Michael B. Jordan leaned on subtle physical cues, including wearing mismatched shoe sizes, to distinguish between the twin brothers he portrayed in Sinners, the Mississippi-set vampire thriller that’s already generating awards buzz.
In the BAFTA Playback series, the Creed star broke down his method for playing Smoke and Stack, siblings who return to their Southern roots to open a juke joint that draws the attention of bloodthirsty locals. Jordan revealed he used different-sized footwear to help define each character’s physicality.
“You know, I wore bigger shoes for Smoke, because he didn’t really move around too much. He was, you know, I had him be grounded,” Jordan said. “I had smaller shoes for Stack, because he was never sitting in one place. So, he always felt like he had to move and kind of be lighter on his feet. So, just little things like that added to, you know, how they held their body when they rest, their face, the cadence in their speech.”
The actor, who previously teamed with Ryan Coogler on Black Panther and Fruitvale Station, said he worked from the inside out to shape the twins, focusing on their emotional backstory and trauma.
Although Sinners features vampires, Jordan said he intentionally avoided watching other vampire films while preparing for the role.
“Honestly, (I had) no real inspirations when it came to what kind of vampire I was going to be,” he said. “You know, (I) really wanted to be very specific to the world (that) we were creating down there and tried really hard not to watch too many other things to influence what we were trying to make.”
Sinners, which debuted in April, has been both a critical and commercial hit. The film is expected to be a strong contender during awards season, following its successful release.
The comments came during BAFTA Playback, a six-part video series sponsored by Samsung, where actors reflect on pivotal moments in their careers.
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