It was the moment before what would be one of the largest global streaming events of 2024, and Nathan Allan Williams-Bonner could tell that the horse he was responsible for was nervous. 

Williams-Bonner, a 30-year-old show jumper and newly minted Hollywood stunt rider from San Diego, had a crucial job in the “Beyoncé Bowl,” the halftime show featuring the mega-star Beyoncé held during the Christmas Day NFL game between the Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans, streamed live on Netflix. 

Beyoncé was set to walk into the NRG Stadium in Houston at the start of her first live performance since her influential first country album, “Cowboy Carter,” dropped earlier this year. The show was choreographed with her riding into the arena in a glamorous bedazzled white bodysuit and chaps, cowboy hat, aboard a half-Andalusian gelding named Marshmallow. Williams-Bonner’s job was leading Marshmallow down a chute inside the stadium toward the field while Beyoncé sang, timing Marshmallow’s footfalls to the beat of the music, past firework displays, antique cars and more distractions. 

“Her life was in my hands,” he said. 

Williams-Bonner said he could tell Beyoncé was nervous, too. 

He was costumed in a white cowboy hat and bandana to walk the brilliantly white horse into the stadium. Not one person—any experienced horseman or the general public—could tell horse, handler and mega-star had shared a bout of nerves. Beyoncé hopped off and strode into the field as her performance continued. 

“Of course I didn’t want to fumble this moment,” Williams-Bonner said, “so I tried to keep the horse as relaxed as possible. But I think anyone would be nervous in this moment. I could see she really wanted to be present, and she really pulled it off.” 

Williams-Bonner relied on his many years of horse training experience to ensure Marshmallow was focused on him during their moment in the spotlight. The trainer had performed in several commercials and done stunt work in Hollywood before he was invited to be part of Beyoncé’s star-studded cowboy event. It felt like all his hard work over the years had come full circle in that moment. 

“Beyoncé and her team reached out to real people in this industry, the ones who are really doing it,” he said. “She catapulted us all onto this stage and it was all real. All authentic.” 

It’s true: Beyond tapping horsemen like Williams-Bonner and others with Compton Cowboy roots and their horses, Beyoncé sang with Black country artists Tanner Adell, Brittney Spencer, Reyna Roberts and Tiera Kennedy. She also included the entire Texas Southern University marching band in her performance. 

But Williams-Bonner’s day-to-day life with horses is hardly as glamorous as it was on Christmas Day. An aspiring show jumper, he works full-time for a breeding farm, Sunsprite Warmbloods, in Temecula, California, and teaches lessons and trains horses for clients. He started doing on-film work with horses just this year, thanks to a former competitor on the A-circuit, Scarlet Walker, who along with her mother operates a company for the movie industry called Horses for Productions. 

Williams-Bonner and his horses have performed in movies with celebrities like Zendaya and did a Lancôme commercial this year. 

It was Williams-Bonner’s personal horse, a Holsteiner called Charlie, who initially got him involved in the Beyoncé Bowl, he said. 

“It kind of fell into my lap,” Williams-Bonner said. “Scarlet reached out first about my horse. I had been training him and others for productions and taking every opportunity that came my way.” 

Charlie ultimately wasn’t picked for the performance, but Williams-Bonner himself was hired as a horse handler. His job changed multiple times, before finally the director decided he’d be the one to lead Beyoncé into the stadium. 

“I remember my friend came over and said, ‘You just got an upgrade,’” he said. 

During rehearsals, Williams-Bonner got to spend time with the star herself. He described Beyoncé as “super nice.” But most of his time was spent exercising the horses and making sure they felt comfortable in their roles before the big event. 

After the performance went off without a hitch, Williams-Bonner heard from friends and family who were so thrilled to see him on Netflix. More than 27 million people tuned in. 

“My family called and were freaking out,” he said. “We grew up putting on her music and being mesmerized by what she does. It’s crazy to think I got to do this.” 

But for those who know Williams-Bonner, it seems like a natural step in a life he’s made with horses. 

The first memory Williams-Bonner has of horses is shortly after he moved from Long Beach, California, to Carson, a city neighboring Compton, to live with his grandmother. One day, his grandfather strode down the street on a black stallion. 

“I got to ride around the block with him,” Williams-Bonner recalled. “I knew then I wanted to do it more often.” 

After school, his grandparents would take him to what is now the stables of the Compton Cowboys, a group made up of childhood friends who use horses and equestrian culture to provide a positive influence on diverse inner-city youth. In those early years, Williams-Bonner became a member of the Compton Junior Posse, where he performed in western events and local parades. 

It didn’t take long for others in the local community to take note of Williams-Bonner’s talent. Horse show manager Dale Harvey, of West Palms Events, offered him a sponsorship to learn to ride in English events. Williams-Bonner was among the first recipients of a Michael Nyuis grant, before the program became a formalized foundation. 

“It was a culture shock,” Williams-Bonner said. “It took a while to get acclimated to this different life, but I knew I wanted to do it.” 

He remembers meeting equestrians in the show jumping and hunter/jumper communities from all over the world, and those connections served him well when he decided to become a professional at age 18. 

In terms of what’s next, Williams-Bonner could see his equestrian career going in a number of different directions. He is interested in climbing the levels of show jumping, and he sees a path toward building a sales business for show jumping horses. But he also has the itch for the Hollywood stunt work and training horses for movies. 

“Right now I’m cultivating everything that I have,” he said. “It’s all happening simultaneously.”

Working with a star as big as Beyoncé is just the beginning, he hopes.

“Our community is so small. It’s like a family. Being out there with Beyoncé was like, we made it. It was like old times, but still we stand,” he said. “It was a full-circle moment to get that kind of recognition.”