The Story Behind Michael B. Jordan’s Sultry Sinners Tank Top

This story contains spoilers for Sinners.

There are a lot of thoughtful, serious costumes in Sinners. Director Ryan Coogler’s wildly successful, deeply horny, 1930s-set vampire movie is full of period references, fine details, and one ridiculously jacked Michael B. Jordan. And for large swaths of the film, Jordan’s rippling biceps are framed by a ripped, sweaty, bloody tank top.

During my screening, the woman next to me muttered a very earnest “Oh my god” when Smoke—one of Jordan’s twin protagonists—strips down to his ribbed tank and leather gun holsters to fight off the hoard of Irish-jigging vampires in act three. My group chat debrief involved equal amounts of “That was amazing,” and “MBJ fine as hell.” Everyone is reminded of that poor girl who bit clean through her retainer when Jordan took his shirt off in Black Panther, and everyone gets it.

Anyway. I’m getting carried away. The point is: Smoke’s tank top = good. Very good.

LANDMARK MEDIA / Alamy Stock Photo

Ruth E. Carter, Sinners’ Oscar-winning costume designer (who also worked on both Black Panther movies with Coogler), says the choice was all about practicality. Smoke and Stack are army vets. So, Carter and Jordan cycled through a few options before landing on the vest.

“Once we got in the fitting room, and we’re trying different ideas about how we would end this movie with Smoke, we knew that there was a military aspect to their story,” says Carter. “Both [Smoke and Stack] served in World War I. I tried on a vintage green army thermal, you know? I thought about what he could have [on] his chest that he could pull out when it was time.”

In the end, they went with a less militaristic option—but one that still spoke to Smoke’s pragmatic nature. (This was also the ethos behind the twins’ suits, too: Stack, more of a lothario, sports sharp Italian tailoring, collar pins, and matching pocket squares; Smoke, the everyman, is in workwear-inspired tailoring, with room to conceal his weapons.) But, of course, there’s no denying the other factor: “Michael B. Jordan is just the most handsome,” says Carter. “He’s so conscious about his health and working out and staying fit… It just made sense that [the tank top is] where we would end up.