As one of Hollywood’s leading men, Denzel Washington has earned the authority to decide if any of his projects require a romantic scene and with whom he is willing to lock lips. The actor set the precedent for the latter early in his career.
According to multiple reports, Washington learned the impact his passionate scenes could have on his core audience, Black women, after starring in “The Mighty Quinn.” In the 1989 film, he shared a kiss with co-star Mimi Rogers, though he would later have the scene removed after it tested poorly with his fans.
Years later, when he starred alongside Julia Roberts in the mystery-thriller “The Pelican Brief,” he made sure not to make the same mistake twice. Despite their on-screen characters having romantic chemistry, Washington opted not to share a kiss with the actress.
When he explained his careful approach to kissing his female co-stars, Washington alluded to the lack of representation Black women had as love interests. He reportedly told Newsweek that “Black women are not often seen as objects of desire on film. And they have always been my core audience.”
“Denzel Washington deada– was like “I ain’t kissing no white women” i felt that cuz,” wrote one fan who considers the “Fences” star’s stance admirable.
“Unbelievable. Oh an yes denzel is amazing as is morgan freeman…but denzel lost his shine for me when i found out he refuses or resists where possible touching/kissing white women in a movie as he feels its a betrayal to his fans. If that isnt racist i dont know what is,” wrote another person.
“Washington reason for not kissing white women in movies >>>>≥>>>>>> he’s really the [goat emoji] lol,” tweeted a fan.
A fourth individual wrote, “I just spent the past 10 minutes researching this, and it’s CRAZY to me that in Pelican Brief Denzel wouldn’t film a scene kissing her because he felt it would alienate his Black women fans.”
As it turns out, Roberts handpicked Washington as her love interest, and has previously stated that she would have been onboard had the peck taken place.
“I have taken so much s—t over the years about not kissing Denzel in that film. Don’t I have a pulse? Of course, I wanted to kiss Denzel. It was his idea to take the d–n scenes out,” she reportedly told Newsweek in 2002.
Washington more than made up for the years of speculation regarding the nixed kiss between him and Roberts at the Academy Awards in 2001. The actress presented the award for Best Actor, for which Washington was nominated for his portrayal of a crooked cop in “Training Day.”
Following his acceptance speech, Roberts excitedly hugged him, never releasing her grip as he carried her off the stage.
Throughout his decades-long career, the box office star has shared only a handful of on-screen kisses. They include kisses with Mimi Rogers and Sheryl Lee Ralph in “The Mighty Quinn,” Kate Vernon in “X,” Eva Mendes in “Training Day” and “Out Of Time,” Sanaa Lathan in “Out Of Time,” and Kelly Reilly in “Flight.”
