Before he led a khalasar as Khal Drogo on “Game of Thrones” and swam the deep seas as Aquaman in the DC Extended Universe, actor Jason Momoa was among the cast of the SyFy channel series “Stargate: Atlantis” as Ronon Dex. Momoa’s Dex didn’t appear on “Stargate: Atlantis” until Season 2, but the performer’s swagger as a strong, taciturn soldier quickly made his character a fan-favorite. Ronon spent years of his life being hunted for sport by the Wraith — an alien species that feeds on human life force and serve as the series’ main antagonist — before joining the expedition in the lost city of Atlantis.
Ronon Dex’s initial concept had Momoa running around in dark leather and dreadlocks for years, but the actor decided to shave between the show’s fourth and fifth season. By that time, Momoa’s hair weighed five pounds, so it was a huge relief to get them off while vacationing with his family in Hawaii between seasons. When Momoa returned to set for Season 5, the wardrobe department opted to sew his old dreadlocks onto his scalp.
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Heavy is the head that wears the dreads
Ronon Dex aiming his weapon under cover with Col. Sheppard – SyFy
Unsurprisingly, having five pound dreadlocks sewn into his scalp was incredibly painful for Jason Momoa. “I started getting sores on my head,” Momoa explained to Gateworld. “It’s just pulling all of the hairs out of your scalp. So it’s just super sensitive.” Momoa thought he could get through a few days of filming with his dreadlocks sewn back in, but was in so much pain after only filming one episode that he was forced to confront one of the show’s executive producers, John Smith, about the unworkable conditions.
Smith and the production crew cut Momoa’s dreads to give him relief and put him in his stunt double’s subpar Ronon wig for the rest of that day’s work. His stunt double’s wig was not meant for close-up shots, but the team managed to get Ronon’s scenes filmed regardless. The costume department ended up procuring a $10,000 custom wig for Momoa to wear as Ronon Dex until SyFy canceled the series in 2009. While the wig weighed even more than the dreads that Momoa had shaved, he was at least able to take it off at the end of the day and reduce the strain on his neck.
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Read the original article on Looper.
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