Jason Momoa talks 'amazing' collaboration with Dave Bautista, teases their new buddy cop movie

Jason Momoa and Dave Bautista had "a great time together" working on season 2 of Apple's See, the Aquaman star tells EW. But you wouldn't necessarily know it from watching the show.

Bautista plays Edo Voss, brother of Momoa's Baba Voss, in the post-apocalyptic drama, which takes place in a distant future where most of humanity has lost its sense of sight. The brothers reunite in the season premiere when Baba returns to his homeland of Trivantes to rescue his daughter, whom Edo has kidnapped.

"My character's definitely coming in not trying to stir the pot," Momoa says, speaking to EW from the U.K., where he's shooting Aquaman 2. "I'm definitely trying to be really safe, because [Edo] has all the cards in his hand, and he's got my daughter. I'm not trying to confront him; I'm trying to get him to understand. But there's a certain point where you just can't fix it."

The brothers' relationship is fraught, to say the least: Baba killed their father and fled Trivantes more than 20 years ago, and Edo's resentment towards his sibling has only deepened over time — as you can see in the exclusive clip above.

"He's not a big fan of me," Momoa deadpans regarding the characters' dynamic. "Because I did hurt my brother, and there's a lot of stuff he doesn't know, but even when I try to tell him, there's too much anger, and I can't get through that. He is just anger and rage, fueled by everything I've done to him."

It's a stark contrast to the actors' real-life relationship on set. "I adore the guy," Momoa says of Bautista. "He's just such an amazing human being and a phenomenal actor. I love being around his energy, and I feel like he feels the same about me."

Indeed, the duo (who also costar in this fall's Dune) are already lining up another project together: "a Lethal Weapon–type buddy cop movie," as Bautista put it in a tweet that quickly went viral last week, and garnered more attention after Momoa addressed it on The Late Late Show With James Corden.

"It's amazing — you try to work your whole career to get an opportunity like this, and he just tweets something [to make it happen]," Momoa says with a laugh. "And then I got asked about it on Corden, and now our phones won't stop ringing. So, it's safe to say that one is happening."

Momoa confirms that he hopes to shoot the movie in his home state of Hawaii, and that Bautista texted him with the pitch before tweeting it — but only just before. "He did text me first, which is how respectful he is," Momoa says. "I was like, 'Hell yes. Tell me where to sign, I'm in.' And then it turns out he just tweeted it right after getting my approval. And then it went viral. You're like, 'All right, well, it's that easy. Let's do it, buddy.'"

The actor also gushes over Bautista's skills handling the fight scenes on See, which come with the added challenge of simulating blindness. "Think about doing a fight scene and not looking at the person you're gonna touch — that's absolutely terrifying," he says. "When I swing something at someone's face, I've really gotta be good. It's gotta be close, and, also, I can't make eye contact with that spot."

"I'm hoping when I'm Bautista's age I can still do what he does," he continues. (Bautista is 52.) "He's one of those big guys that can move and fight really well. I have a lot of respect for him and Dwayne [Johnson], because doing that kind of wrestling is a lot of tear on your body for a long time. I know I feel it, and I'm 42. And those guys are still badasses."

For now, though, Momoa is satisfied with what he's accomplished on See thus far. "I think season 2 and [the forthcoming] season 3 are just a whole other level," he says. "It's gonna rip people's hearts out. It's really the [story of] a father who would do anything for his children. He goes to the end of the earth, and even when people he loves wrong him, he will just take it and take it and be there."

He continues, "If I'm not crying in a scene, I'm completely destroying myself with rage. This is my hardest role to date so far."

Season 2 of See premieres Friday on Apple TV+.

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