Michael B. Jordan, whose career has taken him from Friday Night Lights to one of the biggest blockbusters in recent memory, is now an Oscar-winning actor.
Sunday (March 15), Jordan, who plays both Elijah “Smoke” Moore and Elias “Stack” Moore in Ryan Coogler’s vampire epic Sinners, took home the trophy for Best Actor in a Leading Role. In doing so, he beat several other top contenders, Timothée Chalamet (Marty Supreme) and Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon) among them.
“God is good, God is good,” Jordan said in the opening seconds of his acceptance speech, which also saw him shouting out his parents and Warner Bros.
Deeper into the speech, Jordan praised the studio for “betting on original ideas and original artistry,” then turned his attention to Coogler, whom he deemed “an amazing person,” in addition to being a great collaborator and friend in his career.
Elsewhere, past winners—including Denzel Washington and Will Smith, among others—also got shoutouts from the newly minted Oscar winner, who praised them as “giants and greats” who paved the way for his own Sinners victory.
“Thank you everybody in this room, and everybody at home, for supporting me in my career,” he added.
As readers should recall, Sinners, also featuring Hailee Steinfeld and Delroy Lindo, entered Sunday’s ceremony with a record-setting 16 total nominations. As of this writing, it had taken home multiple wins, including Original Screenplay.
