“My career is based on saying no”- When Denzel Washington talked about being typecast
Denzel Washington is a renowned actor, producer, and director hailing from the United States of America. He studied acting and began his career in the theater in 1976 before shifting his focus to movies.
Denzel Washington has been the recipient of several accolades over the years. He has won two Academy Awards for his roles in Glory (1989) and Training Day (2001). He has also received two Golden Globe Awards, one Screen Actors Guild Award, and one Tony Award. Apart from these, he has received innumerable other awards and nominations for his performances.
Besides acting, he has also been honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, one of the highest civilian awards in the US. He received this award in 2022 and, more recently, again in January 2025.
In a 2012 interview with The Talks, the 70-year-old veteran actor opened up about his career choices and how Hollywood works. When asked whether he turns down roles because they typecast him, the actor replied:
"Absolutely. My career is based on saying no. Sidney Poitier told me many, many years ago that the first four or five movies that you do will determine how you’re perceived in the business."
Denzel Washington speaks out about being typecast
In the same interview, Washington described his career and the movies he selected to take part in. He said:
"So I was very blessed that the second movie I did was with Norman Jewison, the third movie I did was with Sidney Lumet, and the fourth movie I did was Cry Freedom with Richard Attenborough, for which I was nominated for the first time. I was off to the races. There were other movies that I could have done and I didn’t do."
When asked to elaborate further about the roles he turned down, the actor explained:
"They were going to pay me a lot of money and I really thought about it, but I didn’t do it. I waited and six months later I got Cry Freedom. That’s what I tell young actors. "You don’t have to compromise. Go do some theater and wait.""
Washington portrayed the character of anti-Apartheid activist Steve Biko in Richard Attenborough's biographic movie based on a 1970s South Africa, Cry Freedom (1987), for which he received his first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
Denzel Washington also explains that the nature of Hollywood is to try and maximize profits, which is why actors tend to get typecast to reuse the same formula for success. He said:
"I don’t think there is a system. It’s a bunch of people scrambling trying to get rich."
He continued:
"It’s just the nature of this business. First I was Biography Man. (Laughs) “Steve Biko? Get Biography Man! Malcolm X? Biography Man! Remember the Titans? Biography Man! Hurricane? Get Biography Man!” Then all of a sudden somebody slipped up and sent them Training Day. “Bad Guy Man! Get Bad Guy Man!”
In the interview, Denzel Washington also claimed that the industry is toughest on women, regardless of color. He also spoke about certain prejudices within the industry and how changes needed to be made in the administration. When asked about being a star, the actor claimed:
"Well, I’m not a big Hollywood star. I’m an actor. I’m called a star. That’s not what I am. First of all I’m a human being; my profession is acting."
Denzel Washington's most recent release was Gladiator II in 2024, and he is set to portray the role of Hannibal, the Carthaginian general, in Netflix's upcoming and as yet unnamed movie.
