15 facts about Denzel Washington
- Denzel Washington turned down the role of the title character in Michael Clayton.
- Along with Samuel L. Jackson, Denzel Washington voiced a character in a new audio version of the Bible, which was released in two segments; The New Testament, released in 2006 and The Old Testament, released in 2007.
- Denzel Washington has been nominated for two Emmys. In 1995, he was nominated for Outstanding Informational Special for Hank Aaron: Chasing the Dream. In 2001, he was nominated for Outstanding Non-Fiction Special for Half Past Autumn: The Life and Works of Gordon Parks.
- Denzel Washington was chosen as People Magazine's Sexiest Man Alive in 1996. He was also chosen as one of People Magazine's Sexiest Men Alive in 2007.
- Denzel Washington revealed in January 2007 that he turned down the lead role in Love Field with Michelle Pfeiffer after finding the script to be racist.
- Denzel Washington became addicted to heroin after his parents divorced when he was 14, but beat his addiction before he was 20.
- Denzel Washinngton was the first African-American to win two Academy Awards and the third African-American to win an Oscar.
- Denzel Washington is an active contributor to many charities such as the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund and The Gathering Place (an AIDS hospice).
- Denzel Washington collaborated on 3 different films with Spike Lee.
- Denzel Washington and director Quentin Tarantino got into an argument on the set regarding Tarantino's use of racial slurs.
- Newsweek did an article on the “Biological Basis of the Perceptions of Beauty”. Newsweek used Denzel as the example for what an extremely handsome man is.
- Denzel Washigton studied Journalism and received a BA in that field from Fordham University.
- Denzel's son was named after Malcolm X.
- Denzel is married to Pauletta Washington. They got married on June 25, 1983. They have 4 children: John David (1985), Katia (1988) and a set of twins Malcolm and Olivia (1991).
- Denzel Washington enjoys portraying "real people." He played Reuben Carter in The Hurricane and Malcolm X in Malcolm X.
