As far as rising stars go, very few if any are making their way up the Hollywood ladder as fast as Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, who boasts an upcoming schedule absolutely stacked with huge projects virtually guaranteed to do big business at the box office and continue turning him into a household name known across the world.
Following on from his acclaimed turns in HBO’s Watchmen and The Trial of the Chicago 7, the 35 year-old is currently reprising the role of Black Manta in DCEU sequel Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. On top of that, he’s got the hotly-anticipated Candyman reboot and The Matrix 4 coming later this year, while he’s also boarded Mad Max: Furiosa alongside Anya Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth, as well as headlining Emergency Contact, a high concept original actioner set to be produced by Dwayne Johnson.
Mateen II has now added yet another promising title onto his to-do list, with Creed II and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts director Steven Caple Jr. also attached to dystopian crime thriller By All. The premise sees the actor as a character named Donte, who struggles to make ends meet in a world plagued by tragedy in the aftermath of a devastating event.
It’s a world without police, where justice is essentially crowd sourced, meaning there’s plenty of potential for social and political commentary about power imbalances, the strength of community and the dynamic between society and law enforcement. There’s no word yet on when the Warner Bros. production is expected to get underway, but with Mateen II and Caple Jr. both occupied for the foreseeable future with mega budget effects-driven epics, it could be a while yet before By All comes together in front of the camera.