Lights, Camera, Action: How Yahya Abdul-Mateen II Brought ‘Wonder Man’ to Life

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is ready to raise the curtain on Simon Williams.

The 39-year-old actor stars in Wonder Man, the eight-episode Marvel Television series premiering January 27 on Disney+. Abdul-Mateen II is, of course, no stranger to high-pressure blockbuster projects (especially those in the Super Hero genre). But Wonder Man presented a new challenge, requiring the actor to take on an entirely new role… as an actor. 

Created by Andrew Guest and Destin Daniel Cretton (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings), Wonder Man follows young actor Simon Williams (Abdul-Mateen II) as he fights to build a career in Hollywood. Along the way, he strikes up an unlikely friendship with fellow actor Trevor Slattery (Ben Kingsley), and the two find themselves pursuing life-changing roles together — especially when Simon learns that the acclaimed director Von Kovak (Zlatko Burić) is remaking his childhood favorite film, the 1980s cult classic Wonder Man. The resulting series is a heartfelt love letter to odd-couple friendships, chasing your dreams, and the very city of Los Angeles.

Wonder Man is an unconventional show about an unconventional hero, and it’s unlike anything Marvel Television has done before. But when Marvel.com sits down with Abdul-Mateen II just a few days before the show’s Hollywood premiere, he’s feeling no pressure — just exhilaration at finally bringing Simon to the screen.

“It’s about time!” Abdul-Mateen II says with a smile. “I’m excited to introduce him into the Marvel universe. He’s a really quirky character. He’s got a whole lot of upside and potential.”

Here, Abdul-Mateen II opens up about the parallels between his career and Simon’s, the real-life acting advice he got from Ben Kingsley, and the scene where Wonder Man got a little too meta. 

MARVEL.COM: Take me back to the beginning when you first got involved with Wonder Man. What was it about Simon Williams that made you want to tell his story?

YAHYA ABDUL-MATEEN II: At first, it wasn’t even about Simon. It was really about Destin, even before Simon. I’m a fan of Destin’s work: Just Mercy, Short Term 12. I like his filmmaking. It’s earnest. It has a lot of heart. 

I talked to Destin, and he said that he wanted to do something that was different. He was describing this character that was kind of awkward. He was passionate about acting. Simon was easily relatable. His super power, to him, was not the most exciting thing about him. He has a real passion, and that was something I can get behind. 

Also, Destin said that he wanted to shoot it in a way where it sort of felt like an indie. It felt different than some of the other things that were already on the Marvel slate. So I said, “Yeah, I really want to be a part of that.”

MARVEL.COM: So much of this show is about the friendship between Simon and Trevor Slattery, played by Sir Ben Kingsley. They’re very different men, but they have a lot of similarities — especially their shared love for acting. What interested you most about their relationship?

YAHYA ABDUL-MATEEN II: There’s this push and pull of who’s the leader. Trevor has the expertise. Simon has the passion. Simon is looking for a friend, and he’s also trying to teach Trevor: “Look, you have to take things more seriously. You can’t always approach things with a laissez-faire attitude.” Trevor is saying, “Sometimes you just need to calm down and be in the moment and let things happen.” And Simon is like, “No, that’s not my process!” [Laughs]

What was interesting was finding a friendship between two guys on completely different sides of their career but who somehow find themselves in the same place. They have two completely different philosophies on life, but the commonality is that they both have an appreciation for the craft of acting, and that’s what the friendship revolves around. That was pretty special to create that bond. 

MARVEL.COM: Tell me about working with Ben Kingsley. Do you have a favorite memory or day on set with him?

YAHYA ABDUL-MATEEN II: I do think about this one day. In the first episode, Simon has this audition, and he’s flustered and trying to get it together. And then Trevor — I’m almost calling him Sir Ben! [Laughs] — Trevor is telling him basically, “Look, throw all that stuff out. Just take a breath and go.” 

I found myself having a [similar] moment in episode 6 or 7, way later in the season. I was having a moment, and I just looked over to him and said, “I’m sort of feeling some of the things that Simon feels.” My mind was busy. We talked about that and how sometimes you have to just breathe and let it go. It was a real cool scene, where we were just in the car having a conversation, and I was just letting the words come to me. We were just doing it over and over and over, letting the camera roll. That was a moment where I found myself in the role of Simon and I had Sir Ben in the role of Trevor, saying, “Just be cool and let it happen.” 

The funny thing is that the lines blurred sometimes like that, where we would fall into our characters in a mentor-mentee type of way.

MARVEL.COM: I also love how this show captures the experience of being a working actor, from the auditions to the self-tapes to being on set. Is there something about Simon’s experience that felt true to your own journey as an actor?

YAHYA ABDUL-MATEEN II: Most of it. There’s this montage where Simon is trying to make a tape on his own, and he talks about seeing the same actor coming up on Deadline all the time. I remember what it was like 10 years ago when I was in school, and nobody knew who I was at all. I felt like I had so much to give, but nobody knew that I was even there. I was saying, “I just want a shot. I just want a chance.”

Simon’s the same way. Simon sort of represents the actor who is unknown, who is talented and passionate and just needs a break. I definitely resonate with that. There’s also something in Simon where he feels like every job is the last job: “This has to go right, or I’ll never work again.” That’s common to professional actors at every level. It’s just the nature of the job sometimes. Some of that angst I share, but a lot of it is from the past. But it’s all relatable.

MARVEL.COM: It’s not every day you get to be an actor playing an actor. 

YAHYA ABDUL-MATEEN II: That’s the cool thing about the show. I’ve already seen a little bit of conversation already from actors who appreciate us showing what an actor goes through to prepare for an audition. And how much work it actually is! You’re going through and making choices and marking your script up with lines. It really is a job. It’s not just playtime. It’s a craft. 

There are so many hours of work that go into this, so much labor. And that’s all before you even get the job. I’m glad the show sheds light on that — but we also do it in a humorous and heartfelt way, so it doesn’t alienate you if you’re not an actor.

MARVEL.COM: In the show, Simon is a big fan of the original 1980s Wonder Man film, and he talks about how important that movie was to him as a kid. Did you have a movie or a TV show from your childhood that you feel that way about?

YAHYA ABDUL-MATEEN II: Oh yeah. It’s probably Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. We’re a big Dick Van Dyke household. Mary Poppins and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, we used to just sit and watch those movies over and over in my household. We even make sure that all the new babies see those movies too because we’ve got to be able to talk about it! 

When you’re young and you latch onto a movie, you latch onto the characters and the possibility. We just loved the idea of a flying car. And we get to sing songs and go to a candy factory and beat up the bad guy? Yeah, I wanted to be those kids. I wanted that life. [Laughs] 

MARVEL.COM: When you think back to filming Wonder Man, did you have a favorite day on set or a scene that sticks out in your memory?

YAHYA ABDUL-MATEEN II: It’s not really my favorite, but the first day on set. People have been saying this show is so meta, and that hasn’t really been my experience. But there was one day on set, the first day of filming, where it happened. My first day was also Simon’s first day on the TV show [in the first episode]. 

So it’s my first day on set, and I don’t know the crew. We have our crew, but we also have the fake crew! And I’m used to be treated… well, like a star. [Laughs] But Simon is not a star! Simon doesn’t have a golf cart. Simon is standing around on set, and he doesn’t have a chair. And I was so discombobulated in that moment! 

It was strange. It was humbling. I did not like it. [Laughs] That first day of filming was very confusing to me. 

MARVEL.COM: That’s so funny. I guess you’d meet a production assistant on set and have to ask, “Are you a real PA, or are you an actor playing a PA?” 

YAHYA ABDUL-MATEEN II: It was exactly that! It was strange. [Laughs] 

There was one day later on where I kept acting to the fake camera. We were shooting a scene, and they kept coming back wondering why I was facing this direction. I was like, “This is my shot!” and they’re like, “No, that’s a fake camera. That camera’s not on. That over there is your camera.” [Laughs] 

I guess when you’re shooting a TV show about shooting a movie, a lot of confusing things can happen. And it certainly did happen to me — but I think it makes for good TV. 

Wonder Man streams on Disney+ beginning January 27, 2026.