Denzel Washington is a popular American film actor who has taken part in the filming of several films as a film director and producer. He is the second African American to win the prestigious Academy Award. He received this award in two categories - as the best main actor and for the supporting role. The filmography of Denzel Washington is rich in excellent films, which are certainly worth a look.
The youth of the actor
Denzel was born in New York State, in the small town of Mount Vernon. His father was a priest, and his mother was the owner of her own beauty salon, where she also worked as an administrator. In addition, the family had two more children.
The future actor Denzel Washington attended Pennington Grimes Elementary School, and from the age of 11 he began to work part-time in the salon, helping his mother, performing small assignments. The father dreamed that the son would follow in his footsteps, he did not like the fact that the child was accustomed to money. Because of such side jobs, he often quarreled with his wife. When the boy was only 14 years old, his parents filed for divorce. He continued his remaining studies at the school on the territory of a private closed institution - at the Auckland Military Academy.
Student years
After school, the future actor of the film "Crew" Denzel Washington entered Fordham University in New York. He studied in the field of biology and medicine, however, after some time he decided to transfer to the faculty of journalism. At the same time, he began to study theater and participate in amateur productions.
After graduation, actor Denzel Washington decides to continue his creative education at the American Conservatory in San Francisco. He had a grant for free training. Nevertheless, he studied only one course. It was at this time that he was offered the first role in the movie, so Denzel decided that the time to study was over and decided to leave the conservatory. Denzel Washington's filmography begins to expand.
Carier start
Washington's debut was at the age of 23. He played the role of the eighteen-year-old boy Robert Eldridge in the dramatic film "Wilma". After there was an interesting role in the film "Flesh and Blood" and a larger role in the good comedy "An exact copy." The actor agrees to the proposal of the NBC channel and for 6 years is included in the cast of the drama "St. Elsver". This role helped him gain some popularity and fame.
Nevertheless, Denzel does not forget that he dreamed of acting in large films, and at the same time he is looking for roles in films. He starred in films such as “The Story of a Soldier”, the action movie “For the Queen and the Country,” as well as in the biographical film “Cry of Freedom.” For this work, he was nominated for an Oscar as Best Supporting Actor. He might not have got the statuette at that time, but after 2 years for the role of Private Trip in the historical film “Glory”, he won the prize for the first time. Films with Denzel Washington in the title role begin to appear more and more often.
Thanks to such success, the actor was able to get on the set to the talented director Spike Lee. The Blues for a Better Life, as well as filming in the movie Malcolm X, was an excellent addition to Denzel Washington's filmography. The role in the last film earned him a nomination for an Oscar and Golden Globe, but already as a leading actor. In the future, the actor will repeatedly work with Spike Lee.
Recognition and success
Since 1996, Denzel is more and more removed as the main actor. At the moment, starring films with Denzel Washington are most of his creative work.
In 1998, the drama "His Game" was shot, Milla Jovovich became a partner in this film. Also, the actor starred in the movie "Fallen." This is a mystical detective who talks about a policeman who understands that the killer maniac is, in fact, a fallen angel.
Variety of roles and the next Oscar
In 1999, Denzel plays a major role in the drama Power of Fear, which is based on a series of detective novels by D. Diver. The actor plays detective Lincoln Rime, who is the protagonist of the book series. Together with Denzel, Angelina Jolie starred in the film.
At the end of the last century, there were other films with the participation of a movie star. Of course, it is worth noting the phenomenal drama "Philadelphia", which takes 20 place in the list of "Top 100 most inspiring films of the twentieth century." The dramatic film The Case of the Pelicans, the film Crimson Tide, was very popular. Separately, it is worth highlighting the siege militant with Denzel Washington. For the biographical picture "The Hurricane", which tells about the boxer Rubin Carter, the actor received the Golden Globe as the main actor, as well as a nomination for an Oscar and the Screen Actors Guild Award.
A year later, Denzel received his second Oscar for the role of the protagonist of the picture Alonzo Harris in the film "Training Day." It is noteworthy that this was the first role of the actor in the movie when he played a negative character.
Last works
Denzel Washington’s filmography was also replenished with the excellent thriller “Not Caught - Not a Thief,” Jody Foster was the partner in the film. The new millennium brought no less successful and interesting paintings with the actor in the lead roles. You can note the film "Anger" with Denzel Washington, the thriller "Manchu Candidate."
In addition, the actor starred in the film "Deja Vu" and "Access Code" Cape Town. A few years ago, the action movie The Great Equalizer was shot, in which he was the main character. You should definitely get acquainted with the movie "Crew" with Denzel Washington.
The personal life of the actor
During the filming of his first film, Wilma, in 1977, the actor met actress Pauletta Pearson. The couple began dating, which lasted another 5 years, after which they decided to get married. They had four children: son John David, daughter Katya and twins Malcolm and Olivia. Raising a priest forever remained in the heart of Denzel. He is a very devout person, constantly attends the Protestant church, reads the Bible every day, and is still considering becoming a priest. He donated two and a half million dollars to erect a church in Los Angeles.
Modern Denzel Washington Roles
In the fall of 2016, the premiere of the film “The Magnificent Seven” was premiered, where Denzel played the role of Sam Chilsoma. It was a cowboy from a brave seven that defended a small town from a gang of robbers. The plot has a very long history. This picture is a remake of the movie "The Magnificent Seven" by John Sturges, which was released in 1960. In turn, he adapted this story based on the film “Seven Samurai” by the famous director Akira Kurosawa. A Japanese film was released in 1954, and instead of cowboys there were samurai.
At the end of 2016, the drama Fences appeared on the big screen. Denzel plays the role of Troy Maxson. This is a guy from the working class who is struggling to support his family in the difficult fifties of the XX century. The American Film Institute added the film to the best films that came out that year. “Fences” were twice nominated for the Golden Globe and 4 times for the Oscars.
The picture is based on the play of the same name by Wilson, who became the Pulitzer Prize laureate in 1987. All attempts to make a picture based on this play were previously a failure, because the writer insisted that the director of the picture should be exclusively black. Denzel Washington already played this role during the Broadway production in 2010, so he decided to popularize The Fences and act as a director to pave the way for the picture on the big screen.