Yahya Abdul-Mateen II says acting in movies like ‘Aquaman’ is ‘clown work’

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II has claimed that acting in movies such as Aquaman is ‘clown work’ and it's important for him to balance his work with more serious projects.

The actor, who plays Black Manta in Aquaman, has had Emmy-winning roles on shows such as Watchmen and multiple nominations for his role as Bobby Seal on The Trial of the Chicago 7. 

However, the 36-year-old has balanced these more serious productions with roles in movies such as Morpheus in The Matrix Resurrections and the aforementioned Aquaman. 

Black Manta. Aquaman (2018) / Warner Bros. Pictures

The actor has admitted that sometimes the ego has to take a step back when working on such films.

He told Vulture: “Everything should be about getting to the truth. But sometimes you got to know which movie or genre you’re in.

“Something like Aquaman, that’s clown work. Aquaman is not The Trial of the Chicago 7. You have got to get over yourself.” 

Abdul-Mateen played co-founder of the Black Panther Party, Bobby Seale in the 2020 film, in a role that earned him a Screen Actors Guild Award as part of the cast in the movie.

However, those more intricate acting positions aren’t everything in Hollywood, with Abdul Mateen admitting that a successful actor has to be able to cross between multiple genres. 

He added: “In order to survive [as an actor] and to do it well, you have to play that game and then be crafty about when you want to surprise the audience, the director, or yourself with a little bit of ‘Wow, I didn’t expect to see a Chekhovian thing or August Wilson and Aquaman, but I did.’”

Abdul-Mateen will be reprising his role as Black Manta in next year’s Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, once again starring opposite Jason Momoa in the DC film. 

The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020) / Netflix

The first Aquaman was a huge success for DC earning more than $1.6 billion (US$1.1b) and becoming Warner Bros. second-highest-grossing film behind Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2.

Superhero movies certainly have a significant role in Hollywood, and while the Black Manta actor has called acting in such films ‘clown work’ others have found themselves in more stressful situations.

Jake Gyllenhall, who played Mysterio in Spider-Man: Far From Home, told Howard Stern that he had panic attacks on set because the film’s genre proved more difficult than expected. 

He said: “It’s hard, man. That acting is hard. All of it. That world is enormous. And I joined that world way into that run; a train that was already moving. 

“Normally, I come in way early on and I get to figure it out…I was freaking out. It was a scene with [Samuel L.] Jackson, Tom [Holland]…there were a number of actors in that scene. And I remember not being able to remember my lines.”