Denzel Washington isn’t in it for the accolades.
The two-time Oscar winner said in an interview on Jake Hamilton’s “Jake’s Takes” series that during his career, he’s been through wins and losses at the Academy Awards, and ultimately, the results don’t mean much.
“I don’t do it for Oscars,” Washington, 70, said alongside his Highest 2 Lowest costar Jeffrey Wright on the Monday, August 11, episode. “I really don’t care about that kind of stuff.”
“I’ve been at this a long time, and there’s times when I’ve won, shouldn’t have won, didn’t win, should have won,” he continued. “Man gives the award, God gives the award. I’m not that interested in Oscars. People say, ‘Well, where do you keep it?’ I say, ‘Next to the other one.’”
“I’m not bragging,” he concluded. “I’m just telling you how I feel about it. On my last day, it ain’t going to do me a bit of good.”
Washington has 10 Oscar nominations in his career, dating back to his 1988 Best Supporting Actor nomination for Cry Freedom. His two wins came in 1990 for Glory (Best Supporting Actor) and 2002 for Training Day (Best Actor).
His most recent nomination, for Best Actor, came in 2022 for his role in The Tragedy of Macbeth.
Washington’s attitude toward the Oscars shouldn’t come as a surprise. When The New York Times asked him about not earning a nomination for Gladiator II in February, he gave a sarcastic response.
“Are you kidding me? Awww. Oh, I’m so upset,” he said. “I’m happy for all that did, and I’m happy with what I’m doing.”
Washington hasn’t just minimized his awards, he’s decried the very idea of being a Hollywood actor.
“What’s the definition of a Hollywood actor?” he said during a March appearance on CBS Sunday Morning. “Myself, I’m from Mount Vernon, so I’m a ‘Mount Vernon actor.’ I don’t know what ‘Hollywood’ means.”
He added that he doesn’t even consider himself a movie actor after getting his start in theater.
“I’m a stage actor who does film; it’s not the other way around,” Washington said. “I did stage first. I learned how to act on stage, not on film. Movies are a filmmaker’s medium. You shoot it, and then you’re gone, and they cut together and add music and do all of that. Theater is an actor’s medium. The curtain goes up, nobody can help you.”
Highest 2 Lowest hits theaters Friday, August 15, and begins streaming on Apple TV+ September 5.
