Michael Bakari Jordan ( bah-KAR-ee; born February 9, 1987) is an American actor, producer, and director. His accolades include an Academy Award, three Actor Awards, and a Producers Guild Award, in addition to nominations for a British Academy Film Award, a Golden Globe Award and two Emmy Awards. Jordan was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time in 2020 and 2023, People's Sexiest Man Alive in 2020, and in 2020 was ranked 15th on The New York Times list of the 25 greatest actors of the 21st century. Jordan initially gained recognition in television, playing Wallace in the first season of the HBO crime drama series The Wire (2002). He starred in the ABC soap opera All My Children (2003–2006) and the NBC sports drama series Friday Night Lights (2009–2011). He later starred in and produced the HBO television film Fahrenheit 451 (2018), for which he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Television Movie. Jordan's film breakthrough came as Oscar Grant in Ryan Coogler's biopic Fruitvale Station (2013), his performance in which received critical praise. He earned further acclaim for his performances in Coogler's subsequent films, including Creed (2015), Black Panther (2018), and Sinners (2025); the latter earned him the Academy Award for Best Actor. Jordan reprised his role of Donnie Creed in Creed II (2018) and Creed III (2023), the latter of which also marked his directorial debut. His other films include Chronicle (2012), That Awkward Moment (2014), Fantastic Four (2015), and Just Mercy (2019).