Black Panther star and self-confessed nerd Michael B. Jordan is not slacking off during the pandemic as he continues to schedule what will be a very busy 2021. He’s already set to produce a live-action movie starring DC Comics’s Static Shock for Warner Bros., but now Jordan is also adding a directorial debut to his portfolio.
The news came on the back of a report by Deadline addressing MGM’s dismissal of any possibility that 007’s No Time to Die would hit the streaming avenue as a last resort measure for the studio. Those rumors are unsurprising as MGM is pined for the profits they had lined up in their books for 2020 with James Bond, yet it also made their plans for the future stand out, namely the Creed III project starred and directed by Jordan.
Jordan had been in the shortlist to direct Creed III, after starring first under Ryan Coogler and Steven Caple Jr. in Creed I and II, respectively. Producer Irvin Winkler promised the actor that he would he get his fair chance to star and direct, just like Stallone did in several Rocky movies.
MGM executives are rightfully excited about Creed III given the Adonis Creed spin-offs revitalized the Rocky name in an unexpected way, with the film receiving rave reviews and pushing Sylvester Stallone’s name for an Oscar nomination.
With a combined box office haul of $387.7 million, the Creed saga is no Hollywood underdog; it remains MGM’s biggest hard hitter after 007. This would mean that Jordan is in no way being handed an easy task, but instead he’s being asked to keep the Creed name from falling into the same downward spiral that separates Academy Award for Best Picture Rocky I from the likes of Rocky IV and V.
Creed III production details are still TBA.
Source: Deadline