Looks like that Conan remake will be headed up by Baywatch hunk Jason Momoa, and word has it Mickey Rourke might be playing his dad!
30-year-old Jason Momoa (“Baywatch Hawaii,” “Stargate: Atlantis”) has officially been picked to play the titular role in “Conan” for Lionsgate and Millenium Films says Deadline Hollywood.
Momoa is confirmed, but Rourke has just been in talks for the role. I could see Rourke playing the part of a seasoned beat up leathering warrior type that would be an intimidating old man in this, but I doubt he will have a big part.
Conan himself will obviously be the core of this film, and until I see Momoa in the loincloth made from the skin of a bear he killed with his bare hands, I will reserve judgment on whether he will make a better Conan than Arnie.
But if you think about it, Arnold was picked for physical ability and appearance and not his reputation as a thespian, so even this third stringer has a leg up on him there.
Time will tell.
I can not wait to see jason again! I think he will be perfect for conan! He’s definitly got my vote! Good luck jason!
Some of you need to read the works of Howard. You have no idea what Conan is supposed to look like. THIS IS NOT IT! Conan is a white dude with black hair, tanned skin from living under the open sky and muscular as hell. Conan is not Hawaiian, he’s a tan skinned cracker. Proof that Conan is a big mofo…
“… a tall man, mightily shouldered and deep of chest, with a massive corded neck and heavily muscled limbs. He was clad in silk and velvet, with the royal lions of Aquilonia worked in gold upon his rich jupon, and the crown of Aquilonia shone on his square-cut black mane; but the great sword at his side seemed more natural to him than the regal accoutrements. His brow was low and broad, his eyes a volcanic blue that smoldered as if with some inner fire. His dark, scarred, almost sinister face was that of a fighting-man, and his velvet garments could not conceal the hard, dangerous lines of his limbs.”
We need a huge dark haired Germanic/celtic mofo to play Conan, sorry it’s not racist, just fact. Shaft isn’t White and Conan isn’t Hawaiian, nuff said
Is anyone gonna really care that Jason Mamoa is Hawaiian? Jason is a big dude already, maybe not Arnold big but if he adds ten pounds of lean muscle and gets ripped he will fill the part easily.
Everyone acts like Arnold was the perfect Conan, yea he was so great they practically narrated the entire film to keep his speaking parts to a bare minimum. Dont get me wrong, I loved the first Conan film. The other two I try and block from my memory wishing they never happened.
So if the world can accept a Conan with a terrible Austrian accent, why cant they accept an Hawaiian born Conan?
I completely agree with Anti-Septic.
Aside from the fact that Conan isn’t any heritage because Conan isn’t from earth.
In fact one of the earliest images of Conan was actually done based on this desicription “”Hither came Conan, the Cimmerian, black-haired, sullen-eyed, sword in hand, a thief, a reaver, a slayer, with gigantic melancholies and gigantic mirth, to tread the jeweled thrones of the Earth under his sandalled feet.”
— Robert E. Howard, The Phoenix on the Sword, 1932.” which has nothing to say about skin colour aside from the tanned condition he naturally would have had.
And all that aside, Mark Schultz classic illustration actually looks pretty darned Hawaiian to me.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Conan9.png
Can he act?
I guess all his dialouge consist’s of: My God can beat your God! UUUURRGGGHHHHH!
seriously, I totally forgot or dozed off about the news coming out about this flick.
love the comics and can’t wait.
is it an “R”? I hope so!
His character on Atlantis was a “tough guy” role and he played it awesome. Plus he is hot and I think that will help draw in the female audience. I know I’m excited!
He was awesome on SG:A And, you’re right, he is hot, which will draw gay men to the theater, too. I’ll be excited with you, Kriston!
Sweet maybe they will have him wear guyliner and wear really small jeans.
I think I saw this version of Conan before when it was called 10000BC =) No I hope its good, I just dont see this guy as a good choice. I hope I am wrong.
Listen, I’m not into guyliner or really small jeans. They’re usually sported by snotty lemmings aged sixteen to twenty-four. And no, I’m not proposing you’re one.
Anyway, I think we can both agree that 10,000 BC did suck. However, I will say the guy who played him was sure pretty to look at. I also agree with you, I hope your wrong, too. I hope he’s a good fit, bring something new and fresh to the role. I think it’s great that they gave a TV actor from SyFy Channel a chance to play in a movie. I think he needs to beef up for the role, for sure, but he certainly is tall enough. Let’s hope that when we both see it, Kriston and I aren’t the only viewers to have eye candy. Here’s hoping they pick some buxom beauty for you to ogle at. I’ll pray it’s not Meghan Fox just for you!
Wait… is Jason Momoa hosting the Tonight Show now??
I’m more worried about Marcus Nipsel the director, but that’s another discussion.
First, let’s get this out of the way: A good chunk of folks thinks Schwarzenegger type Conan, is “the ideal Conan” that’s understandable. But it wasn’t even the essence of the character created by Robert E Howard. Is it embedded in our minds as Schwartzengger played him? Yes. But that’s the same as The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The origins of those comics characters were from a satirical yet violent graphic novel meant for mature readers. It got morphed into a kid’s cartoon and it is The Point Of No Return.
What if the idea is to go back to the essence of the Robert E. Howard character, unlike the Schwarzenegger films which were okay but nothing like Howard’s pulp character? By that criteria, this is perfectly cast with someone like Momoa.
Not to mention the fact that there’s nothing to say that he can’t bulk up and alter an appearance.
The casting is perfect.
Again- I’m more worried about Nispel.
I agree 100% with everything you have said.
He looks like one of the turds in twilight that walked around with no shirt. Marcus Nispel sucks too. I gotta say that Mickey Rourke seems to be my only saving grace in sparking interest to see this.
As an Atlantis fan, I have to say awesome!!!
You know, he is a pretty dang big guy, I can see this.
I can see it too, esp. if the intent is to go back to the roots of the character. Conan was a big guy in Howard’s novels- but Conan was also more agile and less clumsy.
I’m also an SG Atlantis fan, although I stopped watching out of protest when they sidelined Torri Higginson and replaced her for a bit with Amanda Tapping.
Yea, I like this selection also. No offense to Arnold but I always felt he was too big for the Conan role. At least when I think of Conan I am thinking of the more agile Conan with cat like quickness the comics talk about.
I also was a dedicated Atlantis fan and the biggest upside to Mamoa is he has already done weapons work on Atlantis so he wont look clumsy with the sword and like you say he will be a much more agile Conan.
Two thumbs up for me!
I saw the picture and immediately thought the guy was drooling. HA! Then I realized it was a piece of straw. Oh well! My only hope is that he uses the Arnold voice.
I thought he was drooling too.
Yea I didn’t think it was drool…
glad I’m not the only one! ha-ha
Yeah, yeah, and lots of people lost their minds when Daniel Craig was cast for James Bond, too, but that turned out great. At least give Jason a chance before you get all high and mighty.
Um.. Daniel Craig had a strong physical presence which the new version of Bond they were going for required. Conan is the personification of Physical presense. Hell Daniel Craig would be a better conan that this guy lol. You really dont need a lot of dialog in this movie really. I mean c’mon its conan. The first was was incredible on many levels, I really hope they dont ruin this franchise. Even if the dude packs on 40 pounds of muscle he is still gonna look to prettyboy to play the role imo.
And this version of Conan is more in line with the original pulp novels by creator Robert E Howard- which had only a passing resemblance to the 1981 film.
This is disappionting; he is a skinny pretty boy. Conan was a brute and the epitome of a barbarian warrior. They should have looked at Paul Telfer… At least he has the size.
Acting ability aside, he will struggle to get to the same size as Arnold. He’ll no doubt get his body-fat drilled way down to give an illusion of being close.. but it takes years of dedication.