Anthony Mackie thinks Michael B. Jordan will be an excellent Johnny Storm in the upcoming reboot of "Fantastic Four." Jordan was announced to play Johnny Storm aka the Human Torch alongside Kate Mara as Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Miles Teller as Mr. Fantastic and Jamie Bell as the Thing.
Immediately following the casting announcement, the decision and actor was criticized and attacked. Many fans of the comic book felt like Marvel shouldn't have a black actor playing a white comic book character. Jordan's friend, actor Antony Mackie, recently spoke to Comicbook.com about what he thought of comic book movie adaptions and Jordan landing the role.
"It's crazy how much [comic book fans] know, and if you deter from that, it's like 'Well, that's not authentic,'" he said. "You know it's not real. It's made-up, so we can change it. 'No, no that's not right. No he's real.' Alright."
According to Screenrant.com, fans don't agree with Mackie and have said that Jordan playing Johnny Storm is like a white actor playing Martin Luther Jr. When Mackie was asked about the backlash surrounding the casting decision he said that he thinks the filmmaker has every right to indulge in a little creative freedom when deciding how they want the film to look on the big screen.
"Michael B. Jordan is a very good friend of mine," he said. "I've known him since he was a teenager, and I'm so happy, for more than anybody else for him to be getting the accolades he's getting, because he deserves it... I think with these types of movies, everything else aside, you need a good actor. Michel B. Jordan is a good actor, black or white."
"So what you have to realize is, and go back and forth and just say, 'Superman can't fly, Batman ain't real, the Human Torch don't really set himself on fire and fly around the room, so he can look like whatever they want him to look like,'" he continued. "You just have to allow yourself to see him that way. And if you can't do that, that says something about you."
Jordan also commented on the criticism shortly after he was confirmed as the character, telling TMZ that people are "still going to go see it anyway."
What do you think of Michael B. Jordan as the Human Torch? Do you agree with Anthony Mackie's comments?
