Jason Momoa made a grand entrance as the host of “Saturday Night Live,” expressing his adoration for the ocean during his opening monologue.
The 44-year-old actor kicked off his introduction by giving a shout-out to his mom in the audience, humorously acknowledging that she’s “still recovering from giving birth to me.”
“I’m so happy to be here. I love this place. I love life. I love waking up, washing my luxurious hair with a full body of shampoo,” he said as he swayed his ponytail. “And I love playing ‘Aquaman’ because I love the ocean.”
Momoa proceeded to talk about his passion for all things aquatic, revealing his childhood dream of becoming a marine biologist. “Which makes sense because I’m built like a scientist,” he quipped.
The Hawaii-born, Iowa-raised actor shared the challenges of his Midwest upbringing conflicting with his love for marine life. After watching the 1998 surf movie “In God’s Hands,” set in Hawaii, he made the decision to move back to his home state.
Momoa fondly recalled landing a role on “Baywatch Hawaii,” which ignited his career. “I call it the B-word, but I fell in love with acting,” he shared.
He added: “I only stayed for a few seasons because you really don’t want to get stuck in the B-hole. And now I feel like my life has come full circle.”
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Momoa concluded his monologue by discussing his aluminum water bottle company, Mananalu, which seeks to “eliminate single-use plastic water bottles” and combat ocean pollution.
The “Aquaman” star humorously shared that the Hawaiian translation of Mananalu is “Suck it, Dasani.”
Saturday marked Momoa’s second time hosting the NBC sketch comedy show. He initially took the helm in December 2018.
Momoa referenced his time “on the island” in a sketch titled “Cast Away,” where he returned from a life at sea to visit his ex-fiancée Elaine (Chloe Fineman) and her husband Dennis (Andrew Dismukes).
“The island changed me,” Momoa’s character Laird said, detailing his five years on a deserted island after a plane crash. “The only thing that mattered was survival, the size of the fire I could build with my own hands (and) the primitive skills I could summon to hunt.”
Momoa’s character, Laird, embraced his physique in the skit, sweeping Elaine off her feet while Dennis attempted to fend him off with a push-up contest.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: ‘SNL’: Jason Momoa makes waves in opening monologue, disses Dasani
