Jason Momoa is back on our screens with Chief of War, a new Apple TV+ series that tells the story of the rise of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi in the 18th century. In a bold move to prioritize cultural authenticity, the production made an unusual decision: to forgo English and film the series entirely in ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, the native Hawaiian language.
According to the creators, this choice—while presenting a challenge in terms of global accessibility—is both a political and cultural statement. The goal isn’t just to tell a Hawaiian story, but to create something for Hawaiians, by Hawaiians.
The cast had to learn a new language
In an interview with The Wrap, the production team revealed that before filming began, only about 20% of the cast spoke ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi fluently. The rest had to learn the language from zero.
“It was terrifying,” Momoa admitted. “Maybe 20% of the cast is fluent in the language. The rest were not, and Maori is not the same as Tahitian or Samoan,” explained the actor.
At the start of the project, there were doubts about whether Apple would support a series without English dubbing. Nevertheless, Chief of War has emerged as one of the platform’s flagship titles, with the native language serving as a central pillar of the narrative.
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“There’s no demographic that directly links the Hawaiian language to financial gain,” said Thomas Paʻa Sibbett, co-creator of the series. “You could do a show in Spanish, and you have at least an idea of what the numbers would bring. You could do Korean or Japanese. We kind of know the way those markets work. There is no precedent for Hawaiian language on film,” said Thomas Paʻa Sibbett, the show’s co-creator. Episodes of Chief of War are now streaming on Apple TV+.
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