Denzel Washington Quotes

“My ultimate life dream project is my kids. My family.”

“[Saniyya Sidney] was very serious about her work and her craft, and she wanted to be good, and she wanted to work on it. So I said, "Ok." It was as simple as that. She was just right. She just has it.”

“Money doesn't buy happiness. Some people say it's a heck of a down payment, though.”

“I even asked [Saniyya Sidney] why she wanted to be an actor and she said, "I'm serious about this. These other little kids they want to play, and I don't have time for that."”

“I am not going to bury my son! My son is going to bury me!”

“If you don't fail, you're not even trying.”

“[Rose from "Fences"] couldn't just jump out there. Not just because of economic reasons but because how she was looked at in society at the time. There were a lot of factors that made you stay I guess.”

“When my oldest boy was about 14, I started to talk to him about some of the mistakes I made in life, just to put a few dents in that shiny armor.”

“I had the kid [on "Fences" ] who understudied me so I could stand back and think about shots so he had to learn the blocking and everything. I'd come in early sometimes, and they 'd be in there rehearsing and working on their stuff. I didn't want them to feel like, "Oh these are people who can't be touched." We're all working actors; we're all trying to get better.”

“I'm a parent. I think we're responsible for the problems that young people have. I believe that. I don't blame them for any of it. I blame us for what we haven't done as mothers and fathers, not sticking together as a unit.”

“The time to worrying about flying is when you're on the ground. When you're up in the air, it's too late. No point in worrying about it then.”

“I've worked with children all my life.”

“What it taught me was forgiveness. It taught me that when people present themselves in a certain way, there's probably some back story or issue or reason for the way that they are. It's not you. It's them. And a lot of times, its about something that's completely out of their control”

“The only reason I'm acting in films I direct is to get the money to make them, quite frankly, it's not what I'm interested in doing.”

“There's racism everywhere.”

“Acting is just a way of making a living, the family is life.”

“It just happened that we did [Fences] seven years ago on Broadway. Scott Rudin brought me August Wilson's original screenplay for it, and I realized I hadn't read the play. So I read it. Then I realized that Troy (my character) was 53 - and I was 55 at the time. I realized I better hurry up! I might be too old!”

“I never tell anyone what to take away from a movie.”

“Nothing in life is worthwhile unless you take risks. Fall forward. Every failed experiment is one step closer to success.”

“Come on, I know bad acting when I hear it.”

“Fundamentally, the most important thing is to get the film made for me and to get as many people to see it as possible. And if I help that, then - I know I help that, let's put it that way. I do know that I help that. It is called show business.”

“When I did A Soldier's Story, I was very young and green and thought I knew everything-now I know I know everything!”

“Denzel Washington: I like the collaboration, I like seeing people do well, so I really plan to direct the rest of my days.”

“The secret to a happy marriage? Do whatever your wife tells you. 'Yes, dear.' And breathe.”

“To protect the sheep, you gotta catch the wolf. And it takes a wolf to catch a wolf, you understand?”