Unlike his father, Damon Wayans Jr. is no stranger to a privileged upbringing, but there’s one memory from his childhood that stands out as a “biggest complaint”—and it involves none other than basketball legend Michael Jordan. In a recent interview with PEOPLE, the actor opened up about his “dream” childhood and shared a hilarious story about the one thing that drove him crazy: MJ’s constant snacking.
Reflecting on his early years, the Poppa’s House star expressed how fortunate he felt growing up. “I always feel bad when I hear my friends talk about how hard their childhood was because I literally lived a dream childhood,” Wayans Jr. admitted. “I’m sure all my siblings would agree that we were so incredibly privileged to have two parents who both agreed to never fight in front of the kids. We always had activities, we always had friends over.”
Then, the conversation turned to snacks, and that’s when the story of Jordan’s visits took an unexpected turn. “The snacks! We had so many snacks. Your snack game was off the chain,” Damon said, nodding at his dad. “Michael Jordan used to come over and eat all my snacks. That’s how good our snacks were, when Michael Jordan would be in there just munching on your snacks… he came over too much. Shoutout to Jordan, though.”
It wasn’t just the snacks that made MJ’s visits unforgettable; the Wayans family had a unique experience of having the NBA icon in their home. Damon recalled, “It was amazing to have him. All my friends would come over not to see me, but hope they got a glimpse of Michael Jordan. One thing I really put foot down about was, don’t bother him. He moved in for the whole summer, and I only went over to the house once because he invited me in. Did the fan in me want to be there every day? Yes, ‘cause I could see him from my window. ‘There he is, there he is, look look look!’”
Damon’s son even confirmed his dad’s memory, adding with a laugh, “I remember when he first moved in. You guys army crawled over to the window.”
While the Wayans family embraced Jordan’s presence, it was clear there were boundaries. Damon remembers wanting to get as much time with MJ as possible but respecting the space around him. The calm and collected basketball legend didn’t seem to mind the attention, but Damon couldn’t help but notice how his friends were more excited to see MJ than him.
Fans on social media were quick to react to Damon’s story, with one person commenting, “The Wayans family should be celebrated for generations. But Damon’s branch of the family tree is just out right incredible lmfao.” Another added, “This might be on the Mount Rushmore of flexes.” Others pointed out how the Wayans family’s ability to give their children a great life was an inspiration, with one user writing, “The goal is to give the kids a better life than you had.”
Damon also reflected on fatherhood and shared a more personal moment from his own experience. When asked about the early days of being a parent, he admitted, “I was too young to have a child… I couldn’t see myself with a kid. I didn’t meet Jr. until he was like 5 weeks old.”
The full interview touches on many aspects of Damon’s life, including family photos, working together, and more. You can catch the full conversation, including the MJ snack clip, below.
