Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is everywhere lately, from his turn as the villainous Black Manta in Aquaman and his Emmy award-winning role in HBO's Watchmen, to his most recent role as Bobby Seale in Aaron Sorkin's The Trial of the Chicago 7. One of his biggest roles is yet to come, though, as one of the stars of the Matrix 4. Abdul-Mateen talked about the role in a new interview with Variety, and about his unusual audition process for it.

　　"No one understands the Matrix except for Keanu Reeves and Lana Wachowski," Abdul-Mateen said. With that mystery in mind, the actor continued, "you learn to find meaning [in your role], and then you go test it out. If no one says anything, then you just trust that you ended up doing the right thing."

　　You need a javascript enabled browser to watch videos.

　　Click To Unmute

　　Tears Of The Kingdom Is A Technological Marvel

　　Resident Evil 4 Is A Perfect RemakeHow Alan Wake II Made Me Face My Fear of Horror GamesGameSpot's Top 10 Games of 2023Thompson: The Pop Culture Icon’s Strange Legacy - LoadoutFirearms Expert’s FAVORITE Weapons Of 2023State Of Gaming Handhelds In 2023Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Ichiban Kasuga Character Spotlight TrailerHow Lies of P Cracked the Souls GenreLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Chitose Fujinomiya Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Eric Tomizawa Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Kazuma Kiryu Character Spotlight Trailer

　　Share

　　LinkEmbed

　　Size:640 × 360480 × 270

　　Start at: End at: Autoplay Loop

　　Want us to remember this setting for all your devices?

　　Sign up or Sign in now!

　　Please use a html5 video capable browser to watch videos.

　　This video has an invalid file format.

　　00:00:00

　　HTML5

　　Auto HD High Low

　　Report a problem

　　Sorry, but you can't access this content!

Please enter your date of birth to view this video

　　By clicking 'enter', you agree to GameSpot's

　　Terms of Use and Privacy Policy

　　enter

　　Now Playing: The Matrix Explained | 20th Anniversary Of The Matrix

　　The audition process lasted two days, but Abdul-Mateen said it wasn't grueling as one might assume for a kung-fu sci-fi epic. "Lana and I did more conversing than we did acting in the audition because she's building a family," Abdul-Mateen said. When Wachoswki called him to tell him he got the part, the actor said that she told him, "I would love to invite you to the family."

　　"I had the biggest smile in the world," Abdul-Mateen said. "I was on top of the world, man."

　　GameSpot Newsletters

　　Get the latest gaming news, reviews, and deals sent to your inbox, FREE!

　　Sign Up

　　Sign Up

　　By signing up to receive newsletters, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.

　　Thanks for signing up

　　The interview goes into Abdul-Mateen's time as Bobby Seale, too, as well as his own future, which Abdul-Mateen said will hopefully include directing with a focus on New Orleans or West Oakland.

　　"I want to do something fun, I want to do something with music, and something epic," he said of his future plans. "These people are larger than life. We live larger than life. We experience the hihgest highs and lowest lows and we're resilient."

　　The Matrix 4 is scheduled to hit theaters on December 22, 2022 after COVID-related delays pushed it out of its April 1, 2022 spot, as it did with so many other films.

　　Eric Frederiksen on Google+