Black Panther challenged Michael B. Jordan physically and mentally
By Erik Swann
Michael B. Jordan’s latest role in Black Panther took him to some very interesting places as an actor.
Next to Chadwick Boseman’s T’Challa, Michael B. Jordan’s Erik Killmonger is probably the character that fans are most looking forward to seeing in Marvel’s Black Panther. From the moment he first appeared in that teaser trailer, fans have been anxious to see him in action. This will be Jordan’s first time playing a villain, something he’d wanted to do for a while. And, according to the actor, it was quite an experience.
In a recent interview with Empire, Jordan explained that to play the role he had to allow himself to enter a dark space internally, which left a lasting mark on him:
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"“It took me to a dark place. Honestly, I can’t really go through all I went through to get into it because I want to keep that close to me. But it stuck with me afterwards.”"
When he wasn’t focused on developing Killmonger, the actor “had a lot of fun on set” mixing it up with his co-star, Chadwick Boseman. The two also bonded over the intense physicality of their roles:
"“Chadwick’s a very talented dude. There’s a lot of physical moments and action sequences throughout this film that cause us to really challenge ourselves, and also fall deeper into character.”"
It’s no secret that the Marvel Cinematic Universe doesn’t have the strongest roster of bad guys. Aside from a few solid and genuinely good ones, most have been somewhat disposable. However, Killmonger looks very promising.
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He’s a Wakandan outcast, who wants to rule the futuristic, African nation himself, and he has specific reasons for wanting to do so. He’s proven to be more than a physical match for Black Panther. On a side note, he also looks to be one of the “smoother” rogues to come out of the MCU. Killmonger’s debut is steadily approaching, and fans will finally get to see how he wreaks havoc in T’Challa’s world.
Black Panther hits theaters on February 16, 2018.