Why Aquaman's Yahya Abdul-Mahteen II Was Worried About Playing Black Manta

Aquaman is coming out in a few days and fans cannot wait to see how Warner Bros. handles the infamous character's first solo adventure on the big screen. He technically debuted in the live-action version of Justice League but this is his first solo adventure and fans are excited to see Atlantis. Some fans are nervous of course and it turns out one of the film's actors was as well.

Yahya Abdul-Mahnteen II, who plays as Black Manta in the movie, was worried that the character he was playing would be too silly for the big screen. After all, his helmet is huge and he shoots lasers from it, making him a less-cool version of Cyclops from the X-Men, at least visually. Once you get to know the character, he is actually pretty complex and interesting.

"My very first impression, I looked him up, I Googled it, and I said. 'This guy, he looks kind of silly.' And then my second thing was there, 'Well, I don't want to do this. If I do this nobody is going to see my face!'"

The concerns he shared with CinemaBlend are more than understandable since what works in comic books won't always fit well in movies. There's a reason why none of the live-action versions of Bullseye wear his silly mask. Still, fans were pleased with how the character ended up looking in the film and it should please many.

Manta has appeared in a number of DC media, including animated shows like Young Justice and video games such as Injustice 2, though he was DLC in that game. He was treated well in both of those and here's hoping the character is given the same respect in this movie.

Aquaman comes out on December 20.

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