MadameNoire
Source: Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin / Getty
Michael B. Jordan is giving us his first romantic drama for Christmas. In his upcoming film, A Journal For Jordan, he is portraying 1st Sergeant Charles Monroe King, a husband and father who fought in the war in Iraq. While he was in Iraq, he wrote letters to his son Jordan about family, life lessons and gave him advice before he was killed in the war. The trailer shows how King balanced being a dedicated soldier and a caring husband to his fiancée Dana Canedy. With his letters to Jordan, now 16, he wanted to make sure his new son was just as loving as he was. In one letter he wrote, “just take one look at your mother. That will tell you what I think beautiful is.”
King was killed after a roadside bomb exploded in his Humvee in Iraq in 2006. He had joined the army in 1987.
The movie, which was directed by Denzel Washington, is based on the 2008 memoir written by Canedy, A Journal for Jordan: A Story of Love and Honor. A Journal for Jordan was also written by Virgil Williams who co-wrote Mudbound.
While King was deployed in Iraq, Canedy was a senior New York Times editor. After his death, she went on the be the administrator of Pulitizer Prizes from 2017-2020. She also became the first Black woman to fill the role of senior vice president and publisher of Simon and Schuster. She is being played by newcomer Chante Adams.
Jordan told USA Today that after doing a lot of “physical roles,” he felt ready to explore a character outside of what he is used to portraying. This role was a challenge that the Creed star enjoyed taking on.
“I consider myself a romantic,” he said. “I like love. I’ve had an amazing example of what love looks like growing up,” he said. “There’s a certain level of catering to that I enjoy.”
He added that he “typically” doesn’t watch “a lot of romantic movies.” It’s “not his go-to” but when Washington approached him about the film he said “it was just the right time to do it.” He also felt honored to be selected by the Oscar-winning Washington.
“Everybody wants to work with him, and he’s a very selective guy,” he said. “So the fact that he wanted to work with me was a huge deal for me.”
Jordan is also serving as a producer for the film.
