NEW YORK — Discovery Channel has landed the perfect host this year for “Shark Week,” none other than a huge fan of all ocean creatures — Aquaman.
Jason Momoa, who in real life dreamed of a career as a marine biologist before Hollywood anointed him an ocean god, is going back to his roots to celebrate all things shark.
“My heart is in the ocean,” Momoa told The Associated Press from Tahiti, moments before taking a trip to swim with some of the apex predators. “Doing ‘Shark Week’ is a no brainer.”
Momoa will be the week’s recurring master of ceremonies, dipping in and out of the channel’s roughly 20 new hours of programs that start Sunday. Episode encores run most nights, too.
Viewers will get to see rare sharks off the coast of South Africa, examine deadly shark attacks off the posh beaches of Egypt’s Red Sea and investigate whether sharks in Florida waters are getting high on cocaine.
The week kicks off with a sort of nautical nod to “Jackass.” Researchers in the show “Belly of the Beast: Feeding Frenzy” try to reproduce a great white shark feeding frenzy by building a life-sized dead whale carcass decoy.
They put veteran “Shark Week” biologist Dr. Austin Gallagher and cameras inside the cavity — along with 200 pounds of chum and 50 gallons of blood — and hope it can make dozens of sharks go mad. Then they try it at night.
“There are a few moments during the show where I was pretty freaked out,” Gallagher told the AP. “There’s a healthy respect there and I don’t want that ever to go away because I know what these animals are capable of.”
Geeking out with viewers will be Momoa, who watched “Shark Week” growing up and says he couldn’t wait to meet the scientists behind the programs. “I’m going to be every other fan,” he said in an interview before the Hollywood strike. “This is my life’s passion.”
“Shark Week” was born as a counterpoint for those who developed a fear of sharks and a desire to eradicate them after seeing “Jaws.” It has emerged as a destination for scientists eager to protect an animal older than trees.
“’Jaws’ really messed up a lot of people. They don’t get in the water for sure. But it’s just not the case,” said Momoa, who urged people to view sharks like they do in Tahiti.
“We call them the guardians. They’re just not looked upon as these things that are mean and scary that come to attack us. We live in harmony with them.”
