10 Actors Given A Second Chance In Superhero Franchises
2. Michael B. Jordan
The Failure(s) - The Human Torch – Fantastic Four (2015)
The Second Chance - Erik Killmonger – Black Panther (2018)
It’s hard to believe that Michael B. Jordan only has 14 films in total under his belt, having cropped up here and there between his appearance as the ill-fated youth Wallace in the first season of The Wire in 2002 and his first collaboration with Ryan Coogler in Fruitvale Station in 2013. Its success secured Coogler the director’s seat for Creed, where he opted to cast Jordan as his lead once more.
The success of Fruitvale also opened the door for Jordan to play the Human Torch in Josh Trank’s 2015 Fantastic Four reboot. Like the other Human Torch that preceded him, however, Jordan was able to bounce back from horrendousness through Marvel, joining forces with Coogler for a third time in Black Panther.
Unlike the other Human Torch, Jordan took on a villainous role. Marvel have attracted criticism for the one-dimensional nature of their antagonists, but Erik Killmonger was surprisingly deep, with his flawed master plan inspiring debate given how rooted in historical injustice it was.
Black Panther was a huge success, grossing over one billion dollars and earning both a Best Picture nomination and a 97% critics score on RottenTomatoes. It might be controversial to say that it is somewhat overrated, but it is not controversial in the slightest to say that Jordan’s performance highlighted how he is one of the best young actors in Hollywood today.