‘Sinners’ star Michael B. Jordan thanks past Black Oscar winners in emotional speech

“Sinners” star Michael B. Jordan won the best actor Oscar Sunday night at the 98th Academy Awards, beating out a crowded field that included Timothée Chalamet and Leonardo DiCaprio.

Jordan’s best actor win for “Sinners” marks his first-ever Academy Award.

The Newark, New Jersey, native thanked the director of “Sinners,” Oscar winner Ryan Coogler, calling him an “amazing person.”

“I’m so honored to call you a collaborator and a friend, and you gave me the opportunity and space for me to be seen, and I love you, too, bro, love you to death,” Jordan said to Coogler, who was in the audience at the Dolby Theatre.

Jordan went on to acknowledge the Black Oscar winners who came before him, including Halle Berry, Sidney Poitier, Denzel Washington and more.

“I stand here because of the people who came before me,” Jordan said, adding, “To be amongst those giants, amongst those greats, amongst my ancestors, amongst my guys, thank you everybody in this room and everybody at home for supporting me over my career. I feel it.”

With his best actor win, Jordan joins other Black male actors Jamie Foxx, Will Smith, and Forrest Whitaker, as well as Poitier and Washington.

Jordan also thanked his family in his speech, including his mom, who has been his date to many awards show this season, as well as his dad, whom he said traveled from Ghana to attend the Oscars.

He also thanked his brother and sister, who also walked with him, alongside their parents, at the Oscars.

Jordan finished with a message of gratitude for his supporters, saying, “Thank you for … betting on me, and I’m going to keep stepping up, and I’m going to keep being the best version of myself I can be.”