SDCC 2019: Yara Shahidi illuminates Stan Lee's Alliances: A Trick of Light

Before his passing in 2018, comic book icon Stan Lee still had projects in the works. One of those, Stan Lee's Alliances: A Trick of Light, is an Audible original co-authored by Kat Rosenfield, Luke Lieberman, and Ryan Silbert. Black-ish and Grown-ish star Yara Shahidi narrated the recent release, and she couldn’t hide her excitement when talking to SYFY WIRE about it at Comic-Con. She’s so passionate about Lee and Jack Kirby’s X-Men that she even got a tattoo to memorialize her fandom. 

“I’ve always loved everything Stan Lee has ever done,” said Shahidi. “The universe he created is one of my first touchpoints for believing in the surreal or the extraordinary. To be able to bring some of his work to life, and as an audiobook, is so cool because that’s how I grew up. I grew up listening to audiobooks.”

Shahidi told us how she strives to make her enthusiasm apparent through each chapter of the story, as well as the way she keeps herself and the audience focused throughout. She also stressed the importance of representation within the superhero genre. It’s a topic that she’s clearly passionate about, and it informs her love for the X-Men.

“I’m X-Men obsessed,” admitted Shahidi. “I first fell in love with the universe when I saw the allegories and analogies between the X-Men and the Civil Rights movement. The parallels between Professor X and Martin Luther King; and Magneto and Malcolm X.”

For more details about Shahidi’s fandom, and Stan Lee’s Alliances, check out the full video!