Jason Momoa’s next project, Apple TV+‘sChief of War, focuses on the history of 18th-century Hawaiian kingdoms as they fight for, or against, the unification of Hawai’i. Momoa stars in the series as Ka’iana, warrior and prince of Puna, as well as serving as co-creator and director.
As a native Hawaiian, born in Honolulu,Jason Momoa’s dedication to the roleand its story was of major importance to him throughout filming. During a conversation withScreenRant’s Joe Deckelmeier at the red carpet premiere ofChief of War, Momoa revealed hispersonal reason for getting the show right: “I want to make my family proud.“Read the full quote below:
It’s massive. We don’t get this right, we don’t get to come home. I want to make my family proud. My whole family’s here. My father. I was raised right there.
I always wanted to see something like this. I’m doing this for young Jason. I wanted to see us up on the big screen, I wanted to see us telling those stories. Those were paintings and museums, that’s all we had were images.
And then our language is up there to inspire the next generation. I just wanted to ripple out. We were inspired by the Modi. We’ve done a great job down in Aotearoa telling stories that were dear to them, and we need that here.
Cultural Pride & Heritage Made This Important To Momoa
Producing A Show That Was True To His Roots Was Meaningful
In his comments, Momoa gave his deepest insight into the show’s meaning and what he wants to represent. It’s not about the technical aspects; it’s about the Samoan culture and the heritage. It isn’t just about a show;it’s about Hawaii, his family, and their stories.
Momoa emphasizes the importance of an accurate representation of Hawaii for the children who are growing up and looking at him on the screen. In addition to this, and more importantly,he wants to ensure he makes his family proud of this portrayal, something that’s putting an enormous amount of pressure on him to stick the landing. Depending on how the series is received, it could open the door to other similar stories.
Having a focus on traditional culture is clearly important to Momoa. Given how his profile as a leading actor is continuing to rise, he is taking that opportunity to have more in the overall culture than “paintings and museums.” The passion for the project is obvious, which will hopefully be translated on screen.
Our Take On Momoa’s Comments About Chief Of War
It’s A Heavy Task, But Momoa Is Confident In The Show
Having the ability to craft a correct narrative, specifically in a media landscape that can sometimes be dominated by inaccuracies or inflation of specific stories, is an important one.Momoa is taking this opportunity to amplify his heritage on his newest creative endeavorin a way that few programs have done before.
It’s an exciting story that’s the first of its kind for Hawaiian history, and Momoa clearly has a lot riding on making sure his ancestors’ stories are represented correctly. With a rich and compelling story that dives deep into the colonization and unification of Hawaii, and the struggles that come along with it, Momoa and the rest of the writing team have a great opportunity to setChief of Waras the standard-bearer for Hawaiian historical stories.
Chief of War
Cast
Chief of War (2025) follows the journey of the fierce warrior Kaʻiana, who sets out on a mission to unite Hawaii’s four divided kingdoms amidst warfare. As internal conflicts rage, an impending external threat looms, challenging Kaʻiana’s efforts to bring peace to his people.
