Yahya Abdul-Mateen II

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (/ˈjɑːhiə/; born July 15, 1986) is an acclaimed American actor who has made his mark on stage, television, and the silver screen. He shot to fame through his varyingly versatile roles. Among his prominent works are the characters portrayed as Black Manta in the superhero films Aquaman (2018) and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023), Bobby Seale in the Netflix historical legal drama The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020), and Morpheus / Agent Smith in The Matrix Resurrections (2021). Abdul-Mateen has earned critical acclaim for embodying Cal Abar / Doctor Manhattan in the HBO limited series Watchmen (2019), for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award. Additionally, he showcased his acting prowess in episodes of The Handmaid's Tale (2018) and Black Mirror (2019).

Abdul-Mateen was born to Muslim father Yahya Abdul-Mateen I and a Christian mother Mary in New Orleans, Louisiana. He is the youngest among his siblings. His growing up years were divided between New Orleans and Oakland, California. After completing his education, with a degree in architecture from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Master's in Fine Arts from Yale, Abdul-Mateen shifted gears to acting. Starting with the Broadway debut in Suzan-Lori Parks play Topdog/Underdog, he continued to enthrall the audience with his performances. A strong believer in not altering his Muslim name or using a stage name, he has successfully built his acting career retaining his original name. With all these achievements and more on the horizon, he is set to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe, starring in the Disney+ series Wonder Man as the title character.