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,[2][3] with a specific focus in Kyokushin Karate (although his style incorporates aspects of many different martial arts forms).[4] 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.[5] White holds seven legitimate black belts in
Kyokushin Karate, Goju-Ryu Karate, Shotokan Karate, Taekwondo, Tang Soo Do, Kobudo, and Wushu.[citation needed]
White is a former special education teacher and taught students with behavioral problems for three years. He cites his history in education as the reason why, despite his personal love for the music genre on "a lot of levels", he cannot "in good [conscience]" have a positive opinion on hip hop or "excuse some of [its] pervasive and destructive elements", mainly due to his experience with youngsters who had difficulty seeing the difference between it and real life.[6]
White played the role of the mob boss Gambol in the 2008 film The Dark Knight. He also 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.
On March 30, 2010, White appeared on The Mo'Nique Show to promote his film Why Did I Get Married Too. The two joked about the acclaim that comes with winning an Oscar. In May of that year he appeared in the music video for Toni Braxton's new song "Hands Tied" from her album Pulse, as well as the Nicki Minaj music video for "Your Love" as Nicki's sensei and love interest.
In October 2019, White announced that the spiritual successor to Black Dynamite titled Outlaw Johnny Black had officially entered pre-production. Despite the Indiegogo campaign not reaching its goal, he was still able to secure enough backers and additional donors to get the project off the ground. It is available for pre-order on the official website. Its theatrical release date was 15 September 2023.[11] In July 2023, its trailer was released.[12]
On July 12, 2021, White laid out a vision for starting a film studio in New Haven, Connecticut called "Jaigantic Studios".[14] He wants to create a studio district on New Haven's Quinnipiac River waterfront.[15]
Personal life
From 2005 to 2011, White was married to Courtenay Chatman and together they have a daughter named Morgan. In addition, White has two sons.[16][17] In February 2014, White announced his engagement to actress Gillian Iliana Waters.[17] In April 2015, White penned an open letter via Facebook entitled "Apologies to My Ex's", where he credited Waters for helping him become "the very best version of myself."[18] In July 2015, White married Waters in Thailand.[19] They appeared together in the martial arts thriller movie Take Back (2021),[20] with Gillian White starring as the female lead.[21]
^ abcdefghi"Michael Jai White (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved October 7, 2023. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.