July 6, 2016 The Skanner Page 7
Arts & Entertainment
Michael Jai White: The ‘Vigilante Diaries’ Interview
By Kam Williams
For The Skanner News
A
highly
trained
martial artist and
actor, Michael Jai
White has broken
barriers as a Hollywood
star and internation-
al box oice sensation.
With his dynamic per-
sonality, agile abilities
and physique of a body-
builder, Michael has
earned respect for his
versatile talents both on
and of screen.
Born Nov. 10, 1967 in
Brooklyn, New York, it
was watching the ilm
Five Fingers of Death
that initiated Michael’s
interest in the martial
arts. At the tender age 7,
he started taking weekly
Japanese Jujitsu class-
es to stay focused while
growing up on the tough
streets of Brooklyn.
At 8, Michael’s family
relocated to Bridgeport,
Connecticut, where he
studied the Shotokan and
Kyokushin forms of kara-
te, earning his irst black
“
and moved to Los Ange-
les to pursue an acting
career full-time.
Before long, he would
go on to guest star on
such
hit
television
shows as “Saved by the
Bell,” “Martin,” “NYPD
Blue,”and “CSI.” Prov-
ing his acting ability, he
would also be cast in the
lead role of legendary
boxer Mike Tyson in the
HBO biopic, “Tyson.”
Michael was subse-
quently cast to play the
title character in the
movie “Spawn,” which
came with the distinction
of being the irst black
superhero in a major
motion picture. While
he cemented his Holly-
wood status as a bonaide
action star, more diverse
roles emerged that al-
lowed him to showcase
his physical prowess as
well as display his on-
screen charisma and
comedic ability in such
ilms as “Exit Wounds,”
“Undisputed 2,” “Silver
Hawk,” “Blood & Bone,”
“Black Dynamite” and
It’s an action movie that’s not
trying to pretend to be any-
thing other than that
belt by 13. Upon gradu-
ating from Bridgeport’s
Central High School, he
went on to further his ed-
ucation, irst attending
Southern
Connecticut
and then UConn. While
winning multiple cham-
pionships as a national
martial arts competitor,
he became a Special Edu-
cation teacher at Wilbur
Cross Elementary School
in Bridgeport.
Bitten by the acting
bug, Michael began audi-
tioning for commercials
and acting gigs on week-
ends and during summer
breaks while teaching.
When he began landing
jobs in commercials and
guest-starring roles on
television shows and
ilms; he let teaching
Tyler Perry’s “Why Did
I Get Married” and “Why
Did I Get Married Too,”
playing opposite Tasha
Smith. The two would
ignite such on-screen
chemistry, they would go
on to star together in the
long running OWN Net-
work series, “For Better
or Worse.”
Michael resides in Los
Angeles with his wife, ac-
tress Gillian White, and
their three daughters.
Here, he talks about his
new movie, “Vigilante
Diaries,” an action thrill-
er starring Paul Sloan,
and featuring Michael
Madsen, Jason Mewes,
Quinton Rampage Jack-
son and Danny Trejo.
Kam Williams: Hey
Michael Jai White
Michael, thanks for an-
other opportunity to
speak with you.
Michael Jai White: My
pleasure, Kam.
It’s kind of a dark come-
dy. [Chuckles] The good
thing about the movie
is that you just can’t tell
where it’s going to go.
KW: What interested
you in this crazy action
ilm, “Vigilante Diaries”?
MJW: I was one of the
players invited to the
party, and I had fun at it.
Paul Sloan, the picture’s
scriptwriter and lead ac-
tor, invited me to join the
project, as did Christian
Sesma, who directed it.
And it became a really
fun romp.
KW: I won’t spoil the
ending of the ilm, but
let me say I was dei-
nitely shocked by one of
the surprising develop-
ments involving your
character.
MJW: Yeah. It’s one
of those movies where
you ind yourself saying,
“Wait a minute. Where
are we now?” It’s an ac-
tion movie that’s not try-
ing to pretend to be any-
thing other than that.
KW: You certainly had
an impressive and di-
verse cast, with actors
ranging from veteran
actor Michael Madsen
to Jason Mewes from the
Kevin Smith movies to
action stars like like you
and Danny Trejo of “Ma-
chete.” How were you all
assembled?
MJW: Well, it started
out as a web series, and
then they turned it into
a full-length feature ilm.
KW: Tell me a little
about the guy you play,
Barrington?
MJW: He’s sort of a
rogue CIA Agent who’s
pulling strings all over
the place, You can’t tell if
he’s a good guy or a bad
guy. I think that’s indica-
tive of all the characters.
KW: Does the movie
have a message, or should
people just sit back and
enjoy the action?
MJW: I’d say just sit
back and enjoy the ac-
tion, and also the laughs,
because there’s a lot of
funny stuf in the movie
as well.
KW: Harriet Paku-
la-Teweles asks: With so
many classic ilms being
redone, is there a remake
you’d like to star in?
MJW: Wow! There are
probably several of them.
I made my attempt to
redo “Hard Times” [the
Charles Bronson clas-
sic from 1975]. I called it
“Blood and Bone.” And
there are certain other
classic ilms I’d love to
see again, but under a
diferent name.
KW: Ling-Ju Yen asks:
What is your earliest
childhood memory?
MJW: Well, the irst
movie I ever saw was
“Five Fingers of Death,
“which was really the
irst kung fu movie sent
to the United States. It
freaked me out because
people were pulling out
adversaries’ eyeballs. I
See INTERVIEW on page 11