Some old footage of Game of Thrones star Jason Momoa joking about rape in the context of the show has recently been making the rounds, and, would you believe it, the joke is offensive and also quite revealing.
In the video, which is of a 2011 Comic-Con panel, Momoa says, “But as far as sci-fi and fantasy, I love that genre because there are so many things you can do, like rip someone’s tongue out of their throat and get away with it and rape beautiful women.” The crowd burst into laughter upon hearing the line.
On Thursday, Momoa apologized for the remark, joining the growing ranks of men who have apologized for something this week:
“I awoke in Australia to the justified reactions by many people to a distasteful joke I made years ago in Hall H for which I am sorry. I am still severely disappointed in myself at the insensitivity of my remarks that day. I know my sincerest apology now won’t take away those hurtful words. Rape and sexual harassment can reach anyone and I have seen first hand its painful torment among members of my own family and friends.”
It’s not the only time that Momoa has been flippant on the subject of rape in Fantasy and rape as fantasy, specifically as it relates to his role on GoT. In 2011, the New York Post asked the actor how he felt about filming a highly disturbing scene in the first season where his character, Drogo, rapes Emilia Clarke’s character, Daenerys, and he responded with similarly insensitive “humor”:
“Yeah, I’m raping Emilia [Clarke, who plays Daenerys]. I love her, but I’m hurting her and she’s crying. We could have made it longer, but you get the idea. I’m not a rapist! I prefer my women to enjoy sex.”
And I prefer to enjoy jokes, but men so often ruin them.