Credit: Far Out / YouTube Still
Mon 24 August 2026 3:30, UK
It’s safe to say that very few people expected Michael B Jordan to win ‘Best Actor’ at the 2026 Academy Awards. Many believed that the statuette was destined for Timothée Chalamet after his juggernaut performance in Marty Supreme. Then he made some stupid comments about ballet, and the prize slipped through his dainty French fingers.
In all seriousness, Jordan’s Oscar was thoroughly deserved. Not only did he battle a hatred of fake blood to pull off a dual role in Sinners, but he had also put in decades of work to get to this point. From his film debut as ‘Teen #2’ in Black and White to his breakout role as Killmonger in Black Panther, it’s been a long journey, but it’s been worth every single step.
An oft-forgotten entry in Jordan’s filmography is an adaptation of one of the most famous science fiction novels ever written. He portrays Guy Montag in HBO’s version of Fahrenheit 451, based on the novel written by the great Ray Bradbury. The author was told that 451°F (233°C) was the temperature at which paper caught alight, but subsequent studies place the value between 424 and 475°F.
You’d think a classic role like this would be a no-brainer for any actor, but Jordan needed a little bit of persuading. As he explained to The Hollywood Reporter, he agreed to take the gig only after learning that Montag would survive until the very end of the movie.
“I didn’t want the audiences to keep seeing me die in roles,” he explained. “My mom, every time I watched her watch me die onscreen, it tore me up. I just wanted to play a role so she could see me win.”
In the film, Montag is a ‘fireman’ whose job is to start fires to destroy illicit reading materials. He dutifully follows the orders of his Captain, John Beatty (Michael Shannon), until his mind is opened by a copy of Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s Notes from Underground. He joins forces with the rebellious Clarisse (Sofia Boutella) in an attempt to stop the people he had once served.
Before the film came out in 2018, poor Donna Jordan had already watched her baby boy die on screen multiple times. She was actually visiting the set of The Wire on the day her son’s character, Wallace, was due to die, which led Michael to ask that his mother be escorted off set.
Further reading: Cutting Room Floor
All of that pain would be worth it once she saw her precious prince triumph over the forces of evil, right? Well, not exactly.
In the book, Montag’s fate is left ambiguous. In the TV show, however, he meets a brutal fate right at the end of the story. Poor Mrs Jordan just can’t catch a break.
