Denzel Washington Says He’s “Tired of Movies” and Doesn’t Watch Them Anymore
Denzel Washington, one of the greatest actors of our time, just revealed something you probably didn’t expect. In a recent video interview with Spike Lee and A$AP Rocky for GQ, the two-time Oscar winner flat-out admitted: he’s done watching movies. Not just some movies. All of them.
“I don’t watch movies, man. I really don’t,” Washington said during the chat promoting Highest 2 Lowest. “I’m just being honest with you! I don’t watch movies! I don’t go to the movies. I don’t watch movies. … I’m tired of movies. Yeah.”
To be fair, he’s made enough of them to feel that way. When Lee asked how many movies he’s been in, Washington’s reply was blunt: “Too many. I think 50!”
Washington’s filmography is stacked, dating back to Carbon Copy in 1981. That’s over 40 years of powerful performances and classic films under his belt. Highest 2 Lowest is his fifth time teaming up with Spike Lee, following earlier hits like Mo’ Better Blues, Malcolm X, He Got Game, and Inside Man.
Lee has always been vocal about how Washington deserved to win Best Actor for Malcolm X. But Washington? He’s just not chasing the gold.
“I don’t do it for Oscars. I don’t care about that kind of stuff,” Washington previously said. “I’ve been at this a long time, and there’s time when I won and shouldn’t have won and then didn’t win and should’ve won. Man gives the award. God gives the reward.”
He added, “I’m not that interested in Oscars. People ask me, ‘Where do I keep it?’ Well, next to the other one. I’m not bragging! Just telling you how I feel about it. On my last day, [Oscars] aren’t going to do me a bit of good.”
So while the rest of us may still line up for movie nights or dive into streaming queues for a little entertainment, Denzel’s ready to move on. Maybe that’s what keeps him sharp. He doesn’t make movies for validation, he makes them because he believes in the work.
Highest 2 Lowest is currently in select theaters and drops on Apple TV+ on September 5.