Can you believe that Michael B. Jordan has been in the business for nearly three decades. There he got his started in background roles of The Sopranos and The Cosby Show, his first principal role was 2001’s Hardball. Since then, the Emmy nominee has been a main stay in television with roles on House, Bones, Friday Night Lights, and The Wire. However, that changed when he got his first lead gig in a film: Fruitvale Station.
Michael B. Jordan was highly praised for his performance as Oscar Grant and the 37-year-old has been flourishing on the big screen ever since. The actor has 62 roles (according IMDB), but this list will narrow his five best that has marked such a tremendous career.
Vince Howard (Friday Night Lights)
On the surface, Michael B. Jordan’s character is your stereotypical Black male in television and films. A brilliant kid caught up in a dangerous world. However, the series did a solid job of respectful exploring his character during such a chaotic and trauma life. Coming from a corrupt home where his mother was a drug dealer and his father was not a good role model, Vince being able to navigate such turmoil and become a star football player was an inspiring and fascinating watch. Plus, it really got Jordan to showcase his acting chops in a way that he wasn’t able to in The Wire or other minor supporting roles.
Guy Montag (Fahrenheit 451)
Fahrenheit 451 is a fascinating dystopian film. The film follows a bunch of firemen who burns books in a futuristic City. It’s a version of society relying on technology to cloud their brains and prevent the kids of the future from getting smarter. Fahrenheit has some spotty plotting in the HBO film, but it’s still a darn good one. It’s a complex role for Michael B. Jordan, who’s trying to uncover the truth and conspiracy behind such questionable actions. Fahreneheit 451 asks some interesting questions and does a solid job answering them, and it helps that Jordan’s displays a nuance performance in a role that typically against what he plays.
Oscar Grant (Fruitvale Station)
Oscar Grant III was tragically killed in 2009 due to a police officer shooting the young man in the back. It was a tragic incident that caused a mass riot in the California area. Ryan Coogler wanted to celebrate the life of Grant during his final hours before the horrific incident. Fruitvale Station does an excellent job of painting the picture of flawed, but good hearted young man who was trying to get his life in order.
The film documents the troubles he has with the law, but then cements that Grant was on the path to something positive after his latest stint in prison. Ryan Coogler managed to beautiful capture this all in the manner of a single day; highlight nice character moments such as him helping a dog after it got ran over or sneaking in an extra snack for his daughter’s school lunch. This was Michael B. Jordan’s first role as the lead, but he felt like such a nature as the charismatic Grant.
It’s a slice-of-life film where Jordan nicely captures the high and lows of Grant through his physical performance. It also helps that he’s working alongside Octavia Spencer and Melonie Diaz, who have good onscreen chemistry with the actor. Everything comes across as natural and realism due to the gravity of their performances, and even though we know how the story ends with Grant, the emotional journey still manages to pulls us into his compelling story.
Bryan Stevenson (Just Mercy)
A gut-wrenching story about an upcoming lawyer looking to do right by saving a death row inmate, who’s being falsely accused of murder. While Just Mercy comes across as more of an Oscar bait type film, that still doesn’t mean that Jordan doesn’t strike the right tone as Stevenson. Walter McMillian has lost all hope in being saved from his death sentence, so to witness the uphill battle that Stevenson had to go through just even get McMillian to even accept him as a lawyer was gripping. Michael B. Jordan may be built like an action star, but these roles showcased just how good of a raw and emotional performer he really is. Just Mercy continues to highlight his growth as an actor and why he’s still one of the top names in the business.
Adonis Creed (Creed)
This role felt perfectly suited for Jordan. In the beginning, the idea of a Rocky spin-off sounded like a terrible idea, but Ryan Coogler and Jordan quickly dispelled those thoughts. The story is rather simple, but Creed isn’t trying to be complex. The film highlights the humanity behind the son of a boxing legend. Him grappling with his demons while trying to prove his mother wrong about boxing is engaging because of the tight directions of Coogler and Jordan’s committed performance. But Creed is more than just an acting role, and Jordan nicely showcases his physical prowess in the action scenes. He genuinely feels like a boxer based on his instinctual patterns and behaviors inside of the ring. That helped build the tension and drama within his fights, and demonstrated that Jordan isn’t a one trick pony.
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