Michael B. Jordan Addresses Those Kendall Jenner Dating Rumors

Actor opens up about public romance

By Kendall Fisher Sep 23, 2015 3:00 PMTags
Michael B. Jordan, Tyga and Kendall and Kylie JennerPC-NWP / Splash News

During the Met Gala in May, romance rumors went wild when Kendall Jenner was spotted leaving a party with Michael B. Jordan. Though "sources"  immediately denied any sort of relationship, people couldn't help but wonder what was going on between the two—and some even got a little upset over it.

In a new interview for his GQ cover story, Jordan opens up about being linked with the 18-year-old supermodel and why his fans were so hostile to the idea.

"It's the world we live in. They see white and black. I don't," he reveals. "Kendall's a friend of mine, you know. I don't know her, like, that well, but I know her enough."

He continues, "People's perspective on that is what it is. I don't f--king know. I don't live my life to make other people happy. It's so weird, though, right? A lot of black fans were feeling like 'Oh, my god, he should have been with a black woman' and that whole thing."

However, black, white, purple or pink, a relationship just simply isn't in Jordan's trajectory at the moment.

"I try and be focused. I told myself at a young age that I would sacrifice all my twenties to my work. I'm 28. I've got a year and a half left," Jordan says of his professional focus, which has kept him from forming any sort of serious relationship.

Though he feels like he knows how to be with a woman, he just isn't in the frame of mind to do so. "I understand what females want and need, you know. I'm good at that. I don't know if I'm the guy to give it to them right now," he admits. "I'm emotionally unavailable. Until I find something that's so undeniable that I can't help myself," he explains. "A lot of females don't agree with this agenda."

GQ

This mindset of work before relationships stems from the fact that he grew up with nothing—"from sleeping in the kitchen with my family with the oven open to keep us warm during winter" as he explains—so his focus has always been on putting his family first and making sure they're okay.

"I have to know that I gave everything I had to making my family okay," he discloses. "At the end of the day, that's all that matters to me is my family, bro. I come from nothing, so it's like my family, they came with me…I put everything I had into everything, so once they're good I can start living a little."

Check out more from Jordan's GQ interview here.

Watch: Michael B. Jordan Speaks Out on Awkward Radio Interview