Denzel Washington on finding 'Flight' role: 'Wow this is good'

theGRIO REPORT - During an interview with theGRIO, Denzel Washington opened up about his character Captain Whip Whitaker in his latest film, 'Flight,' which is already generating Oscar buzz...

Luther Vandross was outed as gay after his death.

“Tough spots for me are pictures I don’t want to be on,” the actor jokes. “If you’re on the movie, it’s like the third day, and you go, ‘How many days we been shooting?’ ‘Three.’ ‘How many days we got to go?’ ‘117.’ That’s a tough movie for me.”

He adds, “This was an adventure. I mean, first of all, like I said, starting with the screenplay, the collaboration with the filmmaker; getting the chance to fly around in a flight simulator…hanging upside down in a plane; playing a drunk.”

The picture was directed by Robert Zemeckis, a filmmaker whose resume includes movies like Back to the Future, Castaway, and Forrest Gump, and who, until this project, has been focused more on stop-motion pictures. It’s Zemeckis’ first collaboration with Washington, and a flick many film critics are already predicting will earn significant attention during Oscar season. In a way, the endeavor capitalizes on current ethos in America, where those once glorified have abruptly fallen from grace, and consequently, the public seeks a replacement. Similarly, Washington’s character faces unraveling scrutiny for his poor decisions, but banks on society’s willingness to turn a blind eye.

“Everybody was covering their own behinds is what it was – the pilots, the airlines,” he says, describing the fallout from the plane crash in the movie. “They thought he was a great hero…They needed one in order to fulfill their own agenda.”

Click here to see a slideshow of Denzel’s 10 greatest movie roles

What may be most compelling is Whitaker’s fluctuating system of self-appraisal, and Washington’s journey in constructing those superficial and underlying layers of his character’s flaws. As an actor, Washington remembers a more painful moment of the performance when he confronts the son he’s essentially abandoned.

He notes, “I’ve gotten into wrestling matches with my son, not the same circumstance, but you’re raw. It’s just raw. Your nerves are raw, so that sticks out.”

Vivid and endearing, Washington’s made authenticity a common attribute to the creative juggernaut he’s become as an actor, from gangsters to revolutionaries, martyrs to prophets. He was inflamed as Rubin “Hurricane” Carter in The Hurricane; vengeful and calculated as Frank Lucas in American Gangster; and undeniably brutal as Detective Alonzo Harris in Training Day.

No subject matter seems beneath the reach of Washington’s hearty grasp; thus he has successfully been able to portray even real-life figures in ways others struggle to accomplish, notably that of Malcolm X.

Twenty years after the release of Spike Lee’s acclaimed movie, Washington remains constantly on the rise, shelling out another high-caliber performance in Flight that could award him his third Oscar.

“Wow, it’s been 20 years [since Malcolm X],” Washington replies when reminded of the anniversary. “I was 12 when I made that film!”

Follow Courtney Garcia on Twitter at @courtgarcia

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