Michael B. Jordan reflects on the emotional and creative journey behind his latest collaboration with Ryan Coogler in their film Sinners.
In a new conversation with Deadlinethe actor recalled his reaction when Coogler first approached him about the challenge of playing identical twins.
“You hit him right on the head,” Jordan began.
He then described the deep trust and long-standing creative connection he shares with the filmmaker.
“Ryan knows me very well and for me the challenge was definitely the main thing.”
He later acknowledged that the idea immediately sparked mixed emotions.
“It made me nervous, at first. Then, equal parts nervous and excited. I also learned to trust him. He doesn’t say things he doesn’t mean, so when he comes to me with an idea, I know he’s thought about it long and hard and taken a lot into consideration,” he explained.
Jordan added that when Coogler tells him, “Hey, yo, I wrote that for you,” it carries real weight. “How can you not respond as an artist? He took the time to think about it, and he also looks at it from my perspective: I think this is going to be really great for you. It’s powerful. I’ve never seen you do anything like this. It’s going to be a challenge.”
The actor shared that reading the script confirmed everything Coogler had promised and pushed him to deliver. It also became a tribute to their late friend Chadwick Boseman.
“It made me want to see if I could do this…and pay tribute and honor our friend Chadwick Boseman, who passed away,” Jordan said.
He noted that maintaining the dialect throughout the film added another emotional layer, as he often wondered: What would he do?
“That’s how we felt, especially because of the need to maintain the dialect throughout the film and strive to produce a performance as convincing as the ones he did,” Jordan said. “There’s also a certain level of respect and admiration, because there was such a connection between us. In many ways, I’m filled with this feeling of: What would he do?”
“It was a next level, a piece of equipment that I had to develop and have with me. So it propelled me even further,” he concluded.
