Actor Wood Harris recently stopped by the 7PM in Brooklyn podcast and dropped some gems. While reflecting on his own legendary career, Harris took a moment to give his flowers to a former co-star who is currently dominating Hollywood: Michael B. Jordan.
Harris and Jordan’s relationship goes all the way back to the legendary set of HBO’s The Wire, where a teenage Jordan played Wallace and Harris reigned supreme as Avon Barksdale. More than two decades later, Harris says Jordan hasn’t changed a bit.
“Michael B. Jordan is a solid individual in terms of just, he’s unflappable to the dude I met when he was 17, 16. He’s still that dude,” Harris shared. “He’s a superstar… maybe the biggest movie star in the world. He did it genuinely his way.”
"Michael B. Jordan & Ryan Coogler, I wanted that kind of career … to have a director & me make like 3 or 4 movies together."
— 7PM in Brooklyn (@7PMinBrooklyn) February 24, 2026
Wood Harris would've love to form a dynamic actor-director duo during his career 💯 pic.twitter.com/3iMlNADzkq
While Harris is incredibly proud of his own highly successful career, watching Jordan’s trajectory brought up a reflective “what if” moment. Specifically, Harris pointed to Jordan’s unbreakable bond with director Ryan Coogler. From Fruitvale Station and Creed to Black Panther and Sinners, Coogler has famously never made a feature film without Jordan.
“I told him yesterday, man, y’all killing ’em—him and Ryan Coogler,” Harris noted. “I wanted that kind of career, right? I got the career that I’m very happy to have, but if I had to add anything to it, it would have been a stable director that I do a bunch of movies with… That’s like De Niro and Scorsese, or early on, Spike and Denzel.”
Harris revealed he actually thought he had found that creative partner early on in director Malcolm D. Lee (The Best Man, Girls Trip). The two went to school together, and Harris even starred in Lee’s student film. However, as Lee’s career gravitated toward romantic comedies and lighthearted ensemble films, Harris realized he simply wasn’t a natural fit for those worlds.
“I understand. I’m not really supposed to be in those projects?” Harris laughed. “Can you see me in The Best Man? I don’t see me in The Best Man. I don’t see me in Roll Bounce. I don’t see me in Girls Trip… so I get it.”
Harris’s reflection highlights a rule not always talked about when discussing navigating the entertainment industry, or any industry, for that matter: the importance of building with young, up-and-coming peers on your way up.
It is easy to spend your energy chasing established gatekeepers, hoping an A-list director or CEO will finally pluck you from obscurity. But the Jordan and Coogler dynamic proves that the most powerful moves are often made laterally. When you find talented, hungry creatives at your own level and commit to building a foundation together, you don’t just get a job; you get a tailored vehicle built specifically for your strengths.
By growing side-by-side, Coogler learned exactly how to capture Jordan’s intensity, and Jordan learned exactly how to anchor Coogler’s sweeping visions. They didn’t wait for Hollywood to pair them up; they built the table together and invited Hollywood to take a seat.
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