Michael B. Jordan got directing tips from Bradley Cooper and Denzel Washington

Michael B. Jordan got directing tips from Bradley Cooper and Denzel Washington.

The 35-year-old actor makes his directorial debut in the latest ‘Rocky’ spin-off film, and he admits he was anxious about the job at hand but soon got into his own “groove” and came to enjoy the experience.

Speaking to Empire magazine, he said: “I was pretty anxious going into it, wondering what that would be like. ‘Who’s calling action and cut? Is that me?’

“Talking to Denzel Washington and Bradley Cooper and others who have directed themselves, they told me you have to find your groove and your pace with your first AD and actors.

“But it’s also like having a superpower: Within your performance, you can also direct.

“It saves some time in some areas, because you get a chance to self-correct in the moment.

“So that’s a liberating experience to have. It became fun after a while.”

Michael recently revealed he wanted to highlight Mexican boxing in ‘Creed III’.

He explained that he cast boxing great Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez in his first acting role to showcase the influence that Mexico has had on the sport.

At a press conference to promote the movie, Michael – who plays the lead role of Adonis ‘Donnie’ Creed – said: “We just looked back, you know, it’s the history of boxing, and the Mexican culture is such a pillar within the sport of boxing and it felt like there wasn’t a really a lot of representation throughout the films in that type of way.

“And it just didn’t seem like the reality I lived in. So I wanted to incorporate Mexican culture into this film.”

The ‘Just Mercy’ star added: “I just felt that there was a lack there, that didn’t seem truthful and honest to the sport of boxing. And I wanted kind of put that character there.”

Michael previously revealed that the sports movie was the “perfect” film to make his bow behind the camera on as it comes during the right moment of his career.

He said: “For me, it was the perfect time. Growing up on set, in the industry, over 20 years, and start out doing background work and extra work and just seeing the sets evolve and seeing everybody’s job and seeing how a real production took place, I finally got to this place in my career where I wanted to tell a story and not just be in front of the camera to execute somebody else’s vision.

“I’m telling a story of where I believe Adonis is at, and also at 35 years old, I had a lot to say, as a young man and as a young black man, with my life experiences.”