News culture “It’s here and in front of everyone”: the day Denzel Washington (Equalizer 3) humiliated Quentin Tarantino for his offensive dialogues!
Published on 03/09/2023 at 12:25
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Just by watching the Equalizer trilogy, we know full well that it’s best not to mess with Denzel Washington. Without necessarily confronting him directly, he can very quickly fall on our backs if we say or do something that bothers him. During the filming of the film USS Alabama, it was neither more nor less than Quentin Tarantino (Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill) who learned it the hard way. Washington really didn’t like the way he wrote, and he let him know!
Denzel Washington, one of the most involved actors who is not afraid to get involved!
We mentioned it previously: neither Denzel Washington himself, nor anyone (except Ruth Green) could have believed that the native of Mount Vernon would become one of the most important actors of his generation. If it began towards the end of the 1970s, It was the 1990s that offered him his first, most emblematic and significant roles.. Spotted thanks to his performances in the television film Wilma (1977), the feature films Cry Freedom (1987), Glory (1989), and especially the series St. Elsewhere where he played the role of Doctor Philip Chandler for the entirety of the six seasons, from 1982 to 1988, his career took a major turning point with, in quick succession, Malcolm X, The Pelican Affair and Philadelphia.
Beyond having innate abilities as an actor, Denzel Washington is also a man who is very involved in his rolesin particular to prepare them as best as possible: he will read the Koran several times and will stop consuming pork for Malcolm for almost a year for Trial by Fire, and will practice basketball every day (even competing with a pro player, Ray Allen) for He Got Game. In short, Denzel Washington is an actor who is committed… and who is committed to the African-American community. We see this with his performance in Cry Freedom, Glory, Malcolm
Denzel Washington Didn’t Appreciate Tarantino’s Writing, and It Gave Him a Big Blow
All this to say that Denzel Washington is deeply committed to the African-American community and that he sometimes starts like crazy when he hears or reads certain things, and it almost caused quite a stir on the set of the film USS Alabama, supervised by director Tony Scott. Even though the main screenplay was named after Michael Schiffer, the industry often called on other uncredited writers to flesh out the script. Then in full glory for his film Pulp Fiction and recognized for his work on Reservoir Dogs, Quentin Tarantino is called in for reinforcements. Except that this one is rather “renowned” for its offensive style towards black and African-American culture, not being afraid to slip the “n-word” here and there into the script. Ultimately, these changes reach the ears of Denzel Washington who fumes.
One fine day, Quentin Tarantino takes a detour to the USS Alabama film set and is suddenly approached, in the distance, by someone who calls out to him with a “Hey, come here for a second”. Without having met beforehand, a lively exchange takes place between Washington and Tarantino, even if the latter tries to calm things down and direct the discussion further, out of sight. Unfortunately, Tarantino is gently rebuffed and Washington explains to him that they will have this discussion “here and in front of everyone”, and not elsewhere. In short, the blower easily lasts five minutes in front of the amazed eyes of all the members of the team. Despite this altercation, Washington and Tarantino buried the hatchet and forgot this story, so much so that Denzel Washington’s daughter even had the right to a furtive appearance in Django Unchained where she plays a secondary and minimal role. All’s well That ends well !
