Michael B. Jordan admitted that growing up with one of the most famous names in sports wasn’t easy.
The Sinners star revealed on CBS Sunday Morning that as a kid in the 1990s, he was constantly teased for sharing a name with NBA legend Michael Jordan.
The teasing reached a point where he considered changing it.
“I got teased so much, to the point where I almost changed my name,” Jordan said.
“It definitely made me want to be competitive. I wanted to be great at something, … just to feel like I had my own identity.”
Named in honor of his father, Jordan even thought about using his middle name, Bakari, to escape the comparisons.
But ultimately, he stuck with it and also embraces the connection to the basketball icon now.
Jordan today has carved out his own legacy as one of Hollywood’s leading men, with acclaimed performances in Friday Night Lights, the Creed franchise, and Marvel’s Black Panther.
His latest project, Sinners, earned seven Golden Globe nominations including a nod for Jordan himself in Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama.
Reflecting on his journey Jordan says the early teasing helped shape his drive, “I feel like I’m walking in that and will continue to do so, big time. We got a lot more things to do. We’re just getting started.”
