Jordan aka John Kelly take in a lot of action as he seeks justice for the murder of his pregnant wife by Russian soldiers. With impressive muscle and his voice raspy, the actor debuted with his production company in partnership with Amazon. It wasn’t that long ago when Jordan, a young kid from Newark, N.J., was playing Wallace as part of the ensemble cast of teens on David Simon’s prolific series The Wire.
And over the span of 20 years, we’ve literally watched this actor grow up before our eyes. Now he’s spreading his wings as producer of the movie Without Remorse, Jordan is proving his versatility time and again. Not just his acting, but also his good looks and fitness have made him a phenomenon among men and women across the world as he was chosen as 2020’s Sexiest Man Alive by People’s Magazine.
Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse, is an action thriller film starring Michael B. Jordan, directed by Stefano Sollima. In love with Madrid, the actor confessed he wants to start traveling again to visit the capital of Spain.
Q: Movie world is upside down. Do you think the streaming companies are going to replace the movie theater for the audiences?
A: It is given access to movies that otherwise would not have an audience and now people can see them. Certain films are obviously intended to be shot and shown in a movie theater but I think the evolution right now takes us here. We are in an evolving time especially with the pandemic last year that has made it faster. The industry is trying to figure out where we are going to peeved, how are we going to bring a movie out to the masses, so there everybody has the opportunity to watch it so luckily enough we were able to land in a place like Amazon to house this film and is an evolution. Is going to be a healthy balance between those two, theaters and streaming. There is something about sitting at home and being able to have instant access to the movies that you want to see, but there is also wonderful in going to the theater and having that experience as well, is going to be a healthy balance in the future.
Q: This film is your first movie from your production company. How was that experience?
A: Being involved from the very beginning to the end and hands on in the way of how to build stunts and the process not having producing experience. I had a good team to help me and I did follow their lead on how to package together what we should do in an intense airplane craft and working with the visual effect supervisor to work out that sequence and how we were going to practice and shoot it, or how we were going to train on shoot in the water tanks … just going through the process of building that out it was a learning curve for myself. I walk away from this movie with more knowledge and experience on how to put those sequence together.
Q: Is it difficult to work with you as an actor when you are also the boss?
A: So I know when to shut up and listen, and learn and be a sponge on this one. I think we can be really happy with the results. Finding the balance as an actor and producer was important. Stefano wanted to find that balance that comes with camaraderie and a brother and sister relationship ahead to make sure that the audience understood that it was deeper than just friends. But, at the same time, we didn’t want to be confused about their relationship by the dynamic. I think we wanted to be really clear that they loved each other but it was more I have your back no matter what, like I’m not going to leave you behind. We were able to define those dynamics on the relation while we respect the relation between Jon and Pam.
Q: What does it mean for you to play John Kelly, the character of Tom Clancy novels?
A: Us, actors and actresses, are limited on the opportunities that we have and we need to work and express ourselves throughout our work. Sometimes, the least we can get is to express a lot in an action scene or that type of way. I’ve been lucky to have scene partners generous and understanding on the emotional beats of what a person can be going through in certain situations that add so many layers to the performance across the board.
Q: How it was your preparation for the action scenes and how long can you keep your breath under the water?
A: At least a song. Breath and breathing can be trained and exercised. if you start training and exercising that muscle you definitely can do it as well. Underwater training was something that we did for a lot of time, because we knew that we had these sequences. Stefano had developed a very detailed board with those scenes and I knew I had to do it. I hooked with some military trainer and we spent time in the tanks and we had some stressful situations that we needed to solve, working malfunctions, gear failure, work with military apparatus as rebreathers, machines that soldiers wear that suppress all the bubbles to breath under the water without leaving trace, anyway it was a very detail training and I end holding my breath under the water around 3 minutes. If you are calm and sitting still, you can hold your breath a lot longer . There is a moment in the movie where you see me at peace under the water and that is the one that everybody is talking about.
Q: Were you afraid of making your own stunts?
A: It was fun. I am an action junkie. When I was a kid these were the movies that I watched and I always wanted to be in one. That was part of my imagination and now it's wonderful to have the opportunity to train and do the majority of my stunts. I had an incredible stunt team and when Stefano said that he wanted me to do all the stunts, we still worked with stunt doubles and people who actually vetted the sequences and made sure we were safe and taught us the proper way to be able to handle those situations. We were bung up during the process but It was worth it.
Q: How does the script come to your production company? You looked for Stefano to direct the movie?
A: The script had been around for a few years when I came across it. If these stories are floating around for a while, you need fresh eyes to tell the story from a different perspective to make it current. And yes, I looked for Stefano as I think he is a great director. After sitting down with him and knowing his vision I wanted him to be a part of it . His understanding of the story and themes and messages we wanted to send through the movie was mesmerizing and I am very happy with the result. I didn't want the audiences to keep seeing me die in roles, and my mom, every time I watched her watch me die onscreen, it tore me up. I just wanted to play a role so she could see me win. I wanted to take the challenge as the story feels relevant today.
Q: Black Panther is becoming an iconic movie but you seem to keep going turning stones on your path
A: I’m so proud of Black Panther, anything that comes from it, I welcome it with open arms. We put our blood, sweat and tears into it. And we wanted to do something to impact our culture. People around me are telling me that I have to rest. I really drown myself in work because I enjoy the process of making things happen and putting things together and completing tasks. I have the energy for it. I’m not always going to be 31. It’s a moment and I’ve worked up to this point, to finally have things open up the way they are right now. I don’t feel like resting, so I just don’t.
Q; I heard you speak Spanish?
A: I love Spanish culture. I was in Madrid during the promotion of my last movie, Creed II and I loved it. My knowledge of the language is not very fluid but I can understand and make myself understood. I can wait until we all can travel again and go to Madrid to visit.
Q: Have you read any Spanish authors?
A: I read Carlos Ruiz Zafon’s Shadow of the Wind. Spain’s literary output is both exciting and prolific without a doubt.
Q: Do you want to create a franchise with John Kelly and Without Remorse?
A: Sometimes, if these stories are floating around for a while, you need fresh eyes to tell the story from a different perspective. I hope that the movie can be the start of a franchise, what we need to wait for.
Maria Estevez
Correspondent writer
