When They See Us

Jharrel Jerome lobbied for an audition while he was busy filming Mr. Mercedes (2017), for which he had grown a beard. With the beard, he was afraid he would be considered too old to play the younger Korey, and he fully expected that the project would cast two different actors to play the part at different ages. After finishing Mr. Mercedes, he shaved his beard and auditioned again. Ava DuVernay was so impressed by both his audition, and how much his facial hair aged him, that she cast him as Korey at both ages.

Featured in Conan: Niecy Nash (2019)