Michael Richard Jai White (born November 10, 1967) is an American actor, martial artist, and director.
He is one of the first African Americans to portray a major comic book superhero in a major motion picture
White was born in Brooklyn, New York and moved as a teen to Bridgeport, Connecticut, where he graduated from Central High School in 1985.
He later graduated from Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven,
CT. White is a martial artist in eight 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,
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and Kyokushin, with a specific focus in
Kyokushin Karate (although his style incorporates aspects of many different martial arts forms).
White started training in the martial arts at the age of seven in Jujutsu.
