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Time continues to prove that no idol is not without faults. Denzel Washington has revealed he battled alcohol abuse for a large part of his career.
The esteemed actor was recently profiled on Esquire Magazine. The feature chronicles his life as a youth in Mount Vernon, NY all the way up to his beginnings as a budding actor. This piece does a magnificent job of allowing Denzel Washington to tell his story in his own words. When discussing his very controversial loss to Kevin Spacey at the 2000 Academy Awards for the Best Actor Award (Denzel was nominated for Hurricane) he says he went home and drank. Denzel admits that the loss made him bitter and this was his way of hosting his own pity party.
He went on to detail how his love for wine eventually became a very bad habit. “Wine is very tricky. It’s very slow. It ain’t like, boom, all of a sudden. And part of it was we built this big house in 1999 with a ten-thousand-bottle wine cellar, and I learned to drink the best” he explained. When the cellar eventually thinned out he would call a local shop to have a pair of bottles personally delivered to his home. When asked by his wife why he would only buy two at a time he revealed this was his way of limiting himself. “Because if I order more, I’ll drink more. So I kept it to two bottles, and I would drink them both over the course of the day.”
Even though he was drinking heavily he says he never let it interfere with his profession. “I never drank while I was working or preparing. I would clean up, go back to work—I could do both” he explained. “However many months of shooting, bang, it’s time to go. Then, boom.Three months of wine, then time to go back to work.” Thankfully Denzel Washington saw the error of his ways back then and dropped the habit. He has since been clean and will make his ten year anniversary of sobriety in December.
You can read Denzel Washington’s story on Esquire Magazine here.
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Denzel Washington spoke candidly about having issues with alcohol, detailing his reasons and his sobriety in an interview.
Veteran actor Denzel Washington revealed his past issues with alcohol in a far-ranging interview for Esquire Magazine’s Winter 2024 issue. The interview was released in conjunction with promotion for his starring role in Gladiator II.
The Academy Award-winner detailed how he had a preference for wine and talked about drinking due to being “bitter” after losing out on the Oscar in 1999 for his portrayal of wrongly-imprisoned boxer Ruben “Hurricane” Carter in The Hurricane to controversial actor Kevin Spacey for his role in American Beauty. “Wine is very tricky,” Washington said. “It’s very slow. It ain’t like, boom, all of a sudden. And part of it was we built this big house in 1999 with a ten-thousand-bottle wine cellar, and I learned to drink the best. So I’m gonna drink my ’61s and my ’82s and whatever we had.”
The Equalizer actor stressed that it never interfered with his acting work because of his self-imposed restraint. “I’d call Gil Turner’s Fine Wines & Spirits on Sunset Boulevard and say, Send me two bottles, the best of this or that. And my wife’s saying, Why do you keep ordering just two? I said, Because if I order more, I’ll drink more. So I kept it to two bottles, and I would drink them both over the course of the day,” he recalled, continuing: “I never drank while I was working or preparing. I would clean up, go back to work—I could do both. However many months of shooting, bang, it’s time to go. Then, boom.Three months of wine, then time to go back to work.”
Denzel Washington Reveals He Is Now Sober
Washington would remark that the fifteen-year period until he gave up alcohol altogether did “a lot of damage to the body.” But he stated that he’s been sober for ten years as of next month. “I haven’t had a thimble’s worth since,” he said. Washington cited his faith and getting more health-conscious with the help of Lenny Kravitz, who helped him get a physical trainer.
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Denzel Washington has enjoyed a storied career that transfers seamlessly between the big screen and the stage, and he appears to be looking toward the sunset. In a recent interview, Denzel Washington says that director Ryan Coogler is writing him a part for Black Panther 3 and has a clear idea of how he wants to head into his impending retirement from acting.
Denzel Washington, 69, sat down with the Australian show TODAY in support of the upcoming Gladiator II film starring the veteran actor and was joined on the program by costars Pedro Pascal and Connie Neilsen.
The chat opened up with the cast members praising Gladiator film series director Ridley Scott on creating a lavish set that called back to the mighty days of the Roman Empire.
When the conversation turned to delivering a sequel to the beloved original Gladiator film, Washington was asked if he felt any type of pressure in stepping into the massive franchise. In his typically cool fashion, Washington says he embraces this phase of his career especially as he eyes an end to appearing onscreen.
“For me it’s about the filmmakers. Especially at this point in my career, I am only interested in working with the best,” Washington shared. “I don’t know how many more films I’m going to make. It’s probably not that many. I want to do things I haven’t done.”
After stating that bombshell, Washington delivered another toward the end of the junket conversation.
“I played Othello at 22. I am about to play Othello at 70,” Washington added. “After that, I am playing Hannibal. After that, I’ve been talking to Steve McQueen about a film. After that, Ryan Coogler is writing a part for me in the next ‘Black Panther.’ After that, I’m going to do the film ‘Othello.’ After that, I’m going to do King Lear. After that, I’m going to retire.”
The news of Denzel Washington having a role in the upcoming Black Panther sequel had folks expressing excitement on the X social media platform. We’ve got reactions below.
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12. There is always one.
Nearly 35 years after Lenny Kravitz made his Billboard Hot 100 debut with 1989’s timeless “Let Love Rule,” the iconic rocker’s star is blazing brighter than ever.
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Already boasting 15.1 million albums sold in the U.S. during the Luminate era (since 1991) and 884.9 million official on-demand U.S. streams for his catalog, according to Luminate, Kravitz has spent the last two years collecting honors reserved for the entertainment industry’s uppermost echelon. In 2023, he penned “Road to Freedom” for the Academy Award-nominated film Rustin, an Obamas-produced biopic of gay Black civil rights icon Bayard Rustin, netting both a Golden Globe nomination. At the top of 2024, the four-time Grammy winner was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, which gave way to a celebration that featured a tear-jerking tribute speech from longtime friend Denzel Washington. Of course, Kravitz also earned his very first nomination for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this year, cementing something of a re-peak and “Lennaissance” for the 59-year-old icon.
“I’m so, so grateful. If you’re blessed and you live long enough, you get to see some of these things,” he reflects. “I’ve always kind of had blinders on and just been moving forward and never thought about these kinds of things — what kind of acceptance or what kind of flowers and whatnot. I’m just here to create and to keep creating.”
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Never one to spend too long reminiscing on what he’s already accomplished, Kravitz has spent the last four years preparing Blue Electric Light. Serving as his twelfth studio album and first LP since 2018’s Raise Vibration, the new record was crafted in the Bahamas amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Peppered with influences ranging from Motown to gospel, every chord of Blue Electric Light rings with gratitude; odes to the innumerable intricacies of the universe, God and love in all of its variations comprise the succinct 12-song tracklist.
Kravitz kicked off the LP’s campaign late last year with the release of the equal parts spunky and funky “TK421.” Assisted by a cheeky music video featuring a frequently nude Kravitz, the song wholly embodies the gloriously rambunctious feel of Blue Electric Light. The bare-bodied clip was a natural culmination of the rock legend’s commitment to flaunting his impressively maintained physique across social media. This is an album from an artist who intimately understands the virtues of continuing to grow up and remaining open to what life has to offer.
In a revealing conversation with Billboard, Lenny Kravitz breaks down the making of Blue Electric Light, gushes over his friendship with Washington, reflects on the concept of genre and reminisces about how childhood trips to his mother’s closet influenced his iconic style and inimitable cool.
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You recorded this album at home in the Bahamas. Do you find location impacts the recording process for you?
My studio’s here. I’ve made the last few records here and it’s just a place where I really get grounded. The more grounded I am, the more in nature I am, the more quiet I am, the less people that are around — I hear more and more and more. I just get to a place where I’m just living in this universe of music. It doesn’t influence the kind of music. The type of music that comes, comes. The amount of music I hear and the clarity in this location is definitely intensified.
You’ve received several incredible honors over the past two years. How does it feel to know that you’ve cultivated a career with so much longevity and respect?
In my 20s, when all these things [were] starting to happen, I didn’t take the time to sit for a moment and say, Wow, this is wonderful. I’ve always been grateful, but I never took time to enjoy those moments. To smell the flowers, if you will. Some years ago, I said when this kind of energy is happening again, I’m going to stop and take the time and really smell the roses and acknowledge it because there’s nothing wrong with it. There’s [now] an even higher level of gratitude.
Do you think that just comes with you getting older and gaining more life experience?
I’ve always been [a person] that never thinks he’s done anything. My daughter would say to me, “Dad, you’ve done so much!” And I’m like, “I haven’t done anything yet!” I still like that. I feel like the 35 years that I’ve had thus far in making records has been a great education, and I’m really about to do something now. That’s how I feel.
I don’t take in all the stuff I’ve done and think, Oh, I’m so good, oh I’ve done this, look at me! I am the absolute opposite. It’s still a part of me, because of how much I hustled as a teenager in the streets. I’m still that teenager trying to get the record deal. There’s a part of me that’s still that kid trying to prove himself. I always feel that the best is yet to come — which is a virtue I learned from my grandfather, who repeatedly said that his entire life. No matter how good things are, the best is yet to come. It always can be better and get better, and you can be better and get better. I’m still the same, but I am taking the time to enjoy these moments because you don’t get these moments back. You get another one, a different one. But you don’t get these moments back.
Even just moments in life — when I was in rehearsal the other day with my band, it was one of those moments in the afternoon where something felt magical. I made everybody stop rehearsing, and we all left the rehearsal room and jumped in the water at the beach. We laid around the water for two hours talking and it was just one of those moments where the sky was the right color, the wind was in the right place, the water was moving a certain way, etc. You got to savor these moments.
Are there any specific values in your career or your life that shine through this particular album?
Exercising and retaining my faith in God and God’s plan for me. Exercising faith, patience, all the things that I learned growing up. If [something is] really yours and meant to be yours, you will have it — that takes faith, you know. All these virtues that I learned growing up – building on a strong foundation, no shortcuts – ring true to this day.
Blue Electric Light marks a follow up to 2018’s Raise Vibration. How do you compare the creative processes for those albums?
[They have] nothing to do with each other. Once I do something, it’s over. I don’t think about it anymore. If you ask me to repeat it, I don’t have the ability. All my albums are in different directions — not only songwriting wise, but production-wise, sonically, etc. Raise Vibration was a wonderful album to make. I had a great time making it here and the same thing with this one. The difference with [Blue Electric Light] was that [it was made] during lockdown.
I was stuck here, which was very interesting. I spent two and a half years here making a lot of music. I felt that this was the first one that needed to come out. All of [my] experiences in making records are equally [satisfying.] They’re all different. This one has probably been the most fun I’ve had in a while, just the spirit around the whole thing. I think that had a lot to do with the world being shut down and, for the first time in my life since being a small child, not having to be somewhere at a certain time.
What does a blue electric light represent?
Energy. God. Love. Humanity. Power. The song just came to me, I didn’t have a choice in the matter. I wrote [the] song “Blue Electric Light,” and after I’d recorded it, my guitarist Craig [Ross,] who plays on several [other] tracks and is also the engineer of the record, said, “You know, that’s the name of the album.” I already picked something else out – I can’t remember what it was – but I went home that night and kept listening to the record with that song now on it. I said, “You’re right, it is [the title.]”
“Stuck in the Middle” really struck me, it’s just such a grand, funky, soulful ballad. Talk to me about how that particular song came together.
Thank you. That’s a good description, it is grand. I went [into the studio, and] the first thing [I] programmed was the drum machine. I knew I wanted it to be drum machine and not acoustic drums. I just knew it felt I wanted it to feel more electronic in the groove.
It all came together when I picked up the bass. I didn’t anticipate the baseline being as funky as it was on top of that sweet ballad. The bass had this sort of late ‘70s, early ‘80s Motown feel, like something that might be on a Diana Ross record. I love the sweetness of the background vocals and the harmonies, and then you’ve got that beautiful, big gospel bridge where I layer myself – I forget how many times – to create that choir. I knew [that I was] in the Bahamas during the pandemic, [so] there’s no gospel choir. I gotta be the gospel choir. I love that track, it’s one of my favorites.
That’s also one of my favorites, as is “Spirit in My Heart,” which really evokes Stevie Wonder melodically and structurally. Tell me a bit about that one.
I dreamt that. I woke up in the middle of the night and thought, Wow, this chord progression is really beautiful. I felt like I was getting somebody else’s mail. It felt like something that I’ve already known and the chord progression was really striking to me. That’s a really special song, because it’s a love letter to God. It’s thanking God and giving [Him] all the due for everything in my life, acknowledging God’s presence in my life.
It starts with, “You’re the one, you hold the key/ That unlocks the remedy/ You gave me life.” I thought it was a very different song for me.
It’s gotta be exciting to still be recording things that feel new and different for you.
It’s nice when you get jarred like that. [With] that song I was like, Whoa, I don’t know that I would come up with those chord changes. So you really appreciate it because it’s something you didn’t expect to do. I’m continually surprised.
The concept of genre has dominated cultural discourse this year, what do you make of all that as an artist who has been tackling these conversations for decades now?
That’s what I was dealing with coming up. They all want you in that box that they think you belong in. Music has no boundaries. Music is for everyone. I don’t care what you are. You want to make the music that you feel, that’s what you should do. If you’re Korean and you want to sing Appalachian Blues music, well, that’s what you feel. Go on and do it.
But we have to also know our history, and know where it comes from and how it was invented. You have to pay respect to that also. When I was coming up, I remember young Black kids coming up to me and saying, How come you make that white music? I’m like, What do you mean? And they’re like, Yeah, you make that rock’n’roll with the loud guitars.
Okay, hold on. Let’s talk about where it comes from. Have you heard of Chuck Berry? Have you heard of Little Richard? Have you heard of Bo Diddley? Have you heard of Big Mama Thornton? Have you heard of Sister Rosetta Tharpe? Have you heard of Fats Domino? Let me explain to you where this comes from.
In the respect of rock’n’roll, it is our music. It’s for everybody and everybody is open to use it, but let’s not throw away the history of where it comes from. In the case of Beyoncé and this country story we got going on now, I remember my grandmother telling me as a kid — she grew up in rural Georgia – about how country music came from Black music. It’s a matter of education and retaining our history. Don’t take it and say we didn’t invent it, or we weren’t in its development.
Your fashion and aura are iconic – especially in the ways that you expand the scope of what Black masculinity can look like in those realms. Where do you think you developed your sense of style and cool?
I think [it’s] my love for fashion. I grew up listening to a lot of ‘70s [music,] where people were very flamboyant and had a lot of flair. They used clothing to further embellish their art, their attitude, and their personality. The balance of masculine and feminine was always the best to me, whether it be Jimi Hendrix or Sly Stone or Robert Plant from Led Zeppelin, or the men that would wear men’s [and] women’s garments [and] mix things. I was into that.
Then, I had a mother who was just fierce. All her friends — my godmothers, Cicely Tyson and Diahann Carroll – were all about their art, but also all about that fashion. I [also] used to play in my mom’s closet. She’d leave the house and I’d go in her closet and start throwing stuff on — belts and scarves and boots. If you look at my [elementary school] class pictures, you’ll see I’m wearing the big collar and poofy sleeves and my mom’s necklace. She used to wear this peace sign necklace that I would take it and I’d borrow some of her bracelets [too.] I’m like, Damn, I was doing that s—t in the first grade! That’s just who I was. It’s really weird. I kind of forgot, but I felt that stuff as a child.
Denzel Washington gave a very heartfelt and moving speech in your honor at the Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony. What’s the impact of that brotherhood been in your life as a public figure?
Man, it’s so important, and you never know who’s going to end up being your brother. We met in the early ‘90s and slowly kept building a relationship based on brotherhood and love and honesty and faithfulness. We are as close as you could be.
Being that it was a public event and he spoke about me, I know he feels a certain way about me, but to hear him vocalize it was really moving. When he said, “I love Lenny Kravitz. I love Lenny Kravitz. I love Lenny Kravitz,” he said that three times, that hit me hard. I felt what those beats were. [He’s] not just saying something. He said he loved me like he never loved a brother. It was really heavy and beautiful for me, but that’s the relationship we have. As different as people might view us, in essence of what our makeup is and what’s inside of us and how we view and live life, we’re very similar. We are cut from the same cloth. I am honored and blessed to have that relationship in my life. We talk almost every day and we inspire each other.
The other thing is, that’s my boy, right? Anytime a Denzel Washington movie comes on, I’ll watch it. On the tour bus, the hotel, wherever you are. As close as we are, when I see him work, I don’t see the guy I know. He’s so f—king brilliant. I admire him greatly, and our families are also intertwined. I couldn’t thank God enough for creating this in my life. I can’t say enough good things about the man.
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A$AP Rocky is taking his talents back to the big screen. He has been confirmed to be in Spike Lee’s upcoming film High And Low.
As spotted on Hypebeast the Harlem, New York, native was recently spotted filming for a new project. Paparazzi captured photographs of Lord Flacko shooting a scene of his character Yung Felon in handcuffs being led by police into what seems to be a police station. Supporting him are crowds of his friends, family and fans holding up signs asking for proper justice to be served. He is wearing a navy blue baseball jersey, baggy fitting jeans and Timberland construction work boots. Earlier this year, it was announced that Ice Spice was also added to the cast.
High And Low is is a remake of Akira Kurosawa’s 1963 crime thriller of the same name. The movie stars Denzel Washington and marks his fifth movie with Spike Lee. According to Wikipedia, the original follows a high ranking executive who is presented the opportunity of either accumulating a massive amount of power and wealth or lending his employee money to free his child from kidnappers. High And Low was written by Spike Lee and Alan Fox. Production started back in March and is expected to be released in 2025.
In recent A$AP Rocky news, the “Fashion Killa” MC released his newest capsule collection with PUMA. You can read about it here.
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Well, that was fast; Ice Spice is going Hollywood.
Variety exclusively reports that Ice Spice is joining the cast of Spike Lee’s High and Low, an English reinterpretation of the Japanese crime thriller of the same name by Akira Kurosawa.
The original 1963 film starring Toshiro Mifune, based on the Ed McBain novel King’s Ransom, follows a businessman whose life is ruined after making a ransom payment to kidnappers.
The “Munch” rapper will make her acting debut alongside Academy Award-winning actor Denzel Washington and recently Academy Award-nominated Jeffrey Wright in the upcoming Apple Original Films and A24 project.
What her role will be in the project remains a mystery.
Per Variety:
“High and Low” will mark Ice Spice’s acting debut, and she’s already begun shooting for the project starring Denzel Washington.
The rapper skyrocketed to fame following the release of her breakthrough single, “Munch (Feelin’ U),” and subsequent collaborations with Pink Pantheress, Nicki Minaj and Taylor Swift. She was nominated for four Grammys this year, including best rap song and best new artist. Ice Spice’s first studio album, “Y2K,” is due out this year.
The film will be Lee and Washington’s fifth theatrical collaboration. The actor has also starred in Mo Better Blues, Malcolm X, He Got Game, and Inside Man.
Apple Original Films confirmed the film was in production by sharing a photo of Lee and Washington.
Social Media Reacts To The News
The reactions to the news of Ice Spice’s involvement in the film have been met with confusion and some excitement.
“This movie gonna be lit asf,” one person X, formerly Twitter, said in response to Variety’s reporting.
Another person added, “Words can’t describe how badly I want this movie to succeed.”
“This is hilarious but we need to issue a fatwa on spike lee remaking classic asian films,” another post read.
Whether you like it or not, Ice Spice is coming to a big screen near you. We trust Spike Lee, so we can’t wait to see what he cooks up with High and Low.
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Source: Allen Berezovsky / Getty / Spike Lee / Denzel Washington
A new movie directed by Spike Lee starring Denzel Washington, sign us up for that.
Spotted on Variety, Spike Lee and Denzel Washington are coming together for a new movie, well, sort of. The website reports Washington will star in Lee’s remake of Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa’s 1963 crime thriller High and Low.
The film will mark the first project the duo has worked on since 2006’s Inside Man.
Per Variety:
Apple Original Films and A24 are partnering on “High and Low,” which will be released theatrically by A24 before a global launch on AppleTV+.
The thriller, which starts production in March, is the English-language reinterpretation of Akira Kurosawa’s crime thriller of the same name. The 1963 film starring Toshiro Mifune was based on the Ed McBain novel “King’s Ransom,” which chronicles the ruin of a businessman following a ransom payment to kidnappers.
Developed and produced by A24, Escape Artists, and Mandalay Pictures, “High and Low” features a script written by Alan Fox and Spike Lee.
Variety reports High and Low will also reunite Washington with Todd Black (“Emancipation,” “The Equalizer” films), who will produce the film.
Lee doesn’t hide his admiration for Kurosawa’s films, telling Vulture in an interview his classic film She’s Gotta Have Kurosawa’s Rashomon inspired it.
Production on the film will reportedly begin in March.
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Denzel Washington and director Antoine Fuqua are once again teaming up to give movie lovers something to remember. But this time, the legendary actor will be handing out fades in ancient times as the revered director is looking to the past for his latest epic, which will premier on Netflix.
According to Variety, Washington and Fuqua are set to tackle the legend of the ancient Carthaginian general known as Hannibal, who took on the Roman Republic during the second Punic War in 218 B.C. Known as one of the greatest generals in military history, Hannibal was as much a warrior as he was a strategic mastermind and went on to conquer many Italian cities during his historic battle with the Roman Republic. Sounds like a winner already.
Variety Reports:
Hannibal invaded Italy while riding a Northern African war elephant. Under his lead, the Carthaginians won key victories against the Romans, allowing Hannibal to occupy the majority of southern Italy for 15 years. Eventually, Hannibal was defeated by the Romans at the Battle of Zama after they counter-invaded North Africa.
Washington produces the film alongside Erik Olsen, Adam Goldworm and Fuqua via his Hill District Media’s first-look deal with Netflix.
Though the film is still untitled, it will be written by the three-time Academy Award winner John Logan, who penned classics such as Martin Scorsese’s The Aviator and Ridley Scott’s Gladiator. In short, Denzel and Antoine are going for the Oscar gold with this latest project, and we can’t wait to see what they cook up when it’s all said and done.
No word on when production is set to start or when the film is expected to release, but best believe we’ll be patiently waiting with the popcorn for this to hit Netflix sometime in the future.
Will you be looking forward to Denzel Washington conquering his foes during the B.C. era? Let us know in the comments section below.
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Source: Stefano Montesi / The Equalizer 3
Denzel Washington sure does love making movies where he protects innocent people with his life while dishing out fades like the point guard off your favorite team.
Reprising his role as Robert McCall in the third installment to The Equalizer, Denzel Washington intends to go out with a bang as the trailer to The Equalizer 3 promises that this will be the final chapter in the book of Bob. Set in Italy where McCall is living the quiet life he’s always dreamed of, things go left for the man in search of peace after the Sicilian mafia intrude on the small town he’s living in and make life hell for his neighbors and beloved Italian town.
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Knowing it’s on him to keep the peace while breaking down the Italian mob piece by piece, McCall embarks on a one-man suicide mission which calls for him to use guns, broken bottles and a stop watch to enact vengeance on those who dare shake down and terrorize the good people of his community. Being that he’s a man who “understands violence,” McCall becomes the boogeyman to this crime syndicate and leaves behind a bloody trailer in the Antoine Fuqua directed picture.
Will Robert McCall live to finally realize his dream of spending his final years as a peaceful citizen or will have to make the ultimate sacrifice to ensure the protection of the good people of his town? We don’t know but if Dakota Fanning is involved in this film, he’s probably gonna die. Word to Man on Fire.
Check out the trailer to The Equalizer 3 below and let us know if you’ll be checking for this when it hits theaters on September 1st in the comments section below.
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