Abdul-Mateen was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, to a Muslim father, Yahya Abdul-Mateen I and a Christian mother, Mary.[2][1] He spent his childhood in the Magnolia Projects of New Orleans, and then moved to Oakland, California,[3][4] where he attended McClymonds High School. In 2004, he went to college where he competed as a hurdler for the California Golden Bears.[1] He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a degree in architecture and then worked as a city planner in San Francisco.[5] He had always wanted to be an actor, later receiving a Master of Fine Arts degree from the Yale School of Drama and working as a stage actor.[4][6]