Jason Momoa claims his son auditioned and got a role on Dune ‘All on His Own’

Hollywood actor Jason Momoa has always been protective of his children’s futures. The ‘Aquaman’ star recently opened up about his son’s independent journey into acting, including landing a role in the highly anticipated ‘Dune’ franchise.

During an appearance on Theo Von’s podcast, Momoa discussed how his son Nakoa-Wolf auditioned for and secured a part in the upcoming “Dune” film entirely on his own merit. “He’s going to be in Dune with me,” Momoa revealed. “He’s Leto Jr. So, he auditioned on his own and got it, and he killed it.”

The actor emphasized that his children grew up immersed in the film industry, giving them unique exposure to the entertainment world. “Those guys grew up watching me,” Momoa explained. “He was sitting on Affleck’s lap and she’s sitting with Gal” during the filming of ‘Justice League’ when his kids were around six and eight years old.

Momoa shared that his son’s passion for the genre runs deep. “The kid loves all that and loves Dune,” he said, noting that Nakoa-Wolf spent years dressed as Batman. “He was in a Batman outfit for at least five years.”

While his son pursues acting, Momoa’s daughter Lola is following a different creative path. “Lola’s a singer, so she wants to continue in music,” he said. “And then Wolf wants to do acting.”

Despite supporting their ambitions, Momoa admitted he has reservations about his children entering such a demanding field. “It’s just such a gnarly business,” he confessed. “I’m like, go be a doctor. Use your brain.”

The concerns are understandable given Momoa’s own journey in Hollywood. He spoke candidly about the difficulties he faced early in his career, starting with ‘Baywatch Hawaii’ at 19 and spending years working to establish himself beyond typecasting. “I spent the next 30 years digging myself out of that hole,” he joked about his ‘Baywatch’ beginnings.

Reflecting on returning to Hawaii to film projects for his own production company, Momoa expressed how meaningful it was to work with the same crew members who knew him as a teenager. “All the people I was when I was 19, I hired on Baywatch, makeup artists to craft services to drivers. They knew me when I was 19. I’m coming back at 45 at the time, 44, and coming back and making something about our people.”

Momoa’s insistence that his son earned the role entirely on his own has been met with skepticism. Regardless of talent or effort, carrying the Momoa surname and growing up surrounded by directors, actors, casting agents, and major franchises, inevitably alters the playing field.

Access itself is a privilege, from simply getting in the room to being taken seriously during auditions, and no amount of emphasis on “doing it on his own” can fully erase that reality. For many critics, the frustration isn’t with Nakoa-Wolf choosing to pursue acting, but with Hollywood’s long-standing reluctance to openly acknowledge how deeply inherited access shapes opportunity.