Michael B. Jordan Ranked

Welcome to "Ranked", a weekly series where I rank a franchise or filmography from worst to best and hand out assorted superlatives. This week, I'm profiling the work of Michael B. Jordan-whose latest project "Creed III" releases in theaters on Thursday.

Michael B. Jordan's Filmography Ranked:

13.A Journal for Jordan (C-)

12.Fantastic Four (C)

11.Red Tails (B-)

10.That Awkward Moment (B-)

9.Without Remorse (B)

8.Hardball (B)

7.Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (B+)

6.Chronicle (B+)

5.Creed II (A) 

4.Just Mercy (A)

3.Creed (A)

2.Black Panther (A)

1.Fruitvale Station (A)

Top Dog: Fruitvale Station (2013)

The sheer depth of the talent that Jordan and Ryan Coogler possessed became clear within the first few minutes of watching Fruitvale Station. Their ability to paint an empathetic, honest picture of Oscar Grant as a man trying to pick up the pieces of his life after being released from prison in the hours before he was murdered by a transit cop in Oakland on January 1, 2009 serves as a devastating, urgent reminder of the human beings that are on the other end of these all-too-frequent headlines of police brutality that ends in the death of an unarmed civilian. 

Bottom Feeder: A Journal for Jordan (2021)

At the core of A Journal for Jordan sits a really heartfelt true story about a timeless romance (Jordan and Chante Adams-who have terrific chemistry) that was cut short by the husband being killed overseas while serving in the military and the positive impact that a father had on the son that never really got to know through a journal of letters he wrote for him to read once he got older. Through some stagnant direction by Denzel Washington and a script that choose to handle themes of grief, loss, etc. primarily through cheap melodrama-particularly in the latter half, this tale loses its connection to the real world and significantly dulls its emotional impact in the process.

Most Underrated: Creed II (2018)

Calling Creed II underrated is probably a bit of a stretch, but the reception was a bit less enthusiastic than the original and I believe that it's just as good, which is ultimately enough for me to justify giving it that distinction. Steven Caple Jr. admirably fills the shoes of the great Ryan Coogler by making another exhilarating yet powerful film about legacy, family and people finally gaining the strength to confront the pain they've caused others in the past.

Most Overrated: None

Jordan's relatively small filmography paired with my love for his most revered movies (Black Panther, Chronicle, Just Mercy, Fruitvale Station, the Creed series) has prevented him from having a single film that qualifies for consideration here. May this streak continue for as long as humanly possible.  

Biggest Missed Opportunity: Fantastic Four (2015)

I strongly believe that Fantastic Four is the most glaringly obvious and damaging case of studio interference on a movie that I've ever witnessed. 20th Century Fox hacked up the final cut so much that it only runs for 100 minutes and may be the only movie I've ever seen that has no middle as it jumps from the setup to the finale with no real transition to speak of.  Despite all of these glaring issues with the version that was released, there's so much potential for a compelling darker, more character-driven take on these iconic heroes' origins residing in this hollow shell of a movie and if Josh Trank had simply been allowed to execute his vision as intended, I believe this movie could've been pretty damn good.