Deon Cole hosts the 57th NAACP Image Awards on February 28th. Photo: Paramount+.
Preview:
‘Sinners’ took home the big prizes at the 2026 NAACP Image Awards.
‘Paradise’ and Cynthia Erivo were also among the winners.
The event took place Saturday night at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium.
Following the difficult, insulting moments of this year’s BAFTA Awards, the NAACP Image Awards, hosted by Deon Cole, which took place Saturday night at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium, were a chance to balance things out.
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And Ryan Coogler’s ‘Sinners’ proved to be the big winner, going home with 13 awards following a nomination count of 18. Star Michael B. Jordan himself won both a Best Actor award and was honored with Entertainer of the Year.
The ceremony also paid tribute to the late Rev. Jesse Jackson, with NAACP CEO Derrick Johnson and Samuel L. Jackson honoring the late civil rights activist, whose family was in attendance at the ceremony.
(Left) Ryan Coogler arrive at the 14th Governors Awards in the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Ovation Hollywood on Tuesday, January 9, 2024. (Right) Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa / Black Panther in 2018’s ‘Black Panther.’ Photo: Marvel Studios.
Preview:
Ryan Coogler has confirmed he’ll direct ‘Black Panther 3’ as his next movie.
The story is being kept secret.
Denzel Washington reportedly has a role.
Having taken a break from his stint in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to make something original via ‘Sinners,’ writer/director Ryan Coogler has confirmed he’s ready to return to the world of Wakanda.
Coogler, who has so far brought us the hugely successful first movie 2018, 2022 follow-up ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ plus TV spin-offs ‘Ironheart’ and ‘Eyes of Wakanda’ has said for a while he’d return to the MCU once he’d been able to creatively recharge, and ‘Sinners’ provided that opportunity.
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Now on the awards press circuit for his latest, Coogler told the audience at a recent Deadline event that he’s officially developing his new ‘Panther’ offering:
“If it was anybody but you, I would say, ‘I can neither confirm or deny.’ But we’re working on it hard. … Yeah, it’s the next movie.”
‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ director Ryan Coogler.
Coogler didn’t so much as hint at anything that the new movie might cover. But there are hints all over ‘Wakanda Forever,’ including Letitia Wright’s Shuri taking over the Black Panther duties following the death of T’Challa (a plot move that also followed the tragic real-life death of actor Chadwick Boseman).
We may see a time jump to see T’Challa’s son take on the mantle, but whatever Coogler has up his sleeve, we trust him to deliver something spectacular and emotional.
Will Denzel Washington be in ‘Black Panther 3’?
Denzel Washington attends Netflix’s ‘The Piano Lesson’ LA premiere at The Egyptian Theatre Hollywood on November 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Roger Kisby/Getty Images for Netflix.
According to the actor, who commented a while ago that Coogler was writing him a role in the movie, that’s a yes!
This was his comment last year:
“At this point in my career, I’m only interested in working with the best, I don’t know how many more films I will make, probably not that many. I want to do things that I haven’t done. I played Othello at 22, I’m now going to play it at 70. After that, I’m playing Hannibal. After that, I’ve been talking with Steve McQueen about a film. After that, Ryan Coogler is writing a part for me in the next ‘Black Panther.’ ”
Will it turn out to be true? We’ll have to wait and see, but the idea of Washington showing up as a new antagonist (or, indeed anything he wants to do) is certainly one to ponder.
When will ‘Black Panther 3’ be in theaters?
With Coogler still in development on the movie and Disney/Marvel’s release schedule full for the next couple of years, we wouldn’t expect it much before early 2028. And let’s be honest: don’t you want Coogler to have all the time he needs to make the next movie great?
Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa / Black Panther in 2018’s ‘Black Panther.’ Photo: Marvel Studios.
List of ‘Black Panther’ Related Movies and TV Shows:
His new film, ‘Highest 2 Lowest‘, which reunites him with longtime collaborator director Spike Lee, opens in theaters on August 15th before being available to stream on Apple TV+ on September 5th.
In honor of ‘Highest 2 Lowest’s release, Moviefone is counting down the 45 best movies of Denzel Washington’s incredibly impressive acting career, including his latest.
Denzel Washington as Joe “Deke” Deacon in ‘The Little Things’ from Warner Bros. Pictures.
Deputy Sheriff Joe “Deke” Deacon (Washington) joins forces with Sgt. Jim Baxter (Rami Malek) to search for a serial killer who’s terrorizing Los Angeles. As they track the culprit, Baxter is unaware that the investigation is dredging up echoes of Deke’s past, uncovering disturbing secrets that could threaten more than his case.
A sailor (Derek Luke) prone to violent outbursts is sent to a naval psychiatrist for help. Refusing at first to open up, the young man eventually breaks down and reveals a horrific childhood. Through the guidance of his doctor (Washington), he confronts his painful past and begins a quest to find the family he never knew.
A DEA agent (Washington) and an undercover Naval Intelligence officer (Mark Wahlberg) who have been tasked with investigating one another find they have been set up by the mob — the very organization the two men believe they have been stealing money from.
The secret US abduction of a suspected terrorist from his Middle East homeland leads to a wave of terrorist attacks in New York. An FBI senior agent (Washington) and his team attempt to locate and decommission the enemy cells, but must also deal with an Army General (Bruce Willis) gone rogue and a female CIA agent (Annette Bening) of uncertain loyalties.
Called in to recover evidence in the aftermath of a horrific explosion on a New Orleans ferry, Federal agent Doug Carlin (Washington) gets pulled away from the scene and taken to a top-secret government lab that uses a time-shifting surveillance device to help prevent crime.
(L to R) Denzel Washington and Eva Mendes in ‘Out of Time’. Photo: MGM.
Matt Lee Whitlock (Washington), respected chief of police in small Banyan Key, Florida, must solve a vicious double homicide before he himself falls under suspicion. Matt Lee has to stay a few steps ahead of his own police force and everyone he’s trusted in order to find out the truth.
In this Shakespearean farce, Hero (Kate Beckinsale) and her groom-to-be, Claudio (Robert Sean Leonard), team up with Claudio’s commanding officer, Don Pedro (Washington), the week before their wedding to hatch a matchmaking scheme. Their targets are sharp-witted duo Benedick (Kenneth Branagh) and Beatrice (Emma Thompson) — a tough task indeed, considering their corresponding distaste for love and each other. Meanwhile, meddling Don John (Keanu Reeves) plots to ruin the wedding.
Homicide detective John Hobbes (Washington) witnesses the execution of serial killer Edgar Reese (Elias Koteas). Soon after the execution the killings start again, and they are very similar to Reese’s style.
An Indian family is expelled from Uganda when Idi Amin takes power. They move to Mississippi and time passes. The Indian daughter (Sarita Choudhury) falls in love with a black man (Washington), and the respective families have to come to terms with it.
The Law Enforcement Technology Advancement Centre (LETAC) has developed SID version 6.7 (Russell Crowe): a Sadistic, Intelligent, and Dangerous virtual reality entity which is synthesized from the personalities of more than 150 serial killers, and only one man can stop him.
Denzel Washington in ‘Roman J. Israel, Esq’. Photo: Sony Pictures.
Hard-nosed liberal lawyer Roman J. Israel (Washington) has been fighting the good fight forever while others take the credit. When his partner – the firm’s frontman – has a heart attack, Israel suddenly takes on that role. He soon discovers some unsettling truths about the firm – truths that conflict with his values of helping the poor and dispossessed – and finds himself in an existential crisis that leads to extreme actions.
In a rural town in Louisiana, a black Master Sergeant is found shot to death just outside the local Army Base. Military lawyer, Captain Davenport (Howard E. Rollins Jr.)—also a black man—is sent from Washington to conduct an investigation. Facing an uncooperative chain of command and fearful black troops, Davenport must battle with deceit and prejudice in order to find out exactly who really did kill the Master Sergeant.
A US Army officer (Washington), who made a “friendly fire” mistake that was covered up, has been reassigned to a desk job. He is tasked to investigate a female chopper commander’s (Meg Ryan) worthiness to be awarded the Medal of Honor. At first all seems in order. But then he begins to notice inconsistencies between the testimonies of the witnesses…
Talented but self-centered trumpeter Bleek Gillian (Washington) is obsessed with his music and indecisiveness about his girlfriends Indigo (Joie Lee) and Clarke (Cynda Williams). But when he is forced to come to the aid of his manager and childhood friend (Spike Lee), Bleek finds his world more fragile that he ever imagined.
From Academy Award-winning filmmaker Joel Coen comes the propulsive, boldly cinematic ‘The Tragedy of Macbeth,’ starring Oscar-winners Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand as the devious, ill-fated Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. An original, striking reimagining of the classic Shakespearean tale portrayed in sumptuous black-and-white cinematography, ‘The Tragedy of Macbeth’ finds the titular general and his loyal wife older and warier, desperately striving against a merciless ticking clock as they attempt to seize upon a final opportunity for power. In the chaos that ensues, their grasp on the throne unravels, terror mounts and regret enshrouds every inch of their wretched world. Co-starring Kathryn Hunter, Corey Hawkins, Moses Ingram, Brendan Gleeson, Harry Melling and Bertie Carvel.
Denzel Washington in ‘John Q’. Photo: New Line Cinema.
John Quincy Archibald (Washington) is a father and husband whose son is diagnosed with an enlarged heart and then finds out he cannot receive a transplant because HMO insurance will not cover it. Therefore, he decides to take a hospital full of patients hostage until the hospital puts his son’s name on the donor’s list.
A post-apocalyptic tale, in which a lone man (Washington) fights his way across America in order to protect a sacred book that holds the secrets to saving humankind.
Commercial airline pilot Whip Whitaker (Washington) has a problem with drugs and alcohol, though so far he’s managed to complete his flights safely. His luck runs out when a disastrous mechanical malfunction sends his plane hurtling toward the ground. Whip pulls off a miraculous crash-landing that results in only six lives lost. Shaken to the core, Whip vows to get sober — but when the crash investigation exposes his addiction, he finds himself in an even worse situation.
(L to R) Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie in ‘The Bone Collector’. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Rookie cop, Amelia Donaghy (Angelina Jolie) reluctantly teams with Lincoln Rhyme (Washington) – formerly the department’s top homicide detective but now paralyzed as a result of a spinal injury – to catch a grisly serial killer dubbed ‘The Bone Collector’. The murderer’s special signature is to leave tantalizing clues based on the grim remains of his crimes.
A dramatic story, based on actual events, about the friendship between two men struggling against apartheid in South Africa in the 1970s. Donald Woods (Kevin Kline) is a white liberal journalist in South Africa who begins to follow the activities of Stephen Biko (Washington), a courageous and outspoken black anti-apartheid activist.
Years after witnessing the death of the revered hero Maximus (Russell Crowe) at the hands of his uncle (Joaquin Phoenix), Lucius (Paul Mescal) is forced to enter the Colosseum after his home is conquered by the tyrannical Emperors who now lead Rome with an iron fist. With rage in his heart and the future of the Empire at stake, Lucius must look to his past to find strength and honor to return the glory of Rome to its people.
Two competing lawyers (Tom Hanks and Washington) join forces to sue a prestigious law firm for AIDS discrimination. As their unlikely friendship develops their courage overcomes the prejudice and corruption of their powerful adversaries.
Robert McCall (Washington) believes he has put his mysterious past behind him and dedicated himself to beginning a new, quiet life. But when he meets Teri (Chloe Grace Moretz), a young girl under the control of ultra-violent Russian gangsters, he can’t stand idly by – he has to help her. Armed with hidden skills that allow him to serve vengeance against anyone who would brutalize the helpless, McCall comes out of his self-imposed retirement and finds his desire for justice reawakened. If someone has a problem, if the odds are stacked against them, if they have nowhere else to turn, McCall will help. He is The Equalizer.
2016’s ‘The Magnificent Seven’. Photo: Sony Pictures.
Looking to mine for gold, greedy industrialist Bartholomew Bogue (Peter Sarsgaard) seizes control of the Old West town of Rose Creek. With their lives in jeopardy, Emma Cullen (Haley Bennett) and other desperate residents turn to bounty hunter Sam Chisolm (Washington) for help. Chisolm recruits an eclectic group of gunslingers to take on Bogue and his ruthless henchmen. With a deadly showdown on the horizon, the seven mercenaries soon find themselves fighting for more than just money once the bullets start to fly.
A runaway train, transporting deadly, toxic chemicals, is barreling down on Stanton, Pennsylvania, and proves to be unstoppable until a veteran engineer (Washington) and young conductor (Chris Pine) risk their lives to try and stop it with a switch engine.
Two Supreme Court Justices have been assassinated. One lone law student (Julia Roberts) has stumbled upon the truth. An investigative journalist (Washington) wants her story. Everybody else wants her dead.
After the Cold War, a breakaway Russian republic with nuclear warheads becomes a possible worldwide threat. U.S. submarine Capt. Frank Ramsey (Gene Hackman) signs on a relatively green but highly recommended Lt. Cmdr. Ron Hunter (Washington) to the USS Alabama, which may be the only ship able to stop a possible Armageddon. When Ramsay insists that the Alabama must act aggressively, Hunter, fearing they will start rather than stop a disaster, leads a potential mutiny to stop him.
In 1950s Pittsburgh, a frustrated African-American father (Washington) struggles with the constraints of poverty, racism, and his own inner demons as he tries to raise a family.
Denzel Washington stars as Robert McCall in Columbia Pictures ‘The Equalizer 3.’ Photo by: Stefano Montesi.
Since giving up his life as a government assassin, Robert McCall (Washington) has struggled to reconcile the horrific things he’s done in the past and finds a strange solace in serving justice on behalf of the oppressed. Finding himself surprisingly at home in Southern Italy, he discovers his new friends are under the control of local crime bosses. As events turn deadly, McCall knows what he has to do: become his friends’ protector by taking on the mafia.
Armed men hijack a New York City subway train, holding the passengers hostage in return for a ransom, and turning an ordinary day’s work for dispatcher Walter Garber (Washington) into a face-off with the mastermind behind the crime.
A dangerous CIA renegade (Washington) resurfaces after a decade on the run. When the safe house he’s remanded to is attacked by mercenaries, a rookie operative (Ryan Reynolds) escapes with him. Now, the unlikely allies must stay alive long enough to uncover who wants them dead.
Robert Gould Shaw (Matthew Broderick) leads the US Civil War’s first all-black volunteer company, fighting prejudices of both his own Union army and the Confederates.
After leading his football team to 15 winning seasons, coach Bill Yoast (Will Patton) is demoted and replaced by Herman Boone (Washington) – who is tough, opinionated and as different from the beloved Yoast as he could be. The two men learn to overcome their differences and turn a group of hostile young men into champions.
Denzel Washington in ‘Highest 2 Lowest’. Photo Credit: David Lee.
When a titan music mogul (Washington), widely known as having the “best ears in the business”, is targeted with a ransom plot, he is jammed up in a life-or-death moral dilemma.
The story of Rubin “Hurricane” Carter (Washington), a boxer wrongly imprisoned for murder, and the people who aided in his fight to prove his innocence.
In late 1940s Los Angeles, Easy Rawlins (Washington) is an unemployed black World War II veteran with few job prospects. At a bar, Easy meets DeWitt Albright (Tom Sizemore), a mysterious white man looking for someone to investigate the disappearance of a missing white woman named Daphne Monet (Jennifer Beals), who he suspects is hiding out in one of the city’s black jazz clubs. Strapped for money and facing house payments, Easy takes the job, but soon finds himself in over his head.
Following the death of his employer and mentor, Bumpy Johnson (Clarence Williams III), Frank Lucas (Washington) establishes himself as the number one importer of heroin in the Harlem district of Manhattan. He does so by buying heroin directly from the source in South East Asia and he comes up with a unique way of importing the drugs into the United States. Partly based on a true story.
Robert McCall (Washington), who serves an unflinching justice for the exploited and oppressed, embarks on a relentless, globe-trotting quest for vengeance when a long-time friend (Melissa Leo) is murdered.
Denzel Washington in ‘Man on Fire’. Photo: 20th Century Fox.
Jaded ex-CIA operative John Creasy (Washington) reluctantly accepts a job as the bodyguard for a 10-year-old girl (Dakota Fanning) in Mexico City. They clash at first, but eventually bond, and when she’s kidnapped he’s consumed by fury and will stop at nothing to save her life.
When an armed, masked gang (led by Clive Owen) enter a Manhattan bank, lock the doors and take hostages, the detective (Washington) assigned to effect their release enters negotiations preoccupied with corruption charges he is facing.
A tribute to the controversial black activist and leader (played by Washington) of the struggle for black liberation. He hit bottom during his imprisonment in the ’50s, he became a Black Muslim and then a leader in the Nation of Islam. His assassination in 1965 left a legacy of self-determination and racial pride.
Police chief Xavier Quinn (Washington) investigates the gruesome murder of Donald Pater, one of the wealthiest residents on a Caribbean island. He was found decapitated in his Jacuzzi. Although the local political establishment, especially crooked Governor Chalk (Norman Beaton), insists that small-time thief Maubee (Robert Townsend) is responsible, Xavier has his doubts. This view is complicated by the police chief’s personal history with Maubee: The men have been friends since childhood.
His latest movie, ‘Highest 2 Lowest‘, which marks his fifth collaboration with Denzel Washington, opens in theaters on August 15th before debuting on Apple TV+ on September 15th.
In honor of ‘Highest 2 Lowest’, Moviefone is counting down every film Spike Lee has ever directed from worst to best, including his latest.
Damon Wayans in ‘Bamboozled’. Photo: New Line Cinema.
Frustrated when network brass reject his sitcom idea, producer Pierre Delacroix (Damon Wayans) pitches the worst idea he can think of in an attempt to get fired: a 21st century minstrel show. The network not only airs it, but it becomes a smash hit.
Zack Homer (Monty Ross) takes over managing the barbershop after Joe (Horace Long) is killed for trying to rip off his “investor”, Mr. Lovejoy (Tommy Redmond Hicks). All Zack wants to do is run a traditional barbershop giving traditional haircuts, but modern styles have passed him by and business is slow. One evening, Mr. Lovejoy shows up to offer Zack the same deal he gave to Joe. It could turn his business around, but what will he have to give in return?
Dr. Hess Green (Stephen Tyrone Williams) becomes cursed by a mysterious ancient African artifact and is overwhelmed with a newfound thirst for blood. Soon after his transformation he enters into a dangerous romance with Ganja Hightower (Zaraah Abrahams) that questions the very nature of love, addiction, sex, and status.
When his mom deposits him at the Red Hook housing project in Brooklyn to spend the summer with the grandfather he’s never met, young Flik (Jules Brown) may as well have landed on Mars. Fresh from his cushy life in Atlanta, he’s bored and friendless, and his strict grandfather, Enoch (Clarke Peters), a firebrand preacher, is bent on getting him to accept Jesus Christ as his personal savior. Only Chazz (Toni Lysaith), the feisty girl from church, provides a diversion from the drudgery. As hot summer simmers and Sunday mornings brim with Enoch’s operatic sermons, things turn anything but dull as people’s conflicting agendas collide.
A scene from ‘Get on the Bus’. Photo: Sony Pictures Releasing.
Several Black men take a cross-country bus trip to attend the Million Man March in Washington, DC in 1995. On the bus are an eclectic set of characters including a laid-off aircraft worker, a man whose at-risk son is handcuffed to him, a black Republican, a former gangsta, a Hollywood actor, a cop who is of mixed racial background, and a white bus driver. All make the trek discussing issues surrounding the march, including manhood, religion, politics, and race.
Miracle at St. Anna chronicles the story of four American soldiers who are members of the all-black 92nd “Buffalo Soldier” Division stationed in Tuscany, Italy during World War II.
A man (Josh Brolin) has only three and a half days and limited resources to discover why he was imprisoned in a nondescript room for 20 years without any explanation.
From Spike Lee comes this vibrant semi-autobiographical portrait of a school-teacher (Alfre Woodard), her stubborn jazz-musician husband (Delroy Lindo) and their five kids living in ’70s Brooklyn.
Talented but self-centered trumpeter Bleek Gilliam (Denzel Washington) is obsessed with his music and indecisiveness about his girlfriends Indigo (Joie Lee) and Clarke (Cynda Williams). But when he is forced to come to the aid of his manager and childhood friend, Bleek finds his world more fragile than he ever imagined.
The story of Nola Darling’s (Tracy Camilla Johns) simultaneous sexual relationships with three different men is told by her and by her partners and other friends. All three men wanted her to commit solely to them; Nola resists being “owned” by a single partner.
Denzel Washington in ‘Highest 2 Lowest’. Photo Credit: David Lee.
When a titan music mogul (Denzel Washington), widely known as having the “best ears in the business”, is targeted with a ransom plot, he is jammed up in a life-or-death moral dilemma.
Four African-American Vietnam veterans (Delroy Lindo, Clarke Peters, Norm Lewis and Isiah Whitlock Jr.) return to Vietnam. They are in search of the remains of their fallen squad leader and the promise of buried treasure. These heroes battle forces of humanity and nature while confronted by the lasting ravages of the immorality of the Vietnam War.
Strike (Mekhi Phifer) is a young city drug pusher under the tutelage of drug lord Rodney Little (Delroy Lindo). When a night manager at a fast-food restaurant is found with four bullets in his body, Strike’s older brother (Isaiah Washington) turns himself in as the killer. Detective Rocco Klein (Harvey Keitel) doesn’t buy the story, however, setting out to find the truth, and it seems that all the fingers point toward Strike & Rodney.
A successful and married black man (Wesley Snipes) contemplates having an affair with a white girl (Annabella Sciorra) from work. He’s quite rightly worried that the racial difference would make an already taboo relationship even worse.
(L to R) Denzel Washington and Jodie Foster in ‘Inside Man’. Photo: Universal Pictures.
When an armed, masked gang enter a Manhattan bank, lock the doors and take hostages, the detective (Denzel Washington) assigned to effect their release enters negotiations preoccupied with corruption charges he is facing.
Colorado Springs, late 1970s. Ron Stallworth (John David Washington), an African American police officer, and Flip Zimmerman (Adam Driver), his Jewish colleague, run an undercover operation to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan.
In New York City in the days following the events of 9/11, Monty Brogan (Edward Norton) is a convicted drug dealer about to start a seven-year prison sentence, and his final hours of freedom are devoted to hanging out with his closest buddies and trying to prepare his girlfriend (Rosario Dawson) for his extended absence.
A tribute to Malcolm X (Denzel Washington), the controversial black activist and leader of the struggle for black liberation. He hit bottom during his imprisonment in the ’50s, he became a Black Muslim and then a leader in the Nation of Islam. His assassination in 1965 left a legacy of self-determination and racial pride.
(L to R) Richard Edson, John Turturro and Spike Lee in ‘Do the Right Thing’. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Salvatore “Sal” Fragione (Danny Aiello) is the Italian owner of a pizzeria in Brooklyn. A neighborhood local, Buggin’ Out (Giancarlo Esposito), becomes upset when he sees that the pizzeria’s Wall of Fame exhibits only Italian actors. Buggin’ Out believes a pizzeria in a black neighborhood should showcase black actors, but Sal disagrees. The wall becomes a symbol of racism and hate to Buggin’ Out and to other people in the neighborhood, and tensions rise.
Remaking what is regarded as one of Akira Kurosawa’s best, bleakest, and most cynical films is a big swing, and Spike Lee boldly puts his own imprint on Kurosawa’s 1963 gem ‘High and Low.’ He updates it to the modern era and New York City, makes some changes to the story while keeping the central premise and dilemma more or less intact, and includes his usual grab-bag of distinctive trademarks – both for better and worse.
In the end, the biggest attraction is watching Lee once again collaborate with Denzel Washington for the fifth time and first since 2006’s ‘Inside Man.’ The latter delivers for his director in towering fashion, making this version of the story perhaps more of an epic character study than police drama. It remains compelling material, thanks in particular to Washington and Jeffrey Wright, even if Lee meanders off course with distracting asides, some uninspired staging, and one of the most overbearing and ill-fitting scores of the year.
Story and Direction
Denzel Washington in ‘Highest 2 Lowest’. Photo Credit: David Lee.
The plot of ‘Highest 2 Lowest’ follows that of ‘High and Low’ in the broad strokes. Washington plays legendary music mogul David King, who’s on the verge of selling his famous independent label, Stackin’ Hits Records, to a larger corporate concern (the protagonist owns a shoe company in the original). King’s peak years, when he made the cover of magazines regularly, are behind him, but he’s still worried that the sale will stamp out the label’s identity and “drain Black culture.” So he instead lays down his own personal assets – his savings, his stocks, and his properties, including his family’s luxury high-rise apartment in a riverfront Dumbo skyscraper – to buy Stackin’ Hits on his own, with the reluctant approval of his wife Pam (Ilfenesh Hadera) and business partner Patrick (Michael Potts).
The deal is about to go through when calamity strikes. David gets a call from a kidnapper (A$AP Rocky) who says he’s seized David and Pam’s teenage son Trey (Aubrey Joseph) and wants $17.5 million in Swiss francs in exchange for his life. David is ready to pivot from his deal and lay out all his money for his son’s safe return. But then it becomes apparent that Trey is okay and the kidnapper has mistakenly taken a boy named Kyle (Elijah Wright) – the son of David’s lifelong friend and driver, Paul (Jeffrey Wright).
Therein lies the moral dilemma at the heart of both film versions of this tale, as well as ‘King’s Ransom,’ the Ed McBain novel on which both are based. When it’s David’s son’s life on the line, he’s ready to pay up at a moment’s notice. But when it’s someone else’s child – even that of one of his closest friends – all of a sudden the loss of all that money that David was going to use to buy back Stackin’ Hits looms much larger in his mind. What makes ‘Highest 2 Lowest’ different from ‘High and Low’ is that this dilemma is resolved rather quickly – after a bit of soul-searching by David and some silent suffering from Paul, who seems to always be in the corner of David’s eye – and the moral aftermath is left more or less behind as ‘Highest 2 Lowest’ turns into a story of a once-powerful, gifted man who learns how to get his mojo back.
A$AP Rocky in ‘Highest 2 Lowest’. Photo Credit: David Lee.
That a lot of it works is a tribute to both Washington’s train-like forward motion and Lee’s increasingly energetic direction. The opening scenes of the film are weirdly static, not in an elegant fashion like the work of Kurosawa himself, but in a perfunctory, ‘just stick the camera here’ way. But Lee seems to find his rhythm as he goes along, and no one can shoot New York City quite like him (with the help of ace cinematographer Matthew Libatique). Speaking of trains, there is a suspenseful scene on an elevated car that homages the original movie but is undercut by cross-cutting to both an admittedly lovely Puerto Rican parade (and a few distracting cameos) plus throngs of Yankees fans filling up the train on the way to the stadium. These are things that Lee loves about his city but they prove a little jarring here. A later, climactic fight scene, also staged atop an elevated line, is much more successful.
Along the way, Lee touches on changes in the music industry, the content of music itself, whether fame on social media is a good thing or not (“attention is the biggest form of currency,” David says to his son), and the tensions inherent between the elite and working classes. It’s a lot, it doesn’t always cohere well, and it’s not helped by one of the most intrusive scores we’ve heard in some time. Howard Drossin’s loud orchestral cues continually threaten to swamp the movie, incessantly braying in the background to irritating effect.
Cast and Performances
Denzel Washington in ‘Highest 2 Lowest’. Photo Credit: David Lee.
Denzel Washington is in powerhouse form here, exuding a looseness and spontaneity that also charged his performance in 2024’s ‘Gladiator II.’ He embodies David King almost perfectly from start to finish, from the man’s narcissism to his empathy to his pride. In the end, King is a decent man of multitudes and action, even if he sometimes acts on impulses that can get him in trouble, making the moments when he shows uncertainty or selfishness all the more striking. Washington handles the character’s transformative arc with the skill and dexterity that only one of our greatest living actors could provide.
Equally sensational is Jeffrey Wright as Paul, another three-dimensional character whose pain over the fact that his child’s life is in the hands of the man who has been his benefactor up to this point is evident in his face and body. Paul and David are lifelong friends but separated in many ways by experience and fortune, and the former’s fear and anger are made palpable through Wright’s excellent portrayal. The two leads’ scenes together are among the best in the film.
The rest of the cast is a bit of a mixed bag. Ilfenesh Hadera is poised, warm, and elegant as Pam King, but the sense of her position and power in the family structure and as David’s trusted adviser is only intermittent. A$AP Rocky, meanwhile, makes a sharp impression as Yung Felon, the rapper-turned-kidnapper whose own life story is inextricably linked to David’s in ways that the latter only belatedly realizes. John Douglas Thompson, Michael Potts, and Wendell Pierce all bring regality and gravitas to their relatively minor roles, while Aubrey Joseph and Elijah Wright – as the two teen boys at the center of the story – are raw and real if somewhat unpolished.
While it’s a “remake” in the loosest sense of the word, any movie that finds Denzel Washington in a rhyme battle with A$AP Rocky with his life possibly on the line can’t be described as anything but original. But this also isn’t Spike Lee at either his sharpest or tightest (more recent examples of that would be ‘Da 5 Bloods’ and ‘BlacKkKlansman’), and the fact that the movie ends with not one but two musical numbers (each representing a direction that David could take with his career, toward easy commercialism or something more soulful) is a hint that Lee’s cinematic instincts are not always what they once were.
Still, those performances and Lee’s vaunted, improvisatory aesthetic keeps the movie crackling even when it threatens to collapse within itself. And the ideas contained within are thoughtful, important ones. Despite its name, the movie never hits either the highs or lows of the rest of Lee’s filmography – but with due respect to Kurosawa, it’s all Spike Lee.
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What is the plot of ‘Highest 2 Lowest’?
When a legendary music mogul (Denzel Washington), widely known as having the “best ears in the business,” is targeted with a ransom plot, he is caught up in a life-or-death moral dilemma in this reimagining of the great filmmaker Akira Kurosawa’s crime thriller ‘High and Low,’ now played out on the mean streets of modern-day New York City.
Jerry Bruckheimer says he’s developing a sequel to 1995 submarine thriller ‘Crimson Tide’.
Denzel Washington and Gene Hackman starred in the original.
A writer and director are involved in the new potential project.
Having seen big success wrangling a sequel to one of his previous hits via ‘Top Gun Maverick,’ producer Jerry Bruckheimer is looking to do it again.
Talking on a recent episode of ‘The Rich Eisen Show,’ Bruckheimer revealed that he was in the early stages of developing a follow-up to 1995 submarine thriller ‘Crimson Tide.’
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While the new project is still very much in its infancy, Bruckheimer did say that a writer and director –– who he did not name –– were already having discussions with the Navy as to the current state of undersea warfare, as a new scenario will be needed for this movie.
In the near future, Russian rebels have seized control of one of the ICBM bases in the USSR. Alarmed by the prospect of a rebel strike, the U.S. sends the USS Alabama, a nuclear ballistic missile submarine, to watch over the base and retaliate in case they launch.
While on patrol, the submarine is attacked and the radio systems are knocked out, but after first receiving an emergency message from HQ to launch nuclear missiles at the rebels. A second emergency message received during the battle is only partially recovered.
Captain Ramsey (Gene Hackman) decides to carry out the first order to launch the missiles regardless while Executive Officer Hunter (Denzel Washington) wants to wait for a successful receipt of the second message once the radio systems are repaired. The conflict escalates into mutiny as Ramsey and Hunter fight for control of the Alabama’s nuclear missiles.
But it was perhaps more famous for the people behind the keyboard for the script; while Michael Schiffer’s name is on the screenplay, with Richard P. Henrick credited for the story, there was an extensive list of writers who did passes, including Robert Towne and Quentin Tarantino.
According to Bruckheimer, the hope is to entice Washington to return (Hackman retired years ago and died in February of this year).
Here’s what he said about the possibility:
“If we give him a good script, I think he’d do it.”
Variety reached out to a source close to Washington, who brought word that the actor would consider the idea, but is certainly waiting to see any screenplay.
As to who is at work on the concepts for the new movie, Bruckheimer declined to name them.
There are no details, plot or otherwise, about this sequel, so we can only speculate what it might focus on. The technology behind nuclear submarines has moved on considerably from the days of the original, and yet the basics remain.
A nuclear submarine was a key plot point in the last two ‘Mission: Impossible’ movies, and the concept of technology aboard such a vessel could well play into the new one.
And it’s worth noting that Disney, which has the rights to ‘Crimson Tide’, has yet to comment on the possibility of any sequel –– but given Bruckheimer’s long working relationship with the studio, he certainly has leeway to say what he likes about future projects.
Here’s what Bruckheimer told Eisen about a potential return for Cruise’s Pete “Maverick” Mitchell:
“I can’t talk about [the story] yet, but it’s a real good one.”
What else is Denzel Washington working on?
Denzel Washington attends Netflix’s ‘The Piano Lesson’ LA premiere at The Egyptian Theatre Hollywood on November 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Roger Kisby/Getty Images for Netflix.
Though he has been making statements about retiring, at least from acting, he’s still keeping busy.
This is what he said about potentially stepping back from being on screen:
“There are very few films left for me to make that I’m interested in, and I have to be inspired by the filmmaker. The things that are going on for me professionally behind the camera are as important to me now as in front of the camera. I think there’s less and less time I’ll be spending in front of the camera.”
He’s preparing to work on crime drama ‘Here Comes the Flood,’ and he’s talked up a potential role in the planned third ‘Black Panther’ movie, which director Ryan Coogler has confirmed could happen, and he has other possible roles coming up, including a project about the historical warrior Hannibal.
And even if he does decide that his days as an actor are numbered, he’ll likely to continue to produce and direct movies.
When might the ‘Crimson Tide’ sequel be on screens?
With the script not even written yet and no other details offered, we don’t expect this one to come together for a while yet.
If Denzel Washington does sign on to star, that’ll have this one moving a little faster and encourage the studio financiers to turn their keys and release the funds for this one to be made.
(Left) Denzel Washington plays Macrinus in ‘Gladiator II’ from Paramount Pictures. (Center) Robert Pattinson in ‘Mickey 17’. Photo: Warner Bros. (Right) Daisy Edgar-Jones as Kate in ‘Twisters’, directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
Preview:
Denzel Washington, Robert Pattinson and Daisy Edgar-Jones are starring in ‘Here Comes the Flood.’
Fernando Meirelles will direct the heist thriller.
Netflix is backing the movie.
Netflix is certainly not shy about splashing the cash when it comes to securing big name talent for its movies.
And for new heist pic ‘Here Comes the Flood,’ it has certainly landed some recognizable actors.
And that’s not the only exciting person attached to this one, as Fernando Meirelles, who directed classic ‘City of God’ and more recently tackled Netflix’s papal drama ‘The Two Popes’ is aboard to direct.
Most of the details for this one are locked in a bank vault for now, but there is a basic description: an unconventional heist flick about a bank guard, a teller, and a master thief in a deadly game of cons and double crosses.
Kinberg also worked as a producer and writer on several of the Fox ‘X-Men’ movies, and stepped up to direct ‘X-Men: Dark Phoenix.’
More recently, he’s been involved in Apple TV+ series such as ‘Invasion’ and ‘Sugar,’ and has a variety of projects in the works via his Genre Films company –– a list that also now includes ‘Here Comes the Flood.’
Where else can we see Denzel Washington?
Denzel Washington plays Macrinus in ‘Gladiator II’ from Paramount Pictures.
Washington needs little introduction as he’s still one of the biggest stars around.
The actor will next be seen leading Spike Lee’s crime thriller ‘Highest 2 Lowest,’ based on Akira Kurosawa’s classic ‘High and Low,’ which A24 releases in August, ahead of the film’s Apple TV+ streaming date of September 5th.
Though he has been making statements about retiring, at least from acting, he’s still keeping busy.
This is what he said about potentially stepping back from being on screen:
“There are very few films left for me to make that I’m interested in, and I have to be inspired by the filmmaker. The things that are going on for me professionally behind the camera are as important to me now as in front of the camera. I think there’s less and less time I’ll be spending in front of the camera.”
In addition to ‘Here Comes the Flood,’ he’s talked up a potential role in the planned third ‘Black Panther’ movie though that has yet to be officially confirmed) and has other possible roles coming up, including a project about the historical warrior Hannibal.
And even if he does decide that his days as an actor are numbered, he’ll likely to continue to produce and direct movies.
What else is Robert Pattinson working on?
Robert Pattinson in ‘Tenet’. Photo: Warner Bros.
Pattinson was most recently on screens in Bong Joon Ho’s new sci-fi satire ‘Mickey 17’ about a man who serves on a spaceship who is replaced with a clone of himself every time he dies on board. The film was not a success at the box office.
Right now, the actor is at work on Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ for Universal, and has also filmed new crime thriller ‘Primetime.’
And, of course, there is lead role in Matt Reeves’ long-gestating ‘The Batman’ sequel, which should kick off filming at the end of this year, though it has been through several delays already while Reeves works on the script.
The most recent rumor has Pattinson potentially scoring a role in the third ‘Dune’ movie from Denis Villeneuve, but as with Washington and ‘Black Panther,’ there doesn’t appear to be a deal in place yet.
What is Daisy Edgar-Jones working on?
(from left) Kate (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and Tyler (Glen Powell) in ‘Twisters’, directed by Lee Isaac Chung.
Daisy Edgar-Jones broke out big with Irish drama series ‘Normal People,’ and since built herself a healthy movie career.
Netflix has not yet announced when ‘Here Comes the Flood’ will arrive; nor do we know whether it’ll get a theatrical release ahead of it arriving on the company’s servers.
Denzel Washington attends Netflix’s ‘The Piano Lesson’ LA premiere at The Egyptian Theatre Hollywood on November 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Roger Kisby/Getty Images for Netflix.
Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa / Black Panther in 2018’s ‘Black Panther.’ Photo: Marvel Studios.
Preview:
An unconfirmed report suggests that Marvel Studios may recast the role of T’Challa, aka Black Panther, for upcoming MCU movies.
The news comes more than four years after the death of actor Chadwick Boseman, who originally played the role, with T’Challa’s sister Shuri (Letitia Wright) later taking over as Wakanda’s protector.
One theory suggest that the new T’Challa will be from a different part of the multiverse, and not even necessarily a hero.
A new, unconfirmed report suggests that Marvel Studios may be looking to recast the role of T’Challa, also known as the Black Panther, more than four years after the tragic 2020 death of original star Chadwick Boseman.
Reporter Jeff Sneider claimed in his newsletter TheInSneider that contacts at various talent agencies told him that the Disney-owned Marvel was searching for a new actor to play the role. What’s not clear is whether this would be a different iteration of the Wakandan leader from another universe, or another character entirely stepping into the Black Panther persona.
What happened to the original Black Panther?
Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa / Black Panther in 2018’s ‘Black Panther.’ Photo: Marvel Studios.
T’Challa, Marvel’s first Black superhero and leader of the fictional African nation of Wakanda — who protects his nation and the world in the guise of the Black Panther – made his live-action debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2016’s ‘Captain America: Civil War.’
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Playing the role was actor Chadwick Boseman, who became an immediate fan favorite and was catapulted to super-stardom when his debut solo outing, 2018’s ‘Black Panther,’ grossed more than $1 billion worldwide. The film went on to become the first superhero movie nominated for best picture by the Academy Awards and became a worldwide cultural phenomenon.
Boseman followed up that film with smaller appearances in ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ (2018) and ‘Avengers: Endgame’ (2019), but was positioned to become one of the MCU’s leaders in both future ‘Avengers’ and ‘Black Panther’ films. What almost no one knew, however, was that Boseman was battling colon cancer, which finally claimed his life in August 2020 and led to a global outpouring of grief for the acclaimed actor.
Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa / Black Panther in 2018’s ‘Black Panther.’ Photo: Marvel Studios.
The news appeared to rock Marvel Studios as well, which had to revamp its plans for a second ‘Black Panther’ movie with writer/director Ryan Coogler. Because Boseman had become so strongly identified with the role, the studio pledged that the part would never be recast and that future ‘Black Panther’ movies would focus on other characters from the Wakandan nation.
‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,’ which arrived in November 2022 and earned $859 million worldwide, addressed the tragedy by having T’Challa die offscreen in the opening minutes of the film. The rest of the movie saw T’Challa’s sister Shuri (Letitia Wright) elevated to the role of Black Panther as she led Wakanda in a battle with the undersea kingdom of Talokan.
Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa / Black Panther in 2018’s ‘Black Panther.’ Photo: Marvel Studios.
The notion of ‘recasting Black Panther’ could be open to many different interpretations. The least likely option is that Marvel wants to simply recast the original character, which would be thorny given that both the MCU character and the beloved actor who played him are deceased. Fans were divided at the time of Boseman’s death over whether Marvel should hire a new actor for the part, although that debate seems to have cooled during the ensuing years.
But two other alternatives seem more likely: the first is that a different T’Challa would emerge from one of the many realities that now exist in the Marvel multiverse – perhaps even one who is not a superhero at all and could even be a villain. Following the casting of Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom for the upcoming ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ and ‘Avengers: Secret Wars’ films, as well as the reported return of former Captain America Chris Evans in an undisclosed role, the mixing and matching of actors and characters from Marvel’s past seems very much on the table.
The other possibility is that the role will be an older version of T’Challa and Nakia’s (Lupita Nyong’o) infant son, who was introduced at the end of ‘Wakanda Forever’ and was also named T’Challa. He could by birthright inherit the Black Panther persona, although that would require a time jump in the franchise to make him at least a teenager.
No actors’ names have been mentioned for the part, but Sneider noted that “an actor was actually offered the role [of T’Challa] this past fall…but they turned it down, not wanting to jeopardize their career momentum by stepping into Boseman’s gigantic shoes.” The reporter added that whoever lands the role would possibly make their debut in one of the upcoming ‘Avengers’ sequels before starring in ‘Black Panther 3.’
And what would that mean for current Black Panther Shuri? With Letitia Wright embroiled in several controversies over the past few years, it’s not unreasonable to speculate that Marvel may want to lessen her involvement in the series.
What is the future of Black Panther?
(L to R) Ryan Coogler and Kevin Feige presenting ‘Ironheart’ at D23 2024. Photo: Disney.
Following the release of ‘Wakanda Forever,’ news about the future of the ‘Black Panther’ franchise was somewhat fleeting. Coogler is developing a series for Disney+ that would explore other aspects of Wakanda, while the long-delayed ‘Ironheart’ series – featuring the title character, who was introduced in ‘Wakanda Forever’ – is finally scheduled to premiere on the streamer in June 2025.
However, interest in the franchise was reignited in November 2024 when Denzel Washington casually revealed in an interview that Coogler was “writing a part for me in the next ‘Black Panther.’” Later that month, it was announced that longtime Marvel exec Nate Moore – who had shepherded both ‘Black Panther’ films to the screen – was leaving the company but would return to produce ‘Black Panther 3’ for the studio, although the film has not been officially announced.
The news reported by Sneider, however, combined with the revelations about Washington and Moore, seem to indicate that ‘Black Panther’ remains very much a going concern for Marvel – and that the pioneering franchise could have a very different look and face going forward.
Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa / Black Panther in 2018’s ‘Black Panther.’ Photo: Marvel Studios.
Other ‘Black Panther’ Related Movies and TV Shows:
Streaming on Netflix beginning November 22nd is ‘The Piano Lesson,’ a film adaptation of the 1990 play by legendary playwright August Wilson. John David Washington stars as Boy Willie Charles, a sharecropper and ex-con who returns with his partner Lymon (Ray Fisher) to the Pittsburgh home of his uncle, Doaker Charles (Samuel L. Jackson), in 1936 with the intention of selling the family heirloom piano that sits in Doaker’s front room.
Boy Willie intends to use the money to buy the land formerly belonging to the now-dead James Sutter, who owned the Charles family during the days of slavery. But his sister Berniece (Danielle Deadwyler), who lives with her daughter Maretha (Skylar Aleece Smith) in her uncle’s house, is adamant that the piano stay right where it is, as a connection to the spirits of the Charles family’s ancestors, some of whom may still be present in the piano and the household.
A meditation on legacy, history, and coming to terms with the past, ‘The Piano Lesson’ is one of 10 plays written by Wilson that are known collectively as the ‘Pittsburgh Cycle’ or the ‘Century Cycle,’ which provide an overview of life for Black Americans in the 20th century. Each play is set in a different decade, while all but one take place in Pittsburgh, where Wilson grew up.
(L to R) Pauletta Washington, Katia Washington, Erykah Badu, Todd Black, Jennifer Roth, Constanza Romero, Ray Fisher, Skylar Aleece Smith, Malcolm Washington, Danielle Deadwyler, Corey Hawkins, Michael Potts, Denzel Washington, Alexandre Desplat, John David Washington, Dan Lin and Virgil Williams attend Netflix’s ‘The Piano Lesson’ LA premiere at The Egyptian Theatre Hollywood on November 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Roger Kisby/Getty Images for Netflix.
‘The Piano Lesson’ is the first film directed by Malcolm Washington, son of producer Denzel Washington and brother of John David Washington. Malcolm and John’s dad has been tasked by the Wilson family with adapting all 10 of Wilson’s plays for the screen, a project that began in 2016 with ‘Fences’ (which Denzel starred in and directed) and continued in 2020 with ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,’ which the elder Washington produced. With Malcolm and John David both involved with ‘The Piano Lesson,’ bringing the work of one of the most important Black voices in the American arts to the screen has become a true family affair.
Denzel, John David, and Malcolm Washington all participated in a virtual press conference for the film, along with producer Todd Black and fellow cast members Ray Fisher, Corey Hawkins, and Michael Potts, during which Moviefone learned a lesson or two about the making of ‘The Piano Lesson.’
1) Malcolm Washington Says Why He Wanted To Film ‘The Piano Lesson’
John David Washington attends Netflix’s ‘The Piano Lesson’ LA premiere at The Egyptian Theatre Hollywood on November 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Roger Kisby/Getty Images for Netflix.
With a dad who’s a director, producer, and one of the greatest living actors of his time, and a brother who’s also a rising young star on stage and screen, Malcolm Washington explained why ‘The Piano Lesson’ became his entry into the family business.
Malcolm Washington: I think it was an incredible opportunity to work with just great artists. That was really exciting. In terms of making it a film, I love cinema. I love filmmaking. I love watching films. It’s the language I speak. So I think having an opportunity to take some of the themes that are so resonant in the story and expand on them and visualize them and explore them in a new language was the most exciting, and I thought a way to honor the work in its purest essence.
2) Denzel Washington Reveals The Secret Force Behind The Film
(L to R) Pauletta Washington and Denzel Washington attend Netflix’s ‘The Piano Lesson’ LA premiere at The Egyptian Theatre Hollywood on November 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Roger Kisby/Getty Images for Netflix.
The Oscar-winning actor said that his wife, Pauletta Pearson, was a driving force behind getting their son Malcolm to direct “The Piano Lesson.”
Denzel Washington: The real producer isn’t here. Which is their mom. She’s the real producer. She actually said to me, you know, “Malcolm’s got some ideas. You should talk to him and put some things together,” and that’s kind of, I think, how it started.
3) Malcolm Washington Sought Out Advice From A Filmmaking Hero
Malcolm Washington attends Netflix’s ‘The Piano Lesson’ LA premiere at The Egyptian Theatre Hollywood on November 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Roger Kisby/Getty Images for Netflix.
Once he was confirmed to direct “The Piano Lesson,” Malcolm Washington spoke with filmmaking legend Spike Lee, a personal hero and influence.
Malcolm Washington: I called him when I first started this project. One of the first things he said was how important choosing your collaborators are. Spike’s built that community as a filmmaker both behind the camera, in front of the camera, above the line, below the line, with a diversity of opinions and thoughts and experiences. So that was the first thing that I went after, both in our cast and our crew. People from varied backgrounds, different world views, different life experiences all came together to lend a voice to this.
4) Several Of The Cast Members Performed The Play Together
Ray Fisher attends Netflix’s ‘The Piano Lesson’ LA premiere at The Egyptian Theatre Hollywood on November 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Roger Kisby/Getty Images for Netflix.
John David Washington, Ray Fisher, Michael Potts, and Samuel L. Jackson all appeared in the 2022 Broadway revival of ‘The Piano Lesson,’ which Ray Fisher said was an important dynamic that carried over to the movie.
Ray Fisher: From the stage version to the film version, I think we did form this sort of familial vibe amongst ourselves. It was a privilege to be able to work with these guys for months on end under the direction of LaTanya Richardson Jackson, who, were it not for her efforts, we wouldn’t be sitting here having this conversation with you here today…I think it helped us to just build and bond and learn to trust one another. Whatever happened on stage, I knew J.D. had my back, I knew Michael had my back, I knew Sam had my back, and vice-versa. I think that’s one of the bigger things that carried over, just that trust in one another to be there when you need them.
Malcolm Washington recalled that when the cast and crew got together at the start of production, the chemistry between everyone working on the film was immediate.
Malcolm Washington: For real, we did a cast and crew dinner before we shot. And it was everybody around the table. Normally, moments like that, you’re kind of nervous going in. You feel like, it can be awkward. Everybody’s kind of coming together for the first time. But it was just nonstop stories and laughter — the more experienced gentlemen telling their stories, and the newer guys kind of just taking it all in. But I remember turning to Corey [Hawkins] and we were just laughing. I was like, yeah, this is what the movie is. It’s sharing stories from generation to generation. It’s coming together at this table and sharing experience.
6) The Newest Member Of The Cast Upped The Movie’s Game
Danielle Deadwyler as Berniece in ‘The Piano Lesson’. Photo: Courtesy of Netflix.
In the film, Danielle Deadwyler plays Berniece, who is steadfast in her refusal to sell the family piano despite her brother’s insistence on doing so. With credits like ‘Till,’ ‘The Harder They Fall,’ and ‘Station Eleven’ to her name, Malcolm Washington said that Deadwyler introduced a whole new energy to ‘The Piano Lesson.’
Malcolm Washington: Yeah, Danielle was just an incredible talent. There was something that was so exciting about unleashing her on these gentlemen back here. Because she’s just a force of nature, and she changes the dynamic in the room when she enters it. So watching that happen every day, scene after scene, week after week, it was a master class.
7) The Other Major New Addition To The Cast
Corey Hawkins attends Netflix’s ‘The Piano Lesson’ LA premiere at The Egyptian Theatre Hollywood on November 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Roger Kisby/Getty Images for Netflix.
The other member of the main cast not carried over from the Broadway production is Corey Hawkins (‘In The Heights,’ ‘The Tragedy of Macbeth’), who plays a preacher named Avery Brown. Avery, who is in love with the widowed Berniece, tries to vanquish the spirits from the Charles house, going so far as to speak in tongues while blessing their home.
John David Washington: You mentioned an incredible actress in Danielle, and here’s another one right here [gestures to Corey Hawkins]. Their energy and what they brought to the piece, it really opened it up even more so. We know that that was the game plan for Malcolm. Visually, cinematically, he was going to open it up. But from a performance standpoint, what [Hawkins] brings, the sequence at the end when he starts speaking in tongues and just set the tone, I didn’t know where that came from. But you couldn’t deny the energy and the spirits in the room that he started. So just playing off that and knowing we had our chemistry coming from the play was very exciting.
Like any play, ‘The Piano Lesson’ is limited to what can be done and shown on a single stage. Malcolm Washington said that the goal of the movie was to widen the story’s scope while remaining true to the spirit of the play.
Malcolm Washington: I think the biggest kind of spiritual approach we took to it was to re-imagine it and re-interpret it for a new medium. So that was visualizing and imagining, what are the characters’ dreams? What are their wants? What do they imagine for themselves? How can we build out the world around them and present that to the audience? There’s a lot of new things, like the Crawford Grill sequence, the Erykah Badu sequence, the whole beginning and ending. That all is very new and recontextualizes what the story is that lives within it, and we wanted to push all of that, as well as all the genre stuff. We were coming in to tell this ghost story that was actually a story about American history and musings on Black American spiritual practices, but all within this guise of a ghost story that we’re able to push to the forefront. So I think it was more a re-imagining of these things and these themes, and how can we tell that story cinematically.
9) ‘The Piano Lesson’ Touches On The Spiritual Aspect Of Black History
Denzel Washington attends Netflix’s ‘The Piano Lesson’ LA premiere at The Egyptian Theatre Hollywood on November 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Roger Kisby/Getty Images for Netflix.
Although on the surface ‘The Piano Lesson’ could be described as a ghost story, Denzel Washington said that there is a much deeper meaning to the spiritual aspects of the play, embodied by the faces of the Charles family’s ancestors carved into the woodwork of the piano.
Denzel Washington: Our connection to our ancestors all the way back to Africa is a real thing. It’s a tangible, spiritual, real thing that you can feel. I remember asking my mother when I started to make it as an actor. I said, “Ma, you ever think?” She said, “Boy, all the people been praying for you — all the souls that were sacrificed for you.” You start thinking about it that way. All of those that look like us, that never made it, that got hung, that got shot, that got killed, whatever, generation after generation after generation. All of that is in us. We go down in there and it’s scary too. It’s in there and it comes out in ways that you can’t calculate. It’s not Method [acting], you know? It’s spiritual.
10) Bringing The Work Of August Wilson To New Audiences
Todd Black attends Netflix’s ‘The Piano Lesson’ LA premiere at The Egyptian Theatre Hollywood on November 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Roger Kisby/Getty Images for Netflix.
Producer Todd Black, who also produced ‘Fences’ and ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’ alongside Denzel Washington, said that their ultimate goal is to film all 10 plays of Wilson’s ‘Century Cycle.’
Todd Black: Well, Denzel was asked by Constanza Wilson and the estate to kind of shepherd, if you will, the 10 plays. Then [since] we worked together a lot, he came to me, and we talked about it. It’s an incredible honor. You get to bring one of the greatest playwrights ever in the world to the big screen. People don’t understand, theater is a smaller audience, and not everyone has the opportunity to see August Wilson’s work. So to get to put it in the theater and put it on Netflix, so many more people get to see it. It’s a huge responsibility. It lives forever. So we feel very, very responsible for bringing all of these with the right people at the helm and the right actors. Certainly, we couldn’t have gotten luckier with these actors. We are planning on doing the next one. We’re not going to announce what that is yet, but the goal is to do all 10 of them.
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What is the plot of ‘The Piano Lesson’?
Set in 1936 Pittsburgh during the aftermath of the Great Depression, ‘The Piano Lesson’ follows the lives of the Charles family in the Doaker Charles (Samuel L. Jackson) household and an heirloom, the family piano, which is decorated with designs carved by an enslaved ancestor.
Denzel Washington in ‘The Equalizer 2’. Photo: Sony Pictures.
Preview:
Denzel Washington says he’ll appear in two more ‘Equalizer’ movies.
Director Antoine Fuqua has yet to be confirmed.
The apparent movies don’t yet have release dates.
Denzel Washington is busy enjoying the acclaim that his scene-stealing (and, at times, movie-stealing) performance in ‘Gladiator II’ is generating, and he’s also been out and about promoting the movie.
He’s certainly generating headlines with some of his statements, including revealing that Ryan Coogler is writing a role for him in a future ‘Black Panther’ movie (albeit one we don’t even know formally exists yet).
And he’s not done –– in a recent interview he also dropped word that he’ll be back for more ‘Equalizer’ movies.
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Of course, we have to caution here that Washington is having a lot of fun on the press tour and proclaiming that he only has a few movies left (at least as an actor) before he retires. And Sony has yet to say anything official about a potential return to the ‘Equalizer’ films.
Washington stars as Robert McCall, a former special service commando who faked his own death in hopes of living out a quiet life.
Instead, he comes out of his self-imposed retirement to save a young girl and finds his desire for justice reawakened after coming face-to-face with members of a brutal Russian gang. McCall becomes the go-to man when the helpless require the kind of vengeance they would never find without his skills.
Across the next two movies, he faces off against more threats, including the Mafia.
Denzel Washington on the future of the ‘Equalizer’ franchise
Robert McCall (Denzel Washington) watches Vincent crawl down his stairs in Columbia Pictures ‘The Equalizer 3.’ Photo: Stefano Montesi.
“I told them I would do another ‘Equalizer,’ and we’re doing four and five. More people are happy about that –– people love those daggone ‘Equalizers.’ But I’ve come to realize that the ‘Equalizer’ films are for me, too, because they’re for the people. They want me to go get the bad guys. ‘We can’t get them, so you go get them.’ And I say, Okay, I’ll get them! Just wait right there. I’ll be right back!”
The movies have certainly been successful, but now we’ll wait and see what Fuqua and the studio have to say.
When would the next ‘Equalizer’ be in theaters?
While Washington is certainly someone who should know about the future of the ‘Equalizer’ franchise since he’s, you know, the Equalizer himself, the lack of confirmation means we couldn’t even guess at when one potential new movie would arrive, let alone two.
Denzel Washington in ‘The Equalizer 3.’ Photo: Stefano Montesi.
