5 Years Ago, Jason Momoa Starred In An Intense Action Thriller With Two DCU Actors
by Joe Roberts · /FilmAdd SlashFilm on Google:
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These days, Jason Momoa is revelling in the box office success of "A Minecraft Movie" while also recovering from a less than stellar DC Universe debut as Lobo in the box office failure that was "Supergirl." Still, we'll no doubt see more of Momoa's Lobo as the DCU rolls on, which means there'll almost certainly be a reunion for the cast of 2021's "Sweet Girl."
What's "Sweet Girl?" Well, back in 2021, Momoa was still known as the now shuttered DC Extended Universe's Aquaman. But he took a break from playing the King of Atlantis to do what many Americans have surely fantasized about: rain hell on big pharma. At least, that's what his character in "Sweet Girl" did, alongside two future DCU actors. Isabela Merced, who now plays Kendra Saunders/Hawkgirl, portrayed Momoa's daughter, while Adria Arjona, who's set to appear in the upcoming "Superman" sequel "Man of Tomorrow," played his wife.
The film sees the father/daughter duo played by Momoa and Merced embark on a quest for vengeance against a pharmaceutical company that withheld medication from their late wife/mother. While many can surely sympathize with such a story, the critics found it to be a tad clichéd, attacking the film for its script and for a twist that doesn't quite hit as hard as it thinks it does. In fact, "Sweet Girl" debuted on Netflix to pretty awful reviews. But it is notable for bringing together Momoa, Merced, and Arjona prior to their becoming franchise-mates in James Gunn's DC Universe.
Jason Momoa and Isabela Merced are out for vengeance in Sweet Girl
Though the DC Universe technically began with 2024's "Creature Commandos" (earlier if you consider the franchise is only a soft reboot) James Gunn's charming crowd-pleaser "Superman" kicked off the franchise proper in July 2025. This film introduced us to Isabela Merced's Hawkgirl, a member of Guy Gardner's (Nathan Fillion) Justice Gang. Meanwhile, having appeared in "Blink Twice," "Hit Man," and regrettably, "Morbius," Adria Arjona is currently starring in Adam Wingard's bloody, John Carpenter-esque action movie "Onslaught" ahead of her appearance in "Superman" sequel "Man of Tomorrow," possibly as Wonder Woman if the rumor mill has it right.
Before either actor entered the comic book movie realm, they joined Jason Momoa for "Sweet Girl." Unlike either of his DC characters, however, Momoa's character in this action thriller has no powers except a righteous sense of anger and some impressive mixed martial arts skills.
He plays Ray Cooper, a survivalist and martial artist who lives in Pittsburgh with his teenage daughter Rachel (Merced) and wife Amanda (Arjona). When Amanda is diagnosed with cancer, their happy life falls apart. Things only get worse when Amanda's one chance at survival, a life-saving drug from the company BioPrime, is pulled from the market by CEO Simon Keeley. After Amanda dies, Ray and Rachel set out on a quest for vengeance — only to uncover a web of conspiracy that stretches far further than they could have imagined.
"Sweet Girl" delivers some solid action sequences and does its best to imitate the feel of a grounded indie drama (basically a lot of shaky-cam closeups during the emotional scenes). Sadly, it was otherwise dismissed as a tropey letdown.
Sweet Girl wasn't sweet enough to charm the critics
"Sweet Girl" was directed by Brian Andrew Mendoza, who co-founded production company On The Roam with Jason Momoa in 2018, and has been the actor's creative partner for some time. Mendoza helmed the 2016 short film "Canvas of My Life," in which Momoa gave viewers an intimate look at his family life. He also executive produced and directed two episodes of Momoa's Hawaiian historical epic "Chief of War" for Apple TV. In other words, these two are best buds. Sadly, their first feature collaboration as director and actor in "Sweet Girl" didn't yield the best results.
The film holds a 24% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 59 reviews. Nick Schager of Variety liked it well enough, concluding that while Hollywood "may not make brawny B-movies like they used to, perhaps they should." Roxana Hadadi of the Los Angeles Times also had one of the more positive takes on the movie, but the nicest thing she could say about it was that "Momoa can believably howl in anguish and throw a devastating punch," before adding "he can't carry a script this muddled." That was the general tenor of the other reviews, which criticized "Sweet Girl" for being a '90s throwback, and not in a good way.
"Sweet Girl" is still available to stream on Netflix, and despite the poor reviews it might be worth checking out if you want to see these stars together on-screen before Merced and Arjona (and possible Momoa as well) reunite in "Man of Tomorrow."