Academy Award-winning actor Denzel Washington has blazed a trail in Hollywood by appearing in movies such as "Glory," "The Preacher's Wife," and "Training Day." But being an actor isn't something Washington dreamed of becoming as a child.
Washington revealed during an interview with ABC News for the film "The Magnificent Seven" that his father was a minister who forbid him to watch Western films like the ones he is starring in now. Back then, the only movies he was allowed to see were Bible epics such as "King of Kings" and "The Ten Commandments." That's why he said he wasn't really a huge movie buff.
A lot of people expected that Washington would follow his father's footsteps and become a pastor for the Church of God in Christ. But Washington said he didn't want to become a minister because it felt "like a job." Although he contemplated becoming a minister, Washington said he eventually chose not to pursue that career path.
"You had to go at night, you had to go in the afternoon," he said of his father's work. "I rejected it in my early teen years, working stuff out."
The actor described himself as a "mischievous" kid, and that all of his closest friends then had come and gone in prison. He said he is grateful that his mother stepped in and sent him to private school. Because of that, Washington said he escaped greater trouble.
In school, Washington began exploring other career options. "I was actually pre-med. I thought, 'You go to college, be a doctor.' Then, I went into political science, pre-law," he shared. "I found out I wasn't doctor material, I found out I wasn't lawyer material, then I started studying journalism."
Nothing really caught on with Washington until he tried acting, so he decided to pursue acting in college at Fordham University.
It's true that Washington did not become a pastor, but he is still somewhat following his father's footsteps by being a motivational speaker. He was the guest speaker at Dillard University's graduating class in spring of 2015. During that occasion, he urged graduates to always "put God first."
"There's never been a time where God didn't direct, protect, and correct me," Washington said then. "There may have been times where I was less than faithful to Him, but He had faith in me."
