EXCLUSIVE: Jason Momoa's Near-fatal Drowning Catastrophe – 'Aquaman' Star Admits He 'Gave Up on His Life' After His 'Body Stopped' During Surfing Nightmare
Jason Momoa revealed he nearly drowned while surfing, admitting he gave up as his body suddenly stopped.
Sept. 14 2025, Published 8:00 a.m. ET
Aquaman star Jason Momoa almost died – while surfing, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The native Hawaiian – and former lifeguard on Baywatch – said thoughts of his infant daughter spurred him to keep fighting just as he was about to give up the struggle against the sea.
Surfing Horror
Lisa Bonet's daughter, Lola Iolani, inspired Jason Momoa to keep fighting during a near-drowning in Maui.
In 2007, the action hero hunk, 46, was surfing at Maui's biggest surf break, which locals have dubbed "Jaws" because of its punishing 10-foot waves.
"We paddled like 13 miles down the coast," Momoa recounted on the Smartless podcast. "I'm probably half a mile at that point offshore. And it's actually this place is called 'Stfks' because there's all this water that pulls out of a channel there [and] you just get hit with these waves."
"I was stuck in this crazy spot," he recounted. "I had my paddle and I was waving it [but my buddies] couldn't see me, and the waves were so big."
At that moment, he thought of Lola Iolani, the then-3-month-old daughter he shares with Lisa Bonet. "I just lost it," he said, explaining exhaustion had caught up with him.
'I Literally Gave Up'
A friend rescued Momoa after currents and massive waves left him unable to swim back to shore.
"My body stopped. Like I couldn't move my arms anymore, and I bubbled down," he said. "I literally gave up, and I'm screaming inside."
Finally, one of his friends located him, but they were far from safe.
The forceful currents prevented them from returning directly to shore, and then they lost their boards when more brutal waves hit them.
Stopped Smoking After Surfing Nightmare
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'Chief of War' actor Momoa said the surfing ordeal led him to finally quit his heavy smoking habit.
"My feet are covered in blood, and I'm just literally [with] my ancestors just paddling the rest of this way, head down," the actor said.
The two finally made it to shore, but the Chief of War actor says the experience changed his life. "Like, I just died. I tried and tried, but I couldn't do it again because I just gave up. Like, I gave up my life."
It also helped him break a bad habit.
"I used to smoke two, three packs a day. I couldn't stop for my kids, I couldn't stop for my ex... [but] the moment I came out, I never smoked again," he said.
