Photo: Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty, Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic
Michael B. Jordantook notes fromKobe Bryantand other celebrity dads when coming up with the father-daughter relationship inCreed III.
The actor, 36, makes his directorial debut with the sequel, and in an interviewwith IndieWire, Jordan explained the connection late NBA star Bryant had on shaping the project.
“We were on theJust Mercytour and Kobe Bryant hosted a screening. And [costar]Jamie Foxxhas a strong relationship with his daughter, who was into basketball, she was playing basketball. And Kobe’s sitting there talking about Gianna and basketball and the Mamba Academy and everything,” Jordan recalled. “I just remember stepping out of myself for a second, and I’m looking at these guys that I have real admiration for and hearing them talk about their daughters.”
“I was like, ‘Man, I’m pulling from all of this right now for the movie.’ I wanted to honor these kinds of relationships and what it means to be a girl dad,” he added.
Jordan said, “Muhammad Aliwas one of the models for [my character] Apollo Creed and, of course, he has a daughter, Layla. So that was something that was stirring around in my head, how to make it fresh and different, and I kind of knew at the end ofCreedthat I wanted to have a daughter.”
Creed III.Eli Ade /© MGM /Courtesy Everett Collection
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In November 2020, Jordan told PEOPLE about what hewants his legacy to be, sharing that Bryantand lateBlack Panthercostar Chadwick Boseman are role models for him in that department.
RELATED VIDEO: Michael B. Jordan Says He Hopes to Leave Behind a Legacy Like Kobe Bryant and Chadwick Boseman
“Looking at two people in particular that had a real impact on me, in Kobe and Chadwick. You always look at your own mortality after something like that. The impact they’ve had on people in this world is truly incredible,” he said at the time. “To move that and push that ball forward is really important. That’s kind of what I want my legacy to be.”
Creed IIIis in theaters Friday.
source: people.com
