Denzel Washington Mat Hayward/Getty Images for Netflix
At almost 70 years old, Denzel Washington has learned a lot about the acting industry, and he’s got wisdom to pass on.
In a new Interview with the UK’s Sunday Times, the legendary actor talked about the advice he’s given to his children about his craft.
Washington, who started his career doing theater, gave his own analogy to the art of acting, relating it to basketball.
“Everyone thinks they can do it, but there’s only so many LeBrons. You see what I mean? And I’m not knocking actors that never got the opportunity because maybe that wasn’t their track, but I can tell you about my own kids …”
Out of the four children that Washington has, two of them have gone into the family profession.
Son John David Washington, 40, and daughter Olivia Washington, 33, are both actors in their own right. John David has been in films such as BlacKkKlansman and Tenet. Olivia has been in I’m a Virgo and A Holiday in Harlem.
“I told them they have to get on the stage because that’s where you learn to act,” the elder Washington stressed “You don’t learn to act on TV. You don’t learn to act in movies. You learn to act on stage. TV and films are a director’s medium — where they are in control.”
Washington also gave insight into his feelings on his own library of work. “I haven’t watched any film from my past from start to finish, not even Malcolm X,” he noted. “All you see is what you did wrong. Also why would you do it anyway?”
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Washington recently made headlines for his behind-the-scenes look at his new, highly anticipated film Gladiator II. In an interview with Gayety, the factory spoke about a scene that got cut from the film’s final edit. When asked “How gay is the Roman Empire?” Washington revealed that “I actually kissed a man in the film but they took it out, they cut it,” he said. “I think they got chicken.”
Washington added that the kiss wasn’t just casual. “I kissed a guy full on the lips and I guess they weren’t ready for that yet,” said Washington. “I killed him about five minutes later. It’s Gladiator. It’s the kiss of death.”
Gladiator II finds Washington starring as Macrinus — a former slave who won freedom by fighting. The film was directed by Ridley Scott, who spoke about Washington’s character in an interview with The New York Times.
Scott said that Macrinus has a “twinkle” of bisexuality. “There’s a twinkle. Also, he’s a gangster. I think he was clearly a prisoner of war, went to the ring, earned his freedom, suddenly working in a giant bread factory and supplied bread for the Roman army,” he said. “He maybe eventually took that over, then goes to munitions, so he’s an arms dealer. I thought that was his evolution. He said, ‘Oh, I like that. I’m a gangster.’”