Based on the memoir A Journal for Jordan: A Story of Love and Honor by PulitzerPrize-winning journalist Dana Canedy, the film follows the real-life story of First Sergeant Charles Monroe King, played by People Magazine’s former most sexiest star, who writes a journal of letters to his newborn son, also named Jordan, as a guide to love, manhood, and more, while he’s overseas in the Iraq war.

King, was killed in Iraq in 2006, when his son was only seven months old, but his fiancée, Canedy played by Chanté Adams, held onto the journal of letters and turned it into a special memento for their son. In a conversation with BET.com, Jordan, a budding film director in his own right, shared how there was no way he could turn down the role when Denzel Washington called. “When Denzel calls you, you also seriously consider [the role],” he says. A Journal for Jordan releases in theaters nationwide on Christmas Day.