Why John David Washington Used To Lie About His Hollywood Dad Denzel Washington
On the heels of teasing one of his latest films Malcolm & Marie, written, developed, produced and filmed in quarantine with Zendaya, John David Washington shared that he tried to hide the identity of his famous father in an effort to be taken seriously as an actor, at the start of his acting career.
Often lying about his father, Oscar-winner Denzel Washington, John David tried to make a name for himself on his own.
“I used to lie, saying he was a construction worker or in jail,” Washington said, in an interview with the Mr. Porter publication. “Just to have some sense of normalcy.”
The 36-year-old Tenet actor who was also nominated for a Golden Globe in 2019 for his leading performance in Spike Lee’s BlackKklansman said that he would see people change their minds on him after they learned who his father was.
"I felt like there was no way people would take me seriously, even if I was good," he said. "They would always judge me. So I hid who my father was. I guess I was protecting myself."
“Hopefully, my work will speak for itself, like the early De Niros and Leonardo DiCaprios,” he said. “Their work speaks for itself. That’s how I’d like to live.”
