people will really be here to support him on this journey. If it’s the end of the journey, fine. If it goes on, that’s also fine, but I think it has meant so much to him. The way [director] James [Wan] crafted this second film, it feels like a very complete story when you watch the two films together,” Safran shared. “We’ll see what happens with him beyond it. I know that Jason will always have a home at DC, and at Warner Bros. In fact, his next movie is Minecraft.”

You can own Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K UHD on March 12th.