Momoa’s Marriage is More Bizarre Than You Thought

First Break

Lisa Bonet was trained as an actress at the Celluloid Actor’s Studio in Hollywood, although she started acting in commercials when she was just 11 years old. 1984, however, was when her world changed forever. That was the year she was cast in her breakthrough role as Denise Huxtable – and life would never be the same.

In all, she starred in more than 100 episodes of the hit show. She was such a popular character that she wound up with a show of her own.

A Show of Her Own

In 1987, four years into her run on ‘The Cosby Show,’ her spinoff, ‘A Different World’, came out. The series, which was about Denise being off at college, was short-lived after some unexpected news came out.

Bonet would find herself being written off of a show that was based on her character after filming just over 20 episodes for the series. But what could possibly have made that happen?

Let Go

When producers of ‘A Different World’ found out that Bonet was pregnant, they wrote her character out. She gave birth to her daughter later that year and took some time off to just be a new mother.

The actress did wind up coming back to ‘The Cosby Show’ the following year, in 1988. But in the early 1990s, she left the show to pursue acting in film, appearing with Will Smith in the 1998 film, ‘Enemy of the State’.

Breaking into Film

A couple of years after making her film debut, Bonet appeared with John Cusack in the 2000 rom-com/drama, ‘High Fidelity’. In 2002, she played Heather Lelache in the made-for-TV film, ‘Lathe of Heaven’, and the next year she was back on the big screen as Queenie, in ‘Biker Boyz’. But after she got her taste of the differences between television and film, she made the choice to go back to where it all began: the TV screen in living rooms all across America.

But that doesn’t mean she was entirely finished in film. “I have a desire to create more film, more beauty, more art, more love,” said the actress, “but I don’t feel desperate. It’s not about creating or building a career.”

Made for TV

By 2008, Bonet had returned to her love of acting for television and taken on the role of Detective Maya Daniels in ‘Life on Mars’. She would then go on to play a few parts for the historical reenactments on ‘Drunk History’. In more recent years, she’s starred as Marisol Campos on Showtime’s crime drama, ‘Ray Donovan’.

In 2017, she guest-starred in a short film called ‘Jellywolf’, which was based around Chanel’s No. 5 perfume. The film was directed by Alma Har’el, and has been described as an “ethereal, feminine coming of age story.” Bonet starred beside Kiersey Clemmons in the spiritual and empowering tale.

Coupled Up

Bonet may have taken a step back from acting since her last role, but that doesn’t mean her name doesn’t still pop up all over the place. Of course, these days it’s mainly because she’s attached to one of the biggest current stars in the world. But then again, she’s always been attracted to superstars – even long before they realize they’re going to become as big as they do!

Before she was with her current husband, she was married to rock legend Lenny Kravitz, with whom she shares a daughter.

Back in the Day

When Kravitz met Bonet, he was far from the iconic music star that everyone knows him as these days. In 1989, she co-wrote multiple songs with him on his first major album, Let Love Rule. In an article from the L.A. Times from that same year, a reporter describes how someone mistakenly referred to Lenny as “Mr. Bonet,” around that time.

Everyone seemed to think the two were meant for each other, but they would be sorely disappointed. Just a few years later, in 1993, the couple announced their breakup.

Rushing In

Bonet and Kravitz got married very quickly after they started dating. She told Ebony magazine that the time period with the star was all very “accelerated, spiritually and intellectually.” She took things a lot slower with her second husband, who she didn’t marry until after the two had been together for 12 years already.

Momoa would later express that he thought of her as “the one” from the moment they met. But Bonet may have not felt exactly the same way from the get-go.

Change of Roles

Bonet’s ex-husband speaks very highly of her whenever he’s asked about their past or current relationship. He agrees with her when she says that everything happened so quickly when they were both very young, but neither of them regrets a thing. Especially considering their relationship resulted in the birth of their beautiful daughter, Zoë Kravitz.

In an interview with People where he said that the relationship between the co-parents has become that of brother and sister.

Growing Up Famous

Perhaps the reason Zoë turned out to be such an amazing actress is thanks to her eclectic childhood. After all, it’s got to be pretty insane growing up as the daughter of a hugely popular actress and an iconic musician. When Kravitz would show up to pick Zoë up from school, it would often be in “leather pants and a netted shirt”.

At one point, when the family was living in New York City, he pulled her out of school for an entire month-long trip to the Bahamas. Talk about a thrilling childhood!

Shaking Things Up

Even if you’ve got all of the money in the world and are accustomed to a certain type of lifestyle – life happens. Bonet and her daughter found themselves in crisis mode when, in 1994, an earthquake destroyed their home to a point it forced them out on the streets. Luckily, her mother was able to help them out, but it was still a turbulent time for them all.

Bonet later revealed that, “We were literally camping out!” Luckily, they were able to turn things around and get right back on their feet, with the help of friends and family.

Love and Let Go

Kravitz revealed in a 2013 Oprah Masterclass that he and Bonet were very “deeply in love,” and that their relationship was “magical.” But even so, it wasn’t enough to keep the two together through better or worse. They attribute a lot of personal growth to that relationship, however, and both agree that it was a very valuable time, both for them and because they brought Zoë into the world.

The couple officially got divorced in 1993, on mutually agreeable terms, so as not to hurt any of the parties involved.

Mom and Dad

Like her own daughter, Bonet was born into the world of entertainment. That’s because her father, Allen, was a successful opera singer. But she shares something else with her daughter’s childhood, and that’s that her parents divorced when she was young, as well.

After the split, Bonet mainly stayed with her mother, Arlene, in Los Angeles. Although she spent some time growing up in New York, too. But when Arlene passed away, in 1998, Lisa lived with her father full time.

Black and White

Bonet has openly spoken up about her experience growing up mixed in a different day and age. Even today, actors and actresses in Hollywood fight against typecasting and stereotypes, such as Zoë revealed in her quest to audition for ‘The Dark Knight’.

Apparently, she wasn’t allowed to try out for the role because filmmakers didn’t want to go in an “urban” direction. And Bonet’s experience wasn’t much different, yet she also at points felt uneasy, even around her mother’s side of the family.

Different Times, Same Struggles

‘The Cosby Show’ actress revealed that she often shut down and “internalized” everything she was feeling about her mixed-race and landing roles. She said it best when she said that the world just “wasn’t ready.”

But even today, Zoë finds herself dealing with the same types of issues. The actress questioned why it seems as though “stories can only happen to white people and everyone else is a punchline.”

Seriously Crushing

But even though Bonet may have faced these issues in existing as who she was, that didn’t mean that she wasn’t still extremely popular with an enormous fan base. In fact, one of those fans in particular just so happens to be the man she ended up marrying. Her playing Denise on the show led to an 8-year old Jason Momoa discovering his future wife.

The actor knew immediately, even at such a young age, that he wanted to end up with her. He claims to have even pointed at the TV and told his mother, “I want that one.” And he wasn’t going to quit until he made his dreams into his reality – and that’s exactly what he did, once given the opportunity to connect with his dream girl.

Lilakoi

Just a couple of years after her divorce from Lenny Kravitz, in 1995, Bonet made the interesting choice to legally change her name. She went to the courthouse and signed all of the paperwork to become Lilakoi Moon. As far as the credits for her on TV, however, she continued to use her more recognizable (former) name.

When asked about why she decided to make the switch at all, she said it was because of “privacy reasons.”

Meet You in Paradise

Interestingly, the name she chose sounds Hawaiian, and not long after changing her name she would meet someone from Hawaii that would change the course of her life forever. Yes, you guessed it: the Aquaman hunk himself was born in Hawaii and lived there throughout the course of his young life.

Before becoming the actor we all know and love, he was studying to become a marine biologist, and later transferred his major to wildlife biology in school. He started out his college years in Iowa but then moved to Colorado State. In 1999, Momoa got his foot in the door of the acting world when he landed a role in ‘Baywatch: Hawaii’.

Rising Star

From 2005-2009, Momoa held a regular role as Ronon the soldier in ‘Stargate Atlantis’. Those who worked on the show with him all had a running joke that his character was their version of Chewbacca on ‘Star Wars’. And thus, began the sort of typecasting Momoa lands of the ruggedly handsome and somewhat funny warrior type.

The next part he held was similar in such a way, too, when he was cast as Conan in 2011’s ‘Conan the Barbarian’.

Game of Thrones

Later that year, he was thrown into his next major role, in HBO’s ‘Game of Thrones’. Momoa found himself playing the part of Khal Drogo, another character that fell along the same lines as those he’d played previously. In fact, since the leader of the Dothraki didn’t speak English and acted like a brutish caveman, he had some problems finding any other type of role afterward for quite some time.

Luckily, his next move was to co-write the 2014 film, ‘Road to Paloma’, and show off a different side of himself the world hadn’t seen yet.

Initiated into the DC Universe

‘Game of Thrones’ is a hugely popular show, and Jason Momoa was already starting to build a nice fan base for himself at that point. But in 2016, he found himself playing in the big leagues with major motion picture stars, when he landed the role of Aquaman in ‘Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice’.

And, because he turned out to be such a hit, his character’s own film came out just a couple of years later. But his career was still just getting started at that point. Little did he know just how big it would become!

Upcoming Works

Momoa’s endeavors didn’t stop with “Aquaman”. He was later cast alongside Dave Bautista and Zendaya in the 2021 epic sci-fi film, ‘Dune’. The film is an adaptation of a 1965 novel by Frank Herbert. The Aquaman star plays Duncan Idaho, the master of swords of House Atreides.

He’s also returned to the screen in another warrior role, in the Apple series, ‘See’, in which he plays Baba Voss, leader of a gang/tribe in a bleak futuristic world.

Wedding Bells

Momoa and Lisa Bonet were officially a couple in 2005. And just two years after the two first went public with their love story, there were rumors that the pair had tied the knot.

However, it turned out that they were just that – rumors. The stars did indeed get married, but not until they had been dating for more than 10 years already.

The Ceremony

When the couple finally did tie the knot, they tried their hardest to keep things under wraps from the media. In 2017, they had a very intimate ceremony with close friends and family at their home in California. Unfortunately, someone leaked the information and it was just a matter of time before everyone heard the news.

But since most people had assumed that they’d already been married – it wasn’t exactly shocking. Plus, Momoa had already been calling Bonet his “bride” for 10 years.

On Parenting

Lisa Bonet is big on taking the holistic approach and being one with nature. In fact, she’s so in tune with nature that a big rule for the children is no TV. She reported that “I feel strongly about remaining as media-free as we possibly can.”

She loves that being without so much TV means the children use their imaginations more, as she did in her own childhood. “I love that they can go off and play for hours making paper airplanes,” she said during one interview.

On Co-Parenting

Bonet and Momoa make an excellent team as parents, and she enjoys the fact that he takes the “alpha male” role in the relationship. After Bonet’s father left her feeling vulnerable as a child from him not being around all that much, she truly appreciates how great Jason is as a father.

When asked about all of the things she loves about him, the list is endless. On it, physique, charisma, and responsibility. Just goes to show that Aquaman is a real man.

“Jason’s Got a Girlfriend!”

The stars may have only officially gotten together in 2005, but Jason knew that Lisa Bonet had his heart from a (very) young age. Yes, when he was just 8-years old, sitting at home watching TV, he laid eyes on her for the first time. There she was: Denise Huxtable in all of her gorgeous and laid-back glory – and he knew he had to have her.

He even recalls that he brought it up and made a point of telling his mom that someday, he would.

On the Hush

But even though he may have been vocal about his crush as a young boy, he decided to keep quiet about it to his future wife when the two first met. After all, had the first words out of his mouth been, “Oh. My. God, I absolutely knew I wanted to marry you the first time I saw you on The Cosby Show,” things may have not exactly gone as smoothly as they did between them.

Although admittedly, he was being creepy. He later said the thought, “I’m going to stalk you for the rest of my life and I’m going to get you,” went through his head. Well, luckily, he didn’t actually have to stalk her, because that is entirely creepy – even if it is Jason Momoa who’s doing it.

The Meet Cute

Unless Jason Momoa actually did stalk Lisa Bonet and follow her to this club – the way they met was pretty adorable. The first time they were actually in the same vicinity was when they met at a New York City jazz club in 2005.

The actor said Bonet was his “dream woman,” and he knew he couldn’t miss the opportunity. They ended up hitting it off and he reported he, “convinced her to take me home,” since he was living in a hotel at the time.

Freaking Out

According to every report Momoa’s given about the occasion on which he met his future wife, he could barely contain his excitement when she first acknowledged him. All it took was for her to simply introduce herself and he did the whole, arms waving, shrieking like a teenage girl who just got crowned prom queen thing. Of course, he did it facing away from her so he could still save face and keep his cool.

And everything worked out exactly as he’d imagined because, after that introduction, things continued to evolve between the two. And that night was far from over…

Love at First Sip

After meeting at the smooth jazz club where he was with his friends, he’d convinced Bonet to drop him off at his hotel, but not before they stopped at a café. While at the café, they sipped some Guinness and ate grits, which may sound incredibly simple, but was the moment Momoa knew they were in it for the long run.

But even though he was convinced, he still had some convincing to do. But as it turns out, all he really had to do was, “pick me up and throw me over his shoulder, caveman style,” said the Cosby Show actress.

It Came Big

Even though Bonet recalled that the moment they met wasn’t exactly “fireworks” for her, much unlike Momoa described, by actually using that exact word, doesn’t mean she wouldn’t fall just as hard in the future. In fact, over a short period of time, she remembers that “love came, and it came big.” And her reaction? She welcomed the love with open arms and the two were in a happy relationship not long after getting to know one another.

Of course, Bonet’s open mind and openness to love is what’s kept things so amazing for their entire extended family, and how she’s managed to stay best friends with her ex-husband and eldest child’s father for so long.

Dreadlocks

When it comes to their meeting, Momoa swears he just happened to be in the “right place at the right time.” And aside from the magical coincidence that they both ended up in the same NYC club at the same time, there’s the other bit that “I had dreadlocks, she had dreadlocks.”

Of course, you know it’s true love when you’re sporting the same hairstyle! Not really. But in their case, that’s exactly what it was.

Complete Opposites

Bonet has also talked about how her absent father really had an effect on her as a child, and she was impressed that Jason is an “alpha male.” And once they had their two children, the actor let her in on the secret that he’d been crushing since his own childhood.

The adorable thing is, he calls his wife “queen” quite frequently, and said that she has “always been a queen, always.” And Bonet’s Rockstar ex-husband, and friend of her current husband, Lenny Kravitz, would agree with him.

No Drama Mama

It would absolutely take a queen to lead a life that involves a beautiful blended family and being around your ex-husband on a fairly regular basis. But rather than finding the drama you’d expect to find between ex-husband and wife, Lenny and Lisa are actually very good friends still.

In fact, there are times when Bonet accompanies him to events, typically with their daughter Zoë. Such a case would be in 2015 when the family showed up together at the Met Gala.

Nothing but Love

As great as it is that Bonet has remained close friends with her daughter’s father, it may be even greater that he and her new husband are actually pretty good friends, too. Even though they may not hang out to grab drinks on the weekend (or maybe they do), they all come together for family events, like major holidays, such as Thanksgiving.

The two men even posted a photo together on Instagram featuring them wearing matching rings. As it turns out, Momoa had gifted Kravitz one like his from a store called Leroy’s Wooden Tattoos.

And Returned

The love flows pretty freely between all of the family members involved. And recently, Kravitz spoke about just how close he and Momoa are. “I love her husband, he’s like a brother to me,” said the rock legend.

He went on to acknowledge that things were tough after the initial split between him and his ex, but time heals all wounds and they were able to bounce back and come together to form a strong blended family. He added that they like to live by “let love rule.”

Hand-in-Hand

Although being together in a romantic fashion wasn’t in the cards for Kravitz and Bonet, it is obvious that they’ve got a bond that can’t be broken. When they appeared with their daughter Zoë at the 2015 Met Gala, they posted an adorable family photo of daughter and father kissing mom on the cheeks, with the caption “blood.” And they both agree that fate brought them together if for nothing more than to bring her into the world.

Kravitz said of the special relationship that it’s, “really beautiful and shows you what can be done.” Momoa has gotten close to his stepdaughter, too, so close that he’s even dubbed her “Zozobear.”

Support System

When someone in the blended family lands an exciting new opportunity, they’re all very supportive of one another. Zoë opened up about it all in a recent interview, saying, “My dad will call, saying ‘I just got offered this or that,’ and my mom will do the same. We all trust each other’s opinions and we all know each other so well and what we’re capable of, so, if someone’s scared to do something, we encourage them.”

She finished her thought with the closing line, “because we believe in each other as family.” And they all tend to see a lot of each other, so it’s great they get along so well.

Family Goals

Who wouldn’t be envious of what the family has going on, with all of the love and support that flows freely from family member to family member? Every time Momoa is asked about his family, he beams and has nothing but wonderful things to say. He once referred to them as his “greatest work of art.”

With all of the amazing work he’s done on film, they’ve got some tough contenders, but we won’t disagree with the (Aqua)man! And it’s obvious that his wife, or as he calls her, his queen, feels the same way.

Social Media

Although his wife has famously stated that she’s not really into social media that much (especially Facebook), Momoa himself stays pretty active on his Instagram. He’s got to keep the fans happy, after all! And although she may not post her own pictures, he can’t contain the love he’s got for her, so he posts pics of her all the time on his page.

Case in point: the pic showed above, which he captioned, “The way you look at me. (Expletive) love you woman. My everything,” followed by a long string of red hearts.

Happy Family

In 2015, Zoë Kravitz gave an interview in which she gushed about how wonderful everything was between everyone. You know parents have succeeded in splitting perfectly when their kid is still super happy and gets to hang out with both of them on a regular basis.

“We’re a family…we all love each other,” said the future Catwoman actress. “We’ve all worked through whatever issues there have ever been. So, we all get along. Love conquers all.”

Starring Husband and Wife

In 2014, the couple shared the screen in the drama/thriller that Momoa helped write. So, how did the pair handle filming their intimate scene together? Apparently, it all went over pretty smoothly. After all, as the actor and writer put it, it was “like the first night we’d met.” It was nothing new to them, the only thing that was new was bringing it on film for the world to see.

And once they got the ball rolling, they had everything taken care of in no time at all. “We got it in 15 minutes,” he said. Although Momoa may have felt a little uneasy with the whole thing, Bonet found it to be much easier. After all, they had been together for several years already at that point.

On Love Scenes

It’s a reasonable expectation that at some point during an actor’s career, they’re going to have to do a love scene. And both Momoa and Bonet have been on the opposite end of things, behind the scenes watching as their real-life partner romances someone else on film. But Momoa wants nothing to do with seeing his wife get it on with anyone else.

He makes a point to avoid seeing them, if at all possible. Plus – he tries to keep her from seeing his steamy ‘Game of Thrones’ scenes.

Hot Stuff

Momoa tried to spare his wife from having to watch him tumble around in the sack with Emilia Clarke, but she couldn’t help herself. After all of the talk about how hot the scene was between the two, she checked it out anyways, sneaking behind his back to do so. The verdict? She absolutely loved it. “She stayed up all night watching it, she was obsessed!” But the scenes between Khal Drogo and the Mother of Dragons on ‘Game of Thrones’ couldn’t exactly be described as “love” scenes.

In fact, Momoa has gotten himself in trouble with the public (and probably with his wife, too,) when he made a comment about liking the fact his character on ‘Game of Thrones’ can get away with doing awful things. The actor later apologized for his remarks.

Sweet Alpha

And even though Bonet has referred to Momoa as an alpha male, and the type to “pick her up and throw her over his shoulder,” that doesn’t mean he’s nearly as rough as his character on ‘Game of Thrones’. How does the former wildlife biology major feel about his forced scenes with Daenerys? “It’s one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do,” he reported.

“You have to separate yourself from it. It’s horrible, but Khal Drogo, that’s what he does.” He also noted that “I love Emilia, she’s someone I adore to this day.”

Matching Tats

Bonet’s daughter has grown incredibly close to Momoa over the years. So close, in fact, that the two have a set of matching tattoos on their arms. The ink reads, “etre toujours ivre,” or, “always be drunk,” in French. They also share the same tattoo with Momoa’s ‘Game of Thrones’ co-star, Jamie Sives, who plays Jory Cassel in the show’s first season. There are a few different speculations as to what their tattoos stand for.

The most popular version is that it’s a nod to the 19th-century poet, Charles Baudelaire, who has a similar line in one of his poems. The less-popular version is that it’s a nod to a Beyoncé song. Although the family does have a history with Queen Bey, so it’s not entirely impossible.

On Style

The Aquaman star and his gorgeous wife always wow when they show up together on the red carpets. But recently, it seems as though their amazing sense(s) of style have evolved even further, if that’s possible. Take for instance when the two recently went out on the town in Rome, dressed in golden God and Goddess-like outfits.

Not long before, they turned heads at the Oscars with Momoa in his pink velvet suit by Fendi and Bonet in a lovely matching gown.

Family Photos

Zoë isn’t the only one of the children within the family who’s seen their fair share of the red carpet. Sure, she’s seen more of it since she’s done acting of her own, but something tells us that Bonet and Momoa’s children may someday wind up gracing the screens with their own presence, as well.

For now, they’re happy with attending red carpet events with mom and dad, such as when they took Lola to a ‘Lion King’ private screening for her birthday, which was a bit more casual than your typical red carpet, but it was still there! Or, when both Lola and Nakoa-Wolf accompanied them to an early showing of ‘Abominable’.