Michael B. Jordan and director Ryan Coogler are looking back on their time working on “Sinners” and the impact that it’s had on the culture. But while the film may mean a lot to viewers, it also played a pivotal role in helping the two collaborators reconnect with their own family history.
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As you well know by now, the Golden Globe-nominated film took place in Clarksdale, Mississippi during the Jim Crow era. Having shot down in the South for the movie, the process allowed both of the aforementioned artists to look back on their own ties to the area. For Jordan specifically, he revealed that while working on the film, he was able to dig deeper into his own lineage.
“My dad’s side of the family is from Shreveport, Louisiana and my mom’s side of the family is from Hope, Arkansas so having a family history and lineage from the South is something that was always there,” Jordan told The Root on the red carpet for the Critics Choice Association 8th Annual Celebration of Black Cinema and Television on Tuesday.
He then went on to share how shooting “Sinners” helped him contextualize his family story and how the multi-award nominated film is essentially the story of his own grandparents.
“The movie that we were making somehow is basically my grandparents’ story also, you know? Like you only ever really realize your grandmother and your grandfather–you only know them as older people. But you forget, they were 25, too?” Jordan explained. “[And] having a good time and dealing with the harsh reality of the Deep South and Jim Crow era. And how they were trying to find a piece of freedom, a piece of themselves along the way. So, I think the idea of this movie was channeling a lot of my own family heritage and lineage a little bit.”
For 2025 Root 100 honoree Coogler–who was being honored at the event with the Director Award for his work–he detailed how “Sinners” provided him with the opportunity to spend some serious time in the South for the first time. He explained that he felt a major responsibility “shooting the South for the South” and that it opened his eyes to how resilient Black folks were and the strides we were able to make in spite of the forces fighting against us.
“This was my first time considering all of the ingenuity that came out of that place, considering how that place was home for us for so long–even though it was under contentious circumstances,” Coogler told The Root on the red carpet. “And reckoning with the tension of being somebody who was the product of the Great Migration and returning.”
Additionally, Jordan and his castmates Miles Caton and Wunmi Mosaku spoke on the potential for another installment into the “Sinners” universe. While Jordan said he had “zero control” over whether or not that’s something fans will get to see, he did say that there were “so many ways in” to exploring and expanding the story.
For Mosaku, she told The Root that she would love the chance to work together with the entire cast again, but she’s not too sure how they’d all come back together given how things ended. (We’re still crying over Annie’s death, by the way. We won’t get over that for awhile.)
As far as Caton goes, he shared with us that he’s “100% down” to coming back into the Sinners world–but with one major caveat.
“As long as it’s Ryan [Coogler]. If it’s Ryan, it’s gon’ be straight,” he explained.
Straight From 
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