Wonder Man actors Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Sir Ben Kingsley are now major Marvel stars, but they still remember what it was like to be a struggling actor so desperate to land a role that you’d do anything in auditions … even lie.
In the new MCU series that takes a meta look at the Hollywood industry, Abdul-Mateen II’s character Simon lies in his audition for the fake Wonder Man movie-within-the-show. And it’s an experience that Abdul-Mateen II found all too relatable, because it reminded him of the massive lie he told that helped him get his previous comic book role.
“In the Aquaman [movie] series, I said that I could swim, and I could not swim,” Abdul-Mateen II tells Entertainment Weekly with a laugh. “I could not swim to save my life! But they asked me if I could do that. ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, sure, sure, sure. Absolutely.'”
Courtesy of Marvel Television
Thankfully, it all worked out — Abdul-Mateen II secretly taught himself how to swim for a few weeks before filming began on the first Aquaman film. Looking back on it now, he doesn’t regret being dishonest in that pivotal audition.
And listening to his Wonder Man costar’s story sparked a similar memory for Kingsley, who reprises his MCU role of Trevor Slattery in the series.
“He just reminded me of something, I actually lied [in an audition] as well,” Kingsley says. “When I was a theater actor, I also had lovely opportunities to bounce in and out of television. It wasn’t an episode of Coronation Street, but around about that time, early BBC drama. They said, ‘Can you ride a scooter, a motor scooter?’ ‘Yeah.’ I crashed it. And they had to get the stunt driver in immediately. But I got the job!”
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Both Kingsley and Abdul-Mateen II agree that as an actor, sometimes you have to do whatever it takes to get the job.
“That’s the most important thing, you get the job,” Abdul-Mateen II says.
Kingsley adds, “You could swim and I could ride the scooter. It all worked out.”
Their aspiring actor characters would be so proud.
Wonder Man is now streaming on Disney+.
Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly
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