Michael B. Jordan Taking Over An Iconic Denzel Washington Role?
Could we see Michael B. Jordan playing a younger version of a classic Denzel Washington character? It would be perfect casting
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When Denzel Washington screams, “King Kong ain’t got s@#$ on me,” at the end of Training Day, it’s the last gasp for a guy who has almost met his corrupt police tenure. But it’s easy to wonder how exactly his character Alonzo Harris landed in the position, to begin with. We are soon going to get our answer. The Training Day prequel is coming down the pike with some news picking up about how things will shake out. According to insider Daniel Richtman, not only is director Antoine Fuqua going to be back helming this film, but Michael B. Jordan is being eyed for the lead role.
The Training Day prequel was discussed a couple of years ago as a possibility and it looks like the production is moving forward. It will center on the backstory of Detective Alonzo Harris who was played by Denzel Washington in the original movie. Apparently, the backstory will be about how he came up in the police department, eventually working his way to street narcotics. Considering how corrupt he was in the movie, and what kind of trouble he’d gotten into with all kinds of nefarious outfits, there is quite a bit to explore here. It’s very easy to see Michael B. Jordan leaning into a role like this one, which could become a veritable spiderweb of corruption.
In the original Training Day, we are dropped into a story from the eyes of Ethan Hawke’s Jake Hoyt who has been assigned to work with Denzel Washington on this titular day. It all starts off fine enough, but things quickly begin to unravel when we learn that Harris has gotten himself onto the wrong side of the Russian mafia after killing one of their men in Las Vegas. To round up the $1 million dollars he owes them as restitution, he begins a series of crimes that place Hoyt in mortal danger. But because we pick up with Harris’s story near the end, it would be fascinating to see how he got into this place, to begin with. We only end up knowing what Hoyt knows in the movie. There is so much more to this world.
According to some other production notes, if Michael B. Jordan took over the Denzel Washington role, it would have the movie taking place in 1992 around the time of the Rodney King trial and Los Angeles riots. If that were the case we could see a city that is on the violent brink with plenty of ways for the young Harris to exploit things.
Denzel Washington and Training Day had moderate success at the box office, scoring about $105 million at the box office on a $45 million budget. It scored favorably with critics as well thanks to the tour de force performance by Denzel Washington whose character, mannerisms, and catchphrases from the film still ring out today. Michael B. Jordan definitely has the charisma to pull something like this off.
Warner Bros. looks like it is full steam ahead on the Training Day prequel with the director lined up and a working script. All that’s left is to cast the lead and here’s hoping Michael B. Jordan lands the part. In the meantime, you can currently stream Training Day on Netflix in the United States.
