Jason Momoa’s Mom Raised Him All Alone After His Parents Separated | “God Bless All the Single Mothers”

Momoa shared that a connection with his 'Aquaman' character also came from being raised by a single mom.

Cover Image Source: Getty Images | Gustavo Caballero

By Suchitra B

March 3, 2023

Posted March 3, 2023

Jason Momoa adores his mother, Coni. In Norwalk, Iowa, where he was raised alone by his "strong, single mother," the Aquaman actor has experienced several tender moments with her. From taking her to different red carpets, posting photographs of them together, or sending her the cutest birthday notes on Instagram, it's clear the actor respects his mother. In his short film, Canvas of My Life, he gave a particular shout-out to his mother, a photographer and an artist, attributing his love of all things art and adventure to her.

"I was raised by a strong, single mother. My mom is an artist in every way. She's a painter and photographer. She's a wanderer, always searching, always seeing. I guess you could say my mom gave me her eyes. My mom introduced me to skateboarding and rock climbing. And I absolutely love her for that," the Game of Thrones actor shared in the film.

Momoa had a very difficult childhood. Momoa's unusual upbringing helps explain a lot of his erratic combination of charm and paradoxes. He was born on the Hawaiian island of Oahu, where his Hawaiian father still resides, and was raised by a single mother in a rural area of Iowa, per Instyle. His parents divorced when Jason was six months old, per Britannica.

"I'm definitely a product of two very opposite worlds," he said. The Baywatch actor was the only child of mixed race at his Iowa primary school, making him a target for bullies. Later, when he became interested in skateboarding and art, the local jocks didn't like it either. "I got beat up a lot," he said. "Just for being slightly different—it was gnarly. I mean, I wore Birkenstocks in middle school, and it was like, 'You are a freak!'," he recollected.

Momoa revealed in 2020 that he is working to resolve in therapy the impact of growing up without a father at home on his relationship with his then 12-year-old son, Wolf. "I didn't know what it takes to be a dad," he said. "And I don't want to just tell my son, 'Because I said so.' I really want to connect, and I want him to be vulnerable and open," he added.

But he's very grateful for his mother and loves the fact that he was raised by women. Coni, and his maternal grandmother, have had a significant impact on him. In an Instagram post, he proudly shared, "Raised by women." In another post, he shared, "Strong Aries woman. Raised a crazy little Leo Lots a fire in this woman God bless all the single mothers. You are truly superheroes," a shoutout to single moms everywhere.

It also helps him professionally. He shared that a connection with his Aquaman character also came from being raised by a single mom. "The thing that helped me relate to Aquaman was being raised by a single parent, which I think a lot of kids are now. I just had me and my mother my whole life, so I could relate to Arthur being that close with his father and then running far away and then coming back to his roots," he shared with Sunday Times.