CREED Star Michael B. Jordan Would Gladly Do A Superhero Movie Again; Talks FANTASTIC FOUR
After Fantastic Four, it'd be understandable if Michael B. Jordan wanted to steer clear of superhero movies. However, that's anything but the case as on a recent podcast, while discussing the critically acclaimed Creed, he shared he'd be down to put on a suit again and more!
Even though, 20th Century Fox's Fantastic Four reboot turned out to be a film severely lacking in highlight reel moments, at the end of the day, there was at least one bright spot: the presence of Michael B. Jordan as Johnny Storm a.k.a. the Human Torch.
At the time of the film's release, there were some concerns in the media that the Josh Trank-directed disappointment would adversely affect the future careers of its talented young cast, specifically Jordan & Kate Mara, but after the release of Ridley Scott's The Martian & Ryan Coogler's Creed, both actors have pretty much put all concerns to rest. The two aforementioned films have received universal critical acclaim, commercial success, and are both currently generating serious Oscar buzz.
After the Fantastic Four's poor box office performance, no one would would have held it against Michael B. Jordan if he didn't want to step back into a spandex suit anytime soon, however, it seems as though Jordan, who is a self-proclaimed huge comic book and anime fan, would be more than willing to return to a superhero role if the opportunity presented itself. On Bill Simmons' latest podcast on Wednesday, when asked about superhero movies in general, Jordan told the popular sports personality that: "I would gladly do it again." He then went on to share a few compelling thoughts on what he learned from his whole experience working on the Fantastic Four.
Check out the transcript of the conversation below and keep scrolling to listen to the full podcast:
Michael B. Jordan: It's a rite of passage.
Bill Simmons: The only one that never did it was Leo.
MBJ: Leo didn't.
BS: Never did a boxing movie.
MBJ: or put on a suit.
BS: What do you mean put on a suit?
MBJ: Leo didn't put on a spandex as far as a superhero.
BS: Ohhhhh, that was another rite of passage for you.
MBJ: Which is one that you know I would gladly do again, it was a, as me being a comic book fan, and yeah, for that, it was just like a dream come true being able to play that character.
BS: How long was that filming?
MBJ: We shot that film for three-to-four months.
BS: Well, as you know, I always worry about you.
MBJ: Why?
BS: Well, I like you, and I want you to do well.
MBJ: Appreciate it.
BS: But, I was worried when there was bad buzz with that movie and I was like I hope this doesn't, well you know, sometimes with a movie, there's a little stink that gets on different people and I was like 'he should get out of this,' but it seems like you did get out of there.
MBJ: No, yeah, I got out of there pretty clean, you know, it's one of those things where it was a lesson for me that really made me realize that things aren't in your control.
BS: Right.
MBJ: ...and you can like want.
BS: I'm still learning that lesson.
MBJ: Yeah, *laughs* no seriously, right, I mean you know.
BS: *laughs* I would know more than anyone.
MBJ: You can get up everyday and be like 'I'm going to give 110% to this one thing' or to anything and it still not turn out how people want it or how you expected it to and it doesn't mean that you're a failure or it doesn't mean that you didn't do a great job, it just means that as a whole, as a project, there are so many other pieces that are moving that have nothing to do with you that determine the outcome of a film, so that was kinda one of those things that I had to come to terms with.
BS: Actors are like baseball players, you're not going to bat a thousand, once you know that, you're just not, that's not happening.
MBJ: Yeah, that was somehing me and my team were kinda saying for a while, 'You know, I'm kinda batting a thousand right now,' which felt kinda good.
BS: Yeah, 'all my choices have been solid.'
MBJ: I stuck to the plan, we had a gameplan, I stuck to it, we made all the right decisions, but sometimes, you know, nobody bats a thousand.
BS: But, here's the thing about actors, you have one good one and that's it, people only remember the last movie, it's not like people are sitting there thinking 'Hey, I'm going to go through MBJ's IMDb.com today and grade the ups and downs.' They just remember what the last movie was.
MBJ: Thank God.
Check out the full podcast, which covers a variety of topics, including the process behind making the critically acclaimed Creed, below. It's a great listen, so I highly recommend checking it out in full, especially if you're a fan of MBJ, but if you're only looking for the Fantastic Four conversation, skip ahead to around the 28:10 mark.
THE FANTASTIC FOUR, a contemporary re-imagining of Marvel's original and longest-running superhero team, centers on four young outsiders who teleport to an alternate and dangerous universe, which alters their physical form in shocking ways. Their lives irrevocably upended, the team must learn to harness their daunting new abilities and work together to save Earth from a former friend turned enemy.
Fantastic Four features:
Director: Josh Trank
Miles Teller as Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic
Michael B. Jordan as Johnny Storm/Human Torch
Kate Mara as Susan Storm/Invisible Woman
Jamie Bell as Ben Grimm/The Thing
Toby Kebbell as Victor Domashev/Doctor Doom
Reg E. Cathey as Dr. Franklin Storm
Tim Blake Nelson as Harvey Elder
Fantastic Four hits Blu-ray/DVD on December 15
Creed is out in theaters everywhere NOW!