It was Jason Momoa's first big leading role in a movie but is Conan The Barbarian 2 ever happening? Jason Momoa started his career on Baywatch but it was his role as Ronon Dex on Stargate: Atlantis that first brought him a fanbase. He later won praise as Khal Drogo during the first season of Game Of Thrones. This was swiftly followed by Conan The Barbarian, a new take on Robert E. Howard's classic sword and sorcery creation.
The 1982 Conan The Barbarian was the one that had made Arnold Schwarzenegger a star, and he later returned for Conan The Destroyer, which was undermined by its PG-13 rating. While there had been talk of the actor returning for a third and final entry, his acting career took a long break when he became Governor of California in 2003, leading to efforts to reboot the franchise. Jason Momoa was an excellent choice and the film assembled a great supporting cast, including Stephen Lang (Avatar) and Ron Perlman. That said, despite embracing an R-rating and featuring some impressive action, the film was largely considered disappointing.
The movie also failed to recoup its budget, so what are the odds of Jason Momoa returning for Conan The Barbarian 2?
Jason Momoa Developed A Conan The Barbarian 2 Script
While on promotional duties for the original film in 2011, Jason Momoa told Collider he was involved in the development of Conan The Barbarian 2 script, though he later revealed he wasn't actually writing it. He didn't say much about what the story for this follow-up would have been but expressed a desire to include more creatures in the franchise, which budget issues prevented on Conan The Barbarian.
Following the failure of Conan The Barbarian Momoa later opened up about the movie's issues. While he felt he worked hard to bring the character to life, he also felt the movie fell short in other areas, which is likely a reference to its undercooked story.
Various Conan The Barbarian Projects Have Been Developed
Following the box-office failure of 2011's Conan The Barbarian, various efforts have been made to continue the series with spinoffs or reboots. Djimon Hounsou spent years developing a movie about Thulsa Doom, the evil sorcerer played by James Earl Jones in the 1982 movie, while Amber Heard was once linked to a Red Sonja project.
The most exciting of these was The Legend Of Conan, where Arnold Schwarzenegger would have returned for a direct sequel to the original. This entry was likened to Clint Eastwood's Unforgiven, but the studio ultimately passed on producing it, likely due to the failure of several Schwarzenegger's most recent movies.
Conan The Barbarian 2 Won't Happen
While Jason Momoa has become a bigger star in recent times thanks to the success of Aquaman, the odds of him making Conan The Barbarian 2 are very slim. This version only recouped about half its production budget and its reputation hasn't improved over time. While the actor is a self-professed fanboy of the character, he has also acknowledged the failure of the film and would likely be reluctant to revisit the role, even if an offer was made.