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During his initial years in showbiz, Denzel Washington cemented himself as the go-to guy for biopics, thanks to stellar performances in releases, such asCry Freedom,Malcolm X, andThe Hurricane. But despite mostly leaning towards more heroic roles during the ’90s, the actor finally left his comfort zone to tackle a more villainous gig in the early 2000s.
Not only did it open a whole new door for the actor in Hollywood, but his role inTraining Dayalso earned Washington his second Oscar win, and he has his son to thank for it.
Denzel Washington’s Son Pushed Him Towards More Villainous Gigs
Being a father,Denzel Washingtonwas adamant about making his kids read more, and as a result, he provided them with the scripts that were offered to him. One of the scripts that would end up wowing his son John David was David Ayer’s draft forTraining Day.
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Considering it was a far cry from Washington’s more heroic gigs, as instead of being a goody-two-shoes character, he was“a sick, sick man who has no heart”, David urged his dad to give the role a shot ( viaFemale).
He really pushed me to do three films. The other two were completely different. But he’s the one who really pushed me to do Training Day. He said, because you’ve never done anything like that.
Although David was also successful in convincing theGladiator 2star to star inAmerican Gangster,Training Dayserved as a revelation as it introduced the world to his never-seen-before chops, when it came to playing bad guys. As a result, more morally corrupt roles kept coming his way in the aftermath ofTraining Day‘s success.
Denzel Washington Finds Bad Guys More Fun
As for Washington’s stance on playing morally corrupt figures as opposed to more heroic gigs, the actor confessed that he found the former more enjoyable. While being confined in the role of a historical or a morally upright figure limits an actor’s chance to explore, the same limitations don’t apply when it comes to the depiction of more hideous characters.
You Wouldn’t Believe How Much Denzel Washington Earned for His Iconic Role of “Alonzo Harris” in Training Day
Washington added (viaDigital Spy):
It’s cliche to say, but bad guys have more fun. you’re able to get away with more. In playing a real character who’s heroic, you’re kind of stuck. There’s only so much you can get away with. But [the] bad guy can say anything.
Keeping in mind that his role inTraining Dayserved as the actor’s foray into the realm of playing more twisted characters, Washingtonadmittedthat he had a lot of fun while portraying hisTraining Daycounterpart.
Training Dayis available to rent on Apple TV.
Santanu Roy
Senior Writer
Articles Published :2539
Santanu Roy is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, majorly focusing on movies, with over 2,000 articles under his belt. He has been pursuing a degree in Animation and possesses a deep love for the medium of animation. Having spent the better part of the last two years pumping out articles for FW, Santanu excels at covering movie analysis and news surrounding Pixar, DCU, DreamWorks, and Batman’s cinematic legacy.With psychological thrillers and intimate slice-of-life dramas ranking among his favorite genres, Santanu is a big admirer of Luca Guadagnino, Shane Black, Park Chan-wook, and Brad Bird.
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Denzel Washington
