Michael B. Jordan Reveals How He Measures His Success

Michael B. Jordan gets his close up on the cover of Esquire magazine’s Winter 2019 cover issue.

Here’s what the 32-year-old actor had to share with the mag…

On what he learned from his parents: “My artistic side, my emotional side, my intuition, being an empath—I get that from her [his mother]. My discipline, my work ethic—I get that from my dad. So between the two of them, I got the right ingredients.”

On whether he’s ready to direct a film: “I’ve been learning since I was like twelve years old, being on set. Seeing what everybody does, all the departments. From the wardrobe stuff to the sound. I’ve always cared about what everybody needed. It’s kinda like a perfect perspective to have to be able to help run a set. I just love to collaborate. And empower people to do what they do best.”

On his metric of success: “I’ve always wanted respect from my peers. To be somebody that will be respected forever, who has an amazing body of work, who affected these kids and these people. That’s my greatness. It’s my scope and my reach. My greatness I want measured by the people that I put on. Like, actor X ten years from now, he has a career that has far exceeds mine. And ask him, ‘Who looked out?’ And he’ll say me.”

For more from Michael, visit Esquire.com.