Jason Momoa (Game of Thrones) plays the character Arthur Curry in the Warner Bros. movie Aquaman and will reprise his role for Aquaman 2, set to release on December 16 of 2022. In an Instagram video, the actor announced his plans to go blonde for the sequel because apparently, "blondes have more fun." Jason isn't so sure about that though, and neither are some fans. Although the actor had dyed the tips of his hair blonde for the first Aquaman movie, going full blonde seems more like empty fan service rather than a necessity to the character and his story. Jason Momoa has a Native Hawaiian background, and this seems like an odd choice for the actor whose hair and eyebrows are normally a striking dark brown that gives him his signature look.
Although it is not confirmed if the 41-year-old actor will go full blonde, dye the tips again, or have blonde highlights, Momoa said he is excited to begin filming the new movie Aquaman 2. When announcing that he had arrived in London for filming, the actor sounded very energetic except when addressing that it was his last day as a brunette. Jason Momoa was very skeptical when saying how his "new look" was supposedly going to make him more fun suddenly. In the comic books, Arthur Curry is easily recognizable thanks to his blonde mane and strong brow. Although Jason Momoa isn't naturally blonde, it made sense for the actor to play the character thanks to his own luscious locks and brooding, expressive face (not to mention his massive form and muscles).
Although it's always fun to see a character come to life just how viewers imagined they would, sometimes it is nice to subvert expectations. This was the case when Anna Shaffer was announced to play the character Triss in Netflix's The Witcher series. In the very popular video game series, Triss is known for her pale skin, fiery red hair, signature double-bun hairstyle, blue-green eyes, and freckles. And although Anna shares some similarities to the video game character (such as her freckles) she definitely was not who fans were expecting to play the character, so much so that fans didn't even recognize who the Netflix series character was until her name was said. But now after seeing the actor perform, fans agree she perfectly fits the part.
Having a strong character design is important for comic books because of the 2-D art format. Comic books are usually more popular among children and teens, and having eye-catching imagery is necessary to get that age group to pick up the books and read. There's a lot more going on in a movie (or show) to keep people entertained such as fan-favorite actors, music, set designs, visual effects, and exceptional performances. This means that it is not as important for the characters to be as bright and vivid as they are in animated or 2-D form. Of course, fans still want to feel like the characters they know and love from their favorite childhood comics are done properly and represent their comic book worlds.
Many actors in the past—both male and female—have had to dye their hair (or wear a wig) so they could look like the character from another work of fiction. Even Aquaman actor Amber Heard had to wear a wig to change her look for her role as Mera. Kristen Stewart, who plays Bella Swan in the Twilight movie series, normally has blonde hair and blue eyes. However, since the character Bella has brown hair and eyes, Stewart had to dye her hair brown and wear brown contacts for the filming of the franchise. But creators are realizing that actors don't have to change themselves too much to play certain roles because fans at the end of the day will still support the stories, actors, and characters they like no matter what.
Jason Momoa already looks enough like the character Arthur Curry in Aquaman that he shouldn't be forced to dye his hair. Although some could say it is his job to become other people as an actor, it still feels a little unnecessary and in bad taste especially since the actor wasn't blonde for the first movie and it did just fine—drawing enough crowd appeal to earn over $1 billion. If Momoa wants to have a little fun and be blonde for a little while, more power to him. His fans will still show up at the theaters no matter what. But because of his apparent hesitation to go (what sounds like) full blonde, it can be assumed that the actor was not involved in the decision to change his look.
Some fans of the comic book character could even say that Jason Momoa's brunette locks might even be an improvement to the overall aesthetic of the character. But ultimately the color of Aquaman's hair is irrelevant.