Things got awkward on the red carpet when Creed 3 star Michael B. Jordan put a reporter on blast because she mocked him back when they were in school together.
Jordan has been busy doing a lot of press to promote the film. The in demand actor is reprising the main character of Adonis "Donnie" Creed while making his directorial debut in the second sequel to Creed—a spinoff of the Rocky franchise
At a recent premiere event for Creed 3, Jordan was stopped by Morning Hustleradio show host Lore'l, who congratulated him and casually mentioned to viewers they were classmates together in New Jersey.
She said:
"We go way back, all the way back to Chad Science [Academy] in Newark."
To which Jordan responded without a hint of irony in his voice:
"Oh yeah, [I was the] 'corny kid,' right?"
The stumped reporter immediately laughed it off and claimed she never said that and chalked it up to being "misquoted."
But Jordan called her out and told her he directly heard her say it.
\u201cWhen you make someone the butt of your jokes in High School then have to interview him on the red carpet of his film: \n\nMichael B. Jordan sure ain\u2019t forget Lore\u2019l was one of the people who would make fun of him back in the day\n\ud83d\udd17: https://t.co/RBmPUCOZOm\u201d— Glock Topickz (@Glock Topickz) 1677353968
You can watch the uncomfortable moment in the clip below.
Michael B. Jordan At The 'Creed 3' Red Carpet Premiereyoutu.be
Lore'l quickly switched the conversation to Jordan's successful career, telling viewers he was "killing it."
However, Twitter users declared Lore'l's interview was already dead on arrival.
\u201c@Glock_Topickz @MorningHustleAM If someone successful says you used to make fun of em, you did lol. \n\nPeople really DONT forget how you did em in the past when they're up now.\u201d— Glock Topickz (@Glock Topickz) 1677353968
\u201c@Glock_Topickz @MorningHustleAM Dawg look at his face. \ud83d\ude02\ud83d\ude02\u201d— Glock Topickz (@Glock Topickz) 1677353968
\u201c@Glock_Topickz @MorningHustleAM People will never forget how you made them feel at their not so good days.\u201d— Glock Topickz (@Glock Topickz) 1677353968
\u201c@brkofficially @Glock_Topickz @MorningHustleAM Cringy af. Unprofessional. She the real cornball. Stop calling everyone with a mic and a podcast a journalist. She shouldn\u2019t even have access.\u201d— Glock Topickz (@Glock Topickz) 1677353968
\u201c@Glock_Topickz @MorningHustleAM That's how it be, you're everybody's favorite once you made it!!\nReminds me of the classic "Vapors"\u201d— Glock Topickz (@Glock Topickz) 1677353968
\u201c@Glock_Topickz @MorningHustleAM Moral of the story: Treat everyone how you want to be treated the first time, not when they blow up.\u201d— Glock Topickz (@Glock Topickz) 1677353968
Fans acknowledged the positives in the awkward moment.
\u201c@Glock_Topickz @MorningHustleAM Wow surprised how Michael handled the situation. I mean he could have quit the interview and just go. He was very polite.\u201d— Glock Topickz (@Glock Topickz) 1677353968
\u201c@Glock_Topickz @MorningHustleAM This part! The double \u201cwassup\u201d and the head nods got me rolling lmaoooooo. Killmonger been patiently waiting for this\u201d— Glock Topickz (@Glock Topickz) 1677353968
According to Complex, Jordan being "corny" was a reference involving a discussion with Lore'l from a 2021 episode of the Undressing Room podcast.
She and her co-hosts—Eva Marcille and Dominique da Diva–had been dishing on the fancy Valentine's Day date Jordan had with his then-girlfriend, Lori Harvey.
Mademoire reported that Jordan brought Harvey to a rented-out aquarium for a private dinner and presented her with Hermès stock certificates.
Commenting on his elaborate date night idea, da Diva said she was hardly surprised since the actor seemed to be “a nice, corny guy.”
Lore'l agreed with that sentiment and added:
“You know what’s so crazy? I went to school with Michael B. Jordan at a point in life.“
She admitted to making fun of Jordan prior to him becoming a rising Hollywood star.
"And to be honest with you, we teased him all the damn time because his name was Michael Jordan."
"Let’s start there, and he was no Michael Jordan."
"And he also would come to school with a headshot. We lived in Newark, that’s the hood. We would make fun of him like, ‘What you gonna do with your stupid headshot!?’"
"And now look at him!”
People noted the missed opportunity for redemption here.
\u201c@Glock_Topickz @MorningHustleAM could\u2019ve said.. \n\u201cI verbally bullied this man in high school back in the day. I was wrong. However, I watched his career growth & in fact am proud of him and his accomplishments. He could\u2019ve taken this interview elsewhere or denied it but Mike thanks for your professionalism.\u201d\u201d— Glock Topickz (@Glock Topickz) 1677353968
\u201c@Glock_Topickz @MorningHustleAM Instead of lie, about calling him corny, she could have redeemed herself by apologizing, and saying I was dumb teenager. 4give me!\n\nInstead, she\u2019s lying! Made the whole thing uncomfortable with her \u201ccorny\u201d questions. She had lame comments, but he still allowed her the interview.\u201d— Glock Topickz (@Glock Topickz) 1677353968
\u201c@Glock_Topickz @MorningHustleAM As someone who was bullied, this moment is our DREAM. We don\u2019t forget y\u2019all.\u201d— Glock Topickz (@Glock Topickz) 1677353968
\u201c@Glock_Topickz @MorningHustleAM Moral of the story - be careful how you treat people \ud83d\ude02 because the same person you bullied has you begging for an interview \ud83e\udd37\ud83c\udffe\u200d\u2642\ufe0f\n\nPLOT TWIST \ud83d\ude05\u201d— Glock Topickz (@Glock Topickz) 1677353968
\u201c@Glock_Topickz The raised eyebrow and this head nod told me off top he couldn\u2019t wait \ud83d\ude2d\u201d— Glock Topickz (@Glock Topickz) 1677353968
When Lore'l asked Jordan about the challenges of juggling both acting and directing duties on Creed 3, he distracted himself after spotting his co-star Jonathan Majors nearby by jovially greeting his on-screen rival.
In a cringy moment, Lore'l was determined not to have her time with Jordan cut short, so she switched gears after not getting a response to her question and asked which of the two actors was the sexiest man, to which both indicated to each other and said they didn't compete.
After a bit of friendly banter, Majors–who captivated fans with his provocative photo shoot for the newest cover of Ebony Magazine–chuckled in response to Lore'l's inquiry and walked off after telling her, "Good luck with that."
The red carpet interview resumed with Lore'l asking about a future project filming in Atlanta with Oscar-winner Will Smith and what Jordan's favorite restaurant was in the city.
He concluded the interview by replying:
"Whatever hotel I'm in, their restaurant."
Lore'l responded while nervously laughing, "Well, you're not corny anymore," as Jordan had already moved on.
Creed 3 is set to enter the ring on March 3 after it was previously announced for a November 2022 release.
