| Yahya Abdul-Mateen II Quick Info | |
|---|---|
| Height | 6 ft 3 in |
| Weight | 90 kg |
| Date of Birth | July 15, 1986 |
| Zodiac Sign | Cancer |
| Eye Color | Dark Brown |
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is an American actor and producer, best known for his role of the gangster named Cadillac in the web series The Get Down from 2016 to 2017, after which it was canceled, but went down in history as the 1st Netflix-produced TV series that had its 1st season split into 2 parts instead of being released at once. He has also appeared in TV and web series such as The Handmaid’s Tale (2018) as Omar, Black Mirror (2019) as Karl, and Watchmen (2019) as Cal Abraham. He is perhaps better known for his movie roles in The Vanishing of Sidney Hall (2017) as Duane and Baywatch (2017) as Sgt. Ellerbee alongside Dwayne Johnson, Zac Efron, Priyanka Chopra, Alexandra Daddario, Kelly Rohrbach, and Hannibal Buress. Yahya was praised for his dancing skills in The Greatest Showman (2017) in the role of W.D. Wheeler alongside Hugh Jackman, Michelle Williams, Zendaya Coleman, and Rebecca Ferguson.
Yahya has also appeared in movies such as First Match (2018) as Darrel and Boundaries (2018) as Serg. He is also widely recognized for his role in Aquaman (2018) as the villain named Black Manta alongside Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, Willem Dafoe, Patrick Wilson, Nicole Kidman, and Dolph Lundgren. He was also cast in the movie Us (2019) as Russel Thomas / Weyland alongside Winston Duke, Elisabeth Moss, Tim Heidecker, and Anna Diop. Yahya also co-produced and appeared as himself in the short drama, mystery movie Crescendo (2012). Yahya has also amassed a large fanbase online with more than 100k followers on Instagram and more than 50k followers on Twitter.
Born Name
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II
Nick Name
Yahya
Sun Sign
Cancer
Born Place
New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
Residence
- New York City, New York, United States
- Los Angeles, California, United States
Nationality
Education
Yahya attended McClymonds High School in Oakland, California, United States. In 2004, he enrolled in the University of California, Berkeley in Berkeley, California, United States, and graduated with a degree in architecture.
After a friend suggested he should try acting, he got “bug for it,” and was accepted by both Harvard University and New York University. However, he decided to attend Yale School of Drama in New Haven, Connecticut, United States, where he received his Master of Fine Arts degree.
Occupation
Actor, Producer, Architect
Family
- Father – John Ford a.k.a Yahya Abdul-Mateen I (Deceased, 2007)
- Mother – Mary Abdul-Mateen
- Siblings – Nikki Abdul-Mateen (Older Sister), Khadijah Abdul-Mateen (Older Sister),
Aamina Abdul-Mateen (Older Sister). He also has 1 older sister and 1 older brother. - Others – Sylvester William “Sam” Ford (Paternal Grandfather), Evelyn Travis (Paternal Grandmother), Willis Ford (Paternal Great-Grandfather), Mary (Paternal Great-Grandmother), Anthony Travis (Paternal Great-Grandfather), Leontine Christophe (Paternal Great-Grandmother)
Manager
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is represented by –
- William Morris Endeavor (WME) Entertainment (Talent Agent) in Beverly Hills, California, United States
- Anonymous Content (Manager) in Culver City, California, United States, and New York City, New York, United States
- ID Public Relations (Publicist) in Los Angeles, California, United States, and New York City, New York, United States
- Bloom Hergott Diemer Rosenthal Laviolette Feldman Schenkman & Goodman (Legal Representative) in Beverly Hills, California, United States
- Ziffren Brittenham (Legal Representative) in Los Angeles, California, United States
Build
Athletic
Height
6 ft 3 in or 190.5 cm
Weight
90 kg or 198.5 lbs
Race / Ethnicity
Black
He is of African-American descent.
Hair Color
Black
Eye Color
Dark Brown
Sexual Orientation
Unknown
Distinctive Features
Tall Height
Brand Endorsements
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II has endorsed brands such as –
- Calvin Klein (2017)
- Dolce & Gabbana (2018)
- Christian Louboutin (2018)
- Maison Margiela (2018)
- Giuseppe Zanotti (2018)
- Paul Smith (2018)
- Oliver Peoples (2018)
- OVADIA & SONS (2018)
- Sies Marjan (2019)
- VERSANI Jewelry (2019)
- LAW 17 (2019)
- Hugo Boss (2019)
- Coach (2019)
- Louis Vuitton (2019)
- JOHN ELLIOTT (2019)
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II also promoted The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) in 2019.
Religion
Islam
Best Known For
- Getting his big break in 2016 in the role of Cadillac in the web series The Get Down (2016-2017)
- Being the 1st actor to play Aquaman’s arch-enemy Black Manta in the live-action movie Aquaman (2018)
- Co-producing and starring in the short drama movie Crescendo (2012)
- His social media fanbase with more than 100k followers on Instagram and more than 50k followers on Twitter
First Film
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II made his first theatrical film appearance as Duane in the comedy-drama film The Vanishing of Sidney Hall in 2017.
First Web Show
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II made his first web show appearance as Cadillac in an episode titled Where There Is Ruin, There Is Hope for a Treasure of the drama series The Get Down in August 2016.
Personal Trainer
During preparations for his role in the web series The Get Down (2016-2017), Yahya spent as much as 7 hours a day learning disco dancing. When he was cast in the movie The Greatest Showman (2017), he stated that he has a love-hate relationship with working out, as he doesn’t enjoy the experience, but never regrets doing it. Yahya was then cast as the imposing, muscular villain in Aquaman (2018) but knew that his physique wasn’t up to par, as he was much lighter than needed due to all of the cardio and dancing he did for the previous project.
He told his trainer that he doesn’t want a physique of a bodybuilder, but wants to be “heavy on his feet,” and to “feel the ground firmly beneath his feet.” Around May 2017, he was already training intensely with the help of Fitness by Fortitude, still claiming he hated working out but held himself to a simple mantra: “Pick up heavy sh*t. Put it down. Do that sh*t again.” He wore a costume in the movie, but it was obvious that he truly filled it up instead of moviemakers using clever contouring and CGI. In May 2019, he shared a gym mirror selfie showing his shredded but muscular physique, stating he was ready for his appearance in the role of Cal Abraham in the TV series Watchmen (2019).
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II Favorite Things
Actors – Gary Oldman, Regina King
Source – Instagram, Instagram
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II Facts
- His dad changed his name from John Ford to Yahya Abdul-Mateen I when he converted to Islam because Yahya means John in Arabic. His mom was Christian.
- He knew that he wanted to be an architect since he was 5 years old.
- Growing up, he wanted to be like Michael Jackson.
- Yahya moved with his whole family from the Magnolia Projects neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana to Oakland, California, United States as a kid.
- His dad died in 2007 from cancer, while Yahya was still studying architecture at college. He said he lost his best friend on that day, and was angry at life and couldn’t comprehend the reality as he always thought his dad would pull through.
- While he was studying at the University of California, Berkeley, Yahya’s track team’s teammate recommended him to give acting a try for extra credit.
- According to him, acting was always somewhere in the back of his head, so when he was fired from a job of a city planner/architect in San Francisco, California, United States, it made his decision much easier.
- He hadn’t seen the Baywatch (1989-2001) TV series prior to his role in the movie Baywatch (2017). Yahya stated that he always watched other TV shows that were on at the time and somehow missed it.
- Yahya didn’t know how to swim for Baywatch (2017) and never told the cast. He was afraid that swimming would be required for Aquaman (2018), so, he learned how to swim by watching YouTube tutorials before the production started. In the end, he didn’t have to swim in the movie at all.
- His 1st celebrity crush was Julia Roberts. On December 2018, during an episode of The Late Late Show with James Corden, he got the chance to meet her in person as they were both guests.
- Both he and the Oscar-winner Lupita Nyong’o won Herschel Williams Prize for their outstanding acting ability from Yale School of Drama, although years apart.
- There were rumors circulating around in February 2019 that he would replace Tony Todd in the movie Candyman. A month later Nia DaCosta, film’s director, stated it was never the case.
- Jordan Peele charmed him with his personality while they worked on the movie Us (2019). Yahya said about Jordan: “He keeps the morale high on set and he celebrates actors’ successes. I felt like I was really working with someone who was taking care of my talent.”
- Follow him on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
Featured Image by Gage Skidmore / Flickr / CC BY-SA 2.0
