Michael B. Jordan to Direct 'Creed III', Costar Tessa Thompson Says

Tessa Thompson is planning to leverage her Creed costar Michael B. Jordan's Sexiest Man Alive title to her advantage as they prepare to film Creed III.

During a joint interview for MTV News alongside her Sylvie's Love costar Nnamdi Asomugha, the actress said that Jordan, 33, would not only be reprising his role as Adonis "Donnie" Creed in the upcoming third installment of the sports-drama franchise, but would serve as director this time as well. This would mark his big-screen directorial debut.

"It's gonna be ammo, I think, for me when he is engaging with me as a director," Thompson, 37, joked of Jordan's PEOPLE-bestowed title. "I'm just gonna tell him to dial down the sexiness."

"We're not gonna make [the movie] until later [next] year," the actress, who plays Adonis' love interest Bianca in the Creed series, added. "Who knows what happens? ... I don't know if he'll still be the Sexiest Man Alive in six months. It could be Nnamdi [Asomugha]."

"I'm actually going to be in the next Creed," said her Sylvie's Love costar, 39, before adding with a laugh, "No, I'm just kidding."

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Thompson joked in her interview with MTV News that she hasn't spoken to her fellow Marvel Cinematic Universe star about his new Sexiest Man Alive title just yet, "because I'm going to pretend it hasn't happened."

"We're going to make another Creed very soon, and I don't need this," she quipped. "I just don't need it. I don't need any of it. It's too much for me to shoulder. It's too much for me to handle."

In all seriousness, though, "No, I'm proud of him. I'm so happy for him," Thompson said. "And I will give him a lot of crap about it in person and I cannot wait. ... I need to start developing pranks around all that."

Creed III will mark the ninth installment in the Rocky film series, which includes four movies directed by the original star, Sylvester Stallone. Stallone, 74, has starred in all eight films thus far, although it's not clear whether he will return for Creed III.

RELATED VIDEO: Sly Stallone Opens Up About How Creed Costar Michael B. Jordan Made Him Better

While Creed III will mark Jordan's first big-screen directing gig, the actor previously teamed up with Brisk, the official drink of his movie Black Panther, to direct and produce digital content for the brand's 2018 Brisk Creators Class.

Jordan's short highlighted an up-and-coming street artist working alongside the actor as he prepared for his role as villain Erik "Killmonger" Stevens in the Marvel superhero film, led by the late Chadwick Boseman.

"For me, it started off in front of the camera, but as you mature and grow in the industry, your taste buds eventually change," Jordan told PEOPLE at the time of directing. "The timing of everything just worked out perfectly with Brisk being the official drink sponsor of Black Panther and me having some down time before I have to start doing press for the movie. They approached me with this opportunity and I couldn’t really pass it up."

Asked whether he would ever consider directing a big-budget movie like Black Panther one day, Jordan said, "Without a doubt. I can't wait to grow and evolve as a director and take on bigger and bigger challenges and productions as my career moves forward. This is just the start, the tip of the iceberg in a new endeavor. I really had a lot of fun with this."