"Did not speak a word" - Michael Cooper Jr. opens up about how he met his Forever co-star Lovie Simone
Michael Cooper Jr. stars as Justin Edwards in Netflix's new teen drama series Forever, which was released on May 8, 2025. Created by Mara Brock Akil, the show follows the story of two childhood friends, Keisha and Justin, who reconnect at a party and begin a romantic relationship. Despite their chemistry, parental and social pressure make them question their choices.
Forever is based on Judy Blume's 1975 YA romance novel of the same name. Michael Cooper Jr. and Lovie Simone lead the cast of Forever, while other actors such as Xosha Roquemore, Marvin Lawrence Winans III, Wood Harris, and Karen Pittman also make an appearance.
In an interview with People Magazine published on May 9, 2025, Cooper Jr. opened up about the first time he met his co-star Lovie Simone. The two were not yet acquainted, but ended up sitting next to each other on a flight to Los Angeles.
"We had our headphones on, locked in. So we literally sat by each other, did not speak a word. Isn't it crazy?" he said.
Michael Cooper Jr. and Lovie Simone on their first impressions of each other
In the interview, Michael Cooper Jr. went on to explain how the actors realised their connection after their cars left the airport and arrived at the same hotel.
"My car dropped me off at the hotel and her car pulled up right after. We both kind of looked at each other like, 'Wait, what?' It was a whole thing," he stated.
Lovie Simone also had a similar first impression of her co-star when she saw him at the hotel.
"My first impression of Michael was, this guy gets the window seat? Okay, all right. And then it was, wait a second, he's also going to the same hotel as me? What's going on?" she explained.
The two eventually ran lines for their characters together before the audition to develop a bond and build chemistry before the official audition.
"We kind of had a rapport similar to how Justin and Keisha knew each other when they were in elementary school. Going into the chemistry read, it was like, okay, this is like, we kind of know each other — but I hope you get it. I felt like from the beginning it was just giving the Keisha and Justin parallels of their dynamics," Simone expressed.
She even described her real-life dynamic with Michael Cooper Jr. to be "very cool".
"It feels like a big sis-little bro (dynamic) in a way. He's just so open. So I appreciate my relationship with Michael. It's fresh and fun and exciting and unpredictable," she added.
Read more: Netflix's Forever ending explained: What happens to Justin and Keisha in the end?
Michael Cooper Jr.'s previous projects
According to an exclusive interview with Michael Cooper Jr., by The Knockturnal on July 29, 2022, he started his acting career at age 9, portraying Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in a church play. He decided to pursue a career in film during his senior year of high school. Later, he relocated to Atlanta in 2020 and gained experience in short films, commercials, and acting classes in a short while.
He landed his first major film role in The Inhabitant (2020), followed by a role in Paramount's On the Come Up (2021). In addition to his acting career, he has also been a full-time student at Texas Tech University, majoring in Political Science.
Forever is available to stream on Netflix
