Rather than auditioning for his role in Da 5 Bloods, Spike Lee sought Jonathan out to play David. "No audition. Just, 'Spike wants to meet you,'" Jonathan explained to Interview Magazine in June 2020. "I'm living in Harlem at the time. I said, 'Spike Lee wants to meet me? Okay. Sure.'" After arranging a meeting with the director and seeing "some stuff he was working on," Jonathan was all but handed the role. "And then we step outside, and it's on," Jonathan added. "[Spike] says, 'This is who you're playing. Do you have a passport? Read this book.'"