Denzel Hayes Washington Jr.
Denzel Washington is the first African American actor to win two Academy Awards, taking Best Supporting Actor for Glory in 1989 and Best Actor for Training Day in 2001. He has portrayed real-life figures including Malcolm X and Rubin Hurricane Carter. Born in Mount Vernon, New York, he studied journalism at Fordham University before turning to acting.
Denzel Washington by the numbers — life, work, and family.
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Denzel Washington — early life, career, personal life, and legacy.
December 28, 1954, in Mount Vernon, New York — Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. was born, the middle of three children to a beautician mother from Georgia and a Pentecostal minister father from Virginia. After high school, he enrolled at Fordham University with plans to become a journalist, but discovered acting in student theater productions. He moved to San Francisco to attend the American Conservatory Theater, leaving after one year to seek professional acting work.
Washington made his film debut in Carbon Copy 1981 alongside George Segal. He gained wide recognition as Dr. Philip Chandler on the NBC series St. Elsewhere from 1982 to 1988. His breakout came with the Oscar-winning role of Tripp in Glory 1989. He portrayed Steve Biko in Cry Freedom 1987, Malcolm X in Malcolm X 1992, and Rubin Carter in The Hurricane 1999. In 2001, he won the Best Actor Oscar for his role in Training Day. He directed Antwone Fisher 2002, The Great Debaters 2007, and Fences 2016.
Washington met actress Pauletta Pearson on the set of the 1977 TV movie Wilma. They married in 1983 and have four children: John David, Olivia, Malcolm twins, born 1991, and Katia. He is a longtime national spokesperson for the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, having been a member himself. The family resides in Los Angeles, California.
Denzel Washington is the most Oscar-nominated African American actor, with nine nominations and two wins. He is only the sixth actor to win both lead and supporting Oscars. His films Glory, Malcolm X, and Philadelphia are preserved in the National Film Registry. In 2016 he received the Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award at the Golden Globes.
Browse the complete filmography of Denzel Washington — every film, TV show, and documentary credit, ranked by popularity.
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Denzel Washington's bibliography — every authored, edited, and co-written book, ranked by edition count.
Every award, honor, and recognition received by Denzel Washington — Grammys, hall-of-fame inductions, civic honors, lifetime achievements.
A wall of memorable lines from Denzel Washington — lyrics, interviews, and off-the-cuff remarks captured over a lifetime.
I’m Very Proud to Be Black, but Black Is Not All I Am. That’s My Cultural Historical Background, My Genetic Makeup, but It’s Not All of Who I Am nor Is It the Basis from Which I Answer Every Question.
I Remain Thankful for the Gifts That I’ve Been Given and I Try to Use Them in a Good Way, in a Positive Way.
Acting Is Just a Way of Making a Living, the Family Is Life.
The Acting Coach Stanislavsky Talks About Cutting 90 Percent. so You Do Research, Research, Research, Then You Drop It and Listen When You’re in the Scene and Know Who You Are. You Never Know How It’s Gonna Come Around. That’s Why You Go Out There and Find Out. It’s Because You Need the Human Beings That Hook You into the Character. Maybe I’m Not as Imaginative as the Average Actor. I Need Some Kind of a Hook Sometimes.
Man Gives You the Award but God Gives You the Reward.
Long Ago, I Made a Commitment to Completely Cut Out Drinking and Anything That Might Hamper Me from Getting My Mind and Body Together. and the Floodgates of Goodness Have Opened Upon Me, Spiritually and Financially.
Tony Scott Was a Great Director, a Genuine Friend, and It Is Unfathomable to Think That He Is Now Gone. He Had a Tremendous Passion for Life and for the Art of Filmmaking, and Was Able to Share This Passion with All of Us Through His Cinematic Brilliance.
The Secret to a Happy Marriage? Do Whatever Your Wife Tells You ‘Yes Dear.’ and Breathe.
Quite Simply, You Can’t Win with the News. If You Read the Papers, You’re Misinformed. If You Don’t Read Them, You’re Uninformed.
He Was a Gentle Soul and a Brilliant Artist, Who Will Stay with Us for Eternity Through His Iconic Performances Over His Short yet Illustrious Career. God Bless Chadwick Boseman
A Mother Is a Son’s First True Love, a Son Is the Mother’s Last True Love
At Your Highest Moment, Be Careful, That’s When the Devil Comes for You.
After Malcolm X I Made Some Real Clunkers. Look Them up I Won’t Say Their Names. They Are All in the 1990S. but I Was Earning. I Had Responsibilities.
We’re All Slaves to Information Now. We Really Are. We’re All Slaves. so Whatever You Feel About the Leaders, Like This Guy’s Crazy or the Other One Is Sane, You’d Better Realize You’re Being Manipulated by Both Sides. Period.Yeah,so Go to the Movies
Little-known facts about Denzel Washington — origins, oddities, and behind-the-scenes details from a public life.
Tom Hanks said working with Washington on Philadelphia 1993 was comparable to attending film school.
Washington is the first African American actor to receive two Academy Awards.
Actors he most wants to work with are Al Pacino and Robert De Niro; director he most wants to work with is Martin Scorsese.
Washington performed most of his own stunts for the hand-to-hand fight sequences in The Book of Eli 2010.
He turned down the role in Seven 1995, later telling Entertainment Weekly he found the film too dark and evil, and regretted the decision.
In 2006 he donated $1 million to Save Africa’s Children.
Washington named Gene Hackman, Angelina Jolie and Dakota Fanning as the most talented actors he has worked with.
His personal favorite performances are in Cry Freedom 1987, Glory 1989, Malcolm X 1992, and Training Day 2001.
A prophetess at his mother’s beauty parlor wrote a prophecy saying he would speak to millions; he kept the paper in his wallet.
He visited troops at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio and later sent a large donation to the Fisher Houses.
Washington is a huge fan of the TV series Monk and requested Ted Levine for a role in American Gangster 2007.
He is named after his father, who was named after the doctor who delivered him, Dr. Denzel.
Washington became only the sixth actor to win both lead and supporting acting Oscars.
He met his wife Pauletta in 1977 on the set of the TV movie Wilma; they wed five years later.
His twins Malcolm and Olivia were born on April 10, 1991; Malcolm was named after Malcolm X.
A Newsweek cover story used Washington as a key example in a scientific explanation of perceived handsomeness.
His son John David Washington signed as a running back with the St. Louis Rams later NFL career.
Washington confronted director Quentin Tarantino on the set of Crimson Tide over his use of racial slurs in films.
He trained for a year with boxing trainer Terry Claybon to play Rubin Hurricane Carter in The Hurricane 1999.
He was considered for the role of Detective Tubbs on Miami Vice, which went to Philip Michael Thomas.
Washington is a spokesperson for the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, having been a member himself.
His favorite black actors include Idris Elba and Chiwetel Ejiofor, both British and co-stars in American Gangster.
To prepare for Philadelphia 1993, he met with lawyers Johnnie Cochran and Carl Douglas.
As of 2018, he is the most Oscar-winning two and nominated nine black actor in Academy history.
The 2002 Oscars marked the first time three African Americans dominated: Washington, Halle Berry, and Sidney Poitier.
According to Forbes, his movies averaged $10 of gross income for each dollar he was paid.
He broke the pinky finger of his right hand in a childhood basketball accident; it healed crooked.
Washington was only the second black actor after Sidney Poitier to win Best Actor, on the same night Poitier received an honorary Oscar.
People magazine chose him as the Sexiest Man Alive on July 29, 1996.
He was considered for Wesley Snipes’s roles in Jungle Fever, White Men Can’t Jump, and Blade.
He has served on the board of Boys & Girls Clubs of America since 1995; PS 17X in New York was named after him.
Won the 2010 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for Fences.
He has worked twice with Chiwetel Ejiofor: in Inside Man and American Gangster.
His name is pronounced den-ZEL, while his father’s is pronounced DEN-zel.
Three of his films are in the National Film Registry: Glory, Malcolm X, and Philadelphia.
He has worked with both Ridley and Tony Scott: five films with Tony, two with Ridley.
He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Fordham University.
He was considered for the role of Curtis Taylor Jr. in Dreamgirls, but Jamie Foxx was cast.
He turned down Seven to star in Devil in a Blue Dress 1995.
He directed two actors to Oscar-nominated performances: Viola Davis won for Fences, and himself.
His performance as Malcolm X is ranked #17 on Premiere’s 100 Greatest Performances of All Time.
Almost every summer he and his family vacation in Italy.
Two of his films are on AFI’s 100 Most Inspiring Movies: Glory at #31 and Philadelphia at #20.
He has worked with both Fanning sisters: Dakota in Man on Fire, Elle in Deja Vu.
His first child, John David, was born on July 28, 1984.
He cites Jim Brown and Gale Sayers as his role models growing up.
He was chosen by People as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World.
For Courage Under Fire 1996, he trained on M1A1 tanks at Fort Irwin.
He has starred in four remakes: The Manchurian Candidate, The Taking of Pelham 123, Man on Fire, and The Magnificent Seven, plus a TV remake The Equalizer.
His daughter Katia Washington attended Yale University.
Quick answers to the questions readers ask most about Denzel Washington.
Celebrities similar to Denzel Washington — same craft, ranked by reach.
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