If he stuck by his first decision, Michael B. Jordan wouldn’t have been Guy Montag in HBO’s recent Fahrenheit 451 film adaptation.

During the Drama Actor Roundtable for The Hollywood Reporter, Jordan said in part, “Being a black man, I didn’t want to play somebody who’s an oppressor. After sitting down with the director Ramin (Bahrani) and knowing Michael Shannon was going to be a part of it — he’s an incredible actor — and understanding the vision and themes and messages he wanted to send through the movie,” he changed his mind.

He was also enticed by the role because he would be able to “survive through the third act.” “I didn’t want the audiences to keep seeing me die in roles. And my mom, every time I watched her watch me die onscreen, it tore me up. I just wanted to play a role so she could see me win,” he said.

Watch a clip from the roundtable below. The full roundtables air on Sundance TV every Sunday beginning June 24.