Little Info About Michael Jai White
Michael Jai White is an American martial artist and actor. He was the second Black American to portray a major comic book superhero & third to portray a comic book character in a major motion picture, starring as Al Simmons, the protagonist in the 1997 film Spawn. White appeared as Marcus Williams in the Tyler Perry films Why Did I Get Married? (2007) and Why Did I Get Married Too? (2010), and starred as the character on the TBS/OWN comedy-drama television series Tyler Perry’s For Better or Worse. White portrayed Jax Briggs in Mortal Kombat: Legacy and the Cyborg Seth in Universal Soldier: The Return, opposite Jean-Claude Van Damme. He portrayed boxer Mike Tyson in the 1995 HBO television film Tyson.
He also played the title role in the blaxploitation parody film Black Dynamite (2009), as well as the animated series of the same name.
White is a martial artist in nine different styles: Shōtōkan, Goju-Ryu (for which he studied under Master Eddie Morales where he learned to sharpen his Goju karate technique), Taekwondo, Kobudō, Tang Soo Do, Wushu, Jujutsu, Kyokushin and Boxing, with a specific focus in Kyokushin Karate (although his style incorporates aspects of many different martial arts forms). White started training in the martial arts at the age of four in Jujutsu. He next took up Shōtōkan and moved on to other styles later.
RELATED:
Michael Jai White Transformation – From 06 to 53 Years Old
White’s first major starring role and breakout performance was in the 1995 HBO film Tyson, as heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson. He portrayed the eponymous character in the 1997 film Spawn, making him the second African American to portray a comic book superhero in a major motion picture. His work in Spawn earned him a nomination for the Blockbuster Entertainment Award. White starred opposite Jean-Claude Van Damme in Universal Soldier: The Return, in 1999. A few years earlier, he acted in Full Contact, with Jerry Trimble. In 2001, he also starred opposite fellow martial artist Steven Seagal in Exit Wounds.
White starred in the film Blood and Bone and the blaxploitation homage Black Dynamite, both released in 2009. White wrote the scripts for both Black Dynamite and 3 Bullets in which he stars with Bokeem Woodbine.
White made his directorial debut and starred in Never Back Down 2: The Beatdown, which was released on home video on September 13, 2011.
In October 2020, White’s latest film Welcome to Sudden Death debuted on Netflix and became one of the most watched films on the platform. The Universal Pictures Home Entertainment release is a remake of the 1995 film Sudden Death starring Jean-Claude Van Damme.