Denzel Washington Hints That He May Be Retiring From Acting Soon

Denzel Washington has dropped hints that he may be considering retiring from acting soon. Big screen legend Washington made his feature film debut in 1981 comedy-drama Carbon Copy before achieving widespread acclaim for his first Academy Award win in the 1989 historical war drama Glory. Following this up with appearances in critically and commercially successful projects such as Malcolm X, Crimson Tide, and The Hurricane, the New York native won his second Oscar for crime-thriller Training Day in 2001.

In recent years the 66-year-old, considered to be an icon of African American cinema, has become something of an action star, appearing in movies like Deja Vu, The Taking of Pelham 123, and The Equalizer, as well as stepping behind the camera too. Widely regarded as one of the greatest and most versatile actors of his generation and one of the most influential actors in the world, Washington's movies have grossed more than $4 billion worldwide, and New York Times recently rated him as the greatest actor of the 21st century.

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In a recent interview with ET, the Man On Fire actor spoke about his career trajectory, as well as the upcoming project The Tragedy of Macbeth, and what he would consider next. He also dropped his biggest hint yet that retirement could be on the cards in the not too distant future. When asked about the role he'd like to take on next, here's what the Golden Globe Award winner had to say: 

"I'm about the challenges. At this point, like the character, I'm in the yellow leaf of my career. To be quite honest, looking to do other things. So as far as acting, it's gonna have to be an extreme challenge for me to be interested. I've been talking to one or two of the top directors in the business, and we're talking about maybe doing something. There's not that much left for me to do as actor. Maybe Lear."

For an actor as experienced and versatile as Washington, this does make a degree of sense. This is a man who has played a cop, a soldier, a high school football coach, a paraplegic, a boxer, a hard-boiled detective, a vigilante, a lawyer, and a Scottish Lord, among others. It makes sense that with his age, experience, and status, Washington would be selective about future projects, and his mention of Lear is likely a reference to King Lear, which would continue his Shakespeare career post-Macbeth.

It is unclear if Washington has a timescale in mind for any kind of retirement. While he hasn't explicitly stated a desire to quit acting, it does seem likely that audiences will be seeing him on screen less frequently over the coming years. For one thing, he is in a position to be far more selective about the roles he picks, and there is also the very strong likelihood that he might choose to spend more time behind the camera. Both Clint Eastwood and George Clooney are examples of huge acting stars who successful transitioned into successful and respected directors; both spend more time behind the camera now than in front of it. It is very possible Washington could focus more on directing moving forward, having already directed three movies, with a fourth, A Journal for Jordan, releasing on Christmas Day. It's doubtful moviegoers have seen the last of Denzel Washington, but it could be less frequently in an acting capacity in the years to come.

Next: Why Denzel Washington Has Only Made One Sequel

Source: ET

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