Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, Jason Momoa has always been proud of his native culture and heritage. His appreciation for his culture also reflects in his work in Hollywood and some of his most popular characters. He never hesitates from discussing it, however, over the past few months, his approach toward his culture has seemed to have offended native Hawaiians.

Jason Momoa

They find his actions as more of an attention-seeking technique instead of appreciation toward his culture, leading the American actor to receive immense backlash from native Hawaiians.

Read More: Before He Was Kicked Out of $8.4B Franchise, Dwayne Johnson Promised To Do a Movie With Jason Momoa But Never Delivered: “He’s just way busier than I am”

Jason Momoa Representing His Culture And Heritage

Back in October 2022, Jason Momoa shared glimpses of his fishing trip with his fans on Instagram. A clip from the post featured the 43-year-old actor in a malo, a clothing piece of Native Hawaiian culture. While some native Hawaiians were grateful to see the actor posing in his traditional clothing, others had different feelings about it.

Jason Momoa fishing wearing a malo

Many seemed to be thirsting over the See star in the post’s comments. Seeing the nature of most comments on Momoa wearing malo, native Hawaiians started calling out the s*xualization of the actor for his appreciation toward his native culture.

However, the Hawaiians were not supportive of the Game of Thrones star when he took things too far during his appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! When Jimmy Kimmel asked Jason Momoa about fishing in a malo, he said that he has been wearing it regularly in order to prepare for his role in the upcoming TV show Chief of War. 

Read More: ‘Does he know about Batman and Superman?’: Jason Momoa Trolled for Claiming “There’s no one bigger than Aquaman!”

Jason Momoa Receives Backlash From Native Hawaiians

Things went too far when the Aquaman star was asked about fishing in a malo on Jimmy Kimmel Live! After sharing the inspiration behind using malo in his daily life, Momoa stood up, removed all of his clothes to reveal the malo, and circled around to give the audience a good look before jiggling his butt toward the host of the talk show.

Jason Momoa on Jimmy Kimmel Live!

While people defended him after he was s*xualized for wearing a malo, they did not feel the same about what he did on the talk show. However, Momoa was not done yet. He continued posting snaps and clips wearing a malo on his Instagram.

One of the clips includes him promoting a t-shirt from his clothing and gear line called On the Roam. The Slumberland star walks off, dancing in malo and a t-shirt after sharing details about the new shirts for sale.

uhhh idk but my partner is Hawaiian & has said he hates having to wear tradish clothes like malo in front of non Hawaiians bc the commodification of Hawaiian culture 😐 not that jason momoa can’t just be sexy in whatever he’s wearing.

— anna (@annaaaae) October 26, 2022

Literally went balls to the wall defending and trying to redirect the horrible online attention he was receiving. Now look. This is so embarrassing for him and it shits on every Hawaiian who tried to stand up for our culture a few weeks ago.

— anuhea (@AnuheaNihipali) November 10, 2022

While some find his actions appreciative of his culture and funny, others criticize him for being a “wannabe” by using and s*xualizing the Hawaiian culture. People took offense at his actions and accused him of using his culture for his own profit and encouraging people to s*xualize traditional Hawaiian clothing. Many even claimed that he does not deserve to portray the character in his upcoming TV series, Chief of War.

Read More: Jason Momoa Reportedly No Longer Interested To Be Aquaman – Amber Heard Controversy Reason Why He’s Forcing James Gunn To Re-cast Him as Lobo in DCU?

Source: Buzzfeed