It’s hard to say that Aquaman was a universally beloved movie — but hey, Jason Momoa was really, really hot in it, and that alone is worth making a sequel. But even though Warner Bros. already green lit a sequel, it turns out there’s a compelling reason why Momoa won’t film Aquaman 2. The Hawaii native has been camped out by Mauna Kea in recent weeks, a sacred site to Indigenous Hawaiians that’s under threat of being bulldozed to construct a giant telescope in its place. Momoa has made it clear that he’s committed to stopping the construction in its tracks, and if that means he’s not available for Aquaman 2, so be it.
Momoa has been documenting his time at Mauna Kea on Instagram, posting photos of fellow protestors, information about what’s going on, and an example of what exactly telescope construction looks like. The proposed construction project is for a Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT), a project in which $1.4 billion has been invested. Momoa is far from alone in his pursuit to stop this from happening, and many protestors have been arrested already despite their entirely peaceful presence.
On a photo showing the 1992 construction of the Subaru Telescope, Momoa writes this caption: “FUCK THIS. And TMT is 4x bigger. Sorry Warner Bros we can’t shoot Aquaman 2. Because Jason got run over by a bulldozer trying to stop the desecration of his native land THIS iS NOT HAPPENING. WE ARE NOT LETTING YOU DO THIS ANYMORE. Enough is enough. Go somewhere else. Repost. This is what telescope construction looks like […] The TMT will be four times larger on unscathed land. We must protect our [sacred] mountain from further desecration. #KuKiaiMauna #WeAreMaunaKea#TMTShutdown.”
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Warner Bros. has not yet responded to Momoa’s comment, which seems half serious and half intended to convey just how dedicated he is to this mission. Clearly, Momoa doesn’t intend to leave Mauna Kea until its future is secured, and he’s becoming an expert in mobilizing his followers to demand change. If people don’t care enough about a sacred site being destroyed, maybe they’ll care now that Aquaman 2 is in jeopardy. But if you really need even more incentive than that, we hear The Rock is down there protesting too.
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