Denzel Washington On His Nosebleed Inauguration Seats And Playing Obama (VIDEO)

Denzel Washington talked about his trip to the inauguration and the idea he could play Obama in a biopic while on "The Late Show" Thursday night.

After Dave Letterman held up a photo of Denzel sitting alone in a sea of empty chairs the day of the inauguration, the actor explained how his wife mistakenly told him they had to be there at 7 am. Worse, when he got there in the freezing cold, his family's seats were far from the action.

Fortunately with his hours of extra time, he climbed barriers and skipped ahead to snag a better view of the ceremony.

And while Denzel had heard his named has been bandied about for a possible Obama movie, it seemed the president may prefer Will Smith because of his more prominent ears.

WATCH:

Comments

[Veneita]

01:31 PM on 06/13/2009

He had seats?!

[We-Are-The-Ones]

12:08 AM on 06/13/2009

Denzel is fooling himself. He cannot play Obama regardless of how he would desire it. He is waaaaaay to old. Period. Ears can be made via makeup. Erasing some 15 years or so, not so much.

[robXdion]

12:27 AM on 06/13/2009

King Kong ain't got nothing on him !!!

[veritas88]

12:42 AM on 06/13/2009

While Denzel is not my pick, as great as he is, he's only 7 years older than Obama, so it's not impossible.

[Ptama]

11:36 PM on 06/12/2009

I don’t think a very popular actor will be a wise choice to play the Prez. I think it would be too distracting and would be too difficult to separate the celebrity of the actor from the president which we see everyday.

My recommendations:
Henry Lennix and Regina King it is, hands down. He’ll have to tone down the stern appearance he always seems to have and maybe slim down a bit. Regina has the maturity and gravitas to pull of Michelle.

Barak’s Dad - Djimon Hounsou

Barak’s Mom - Mary-Louise Parker

Michelle’s Mom - Margaret Avery or Martin Lawrence aka Mama

[postman66]

01:08 AM on 06/13/2009

Regina King has the chops, but she's too short.

[ItHadToBeSaid]

11:17 AM on 06/13/2009

" Michelle"s Mom - Margaret Avery or Martin Lawrence aka Mama"

Now you KNOW you' wrong for that one. ;-)

[veritas88]

09:23 PM on 06/12/2009

In a feature film:
POTUS: Harper Hill
FLOTUS: Merrin Dungey
Perfect casting right there people, look 'em up!

[robXdion]

10:12 PM on 06/12/2009

Hill Harper is very short and doesn't have the voice. I know it's cool that he went to Harvard Law with Obama back in the day, but playing him in a feature film? nuh-uh, Maybe in a TV mini-series.

[Village]

04:54 PM on 06/12/2009

Will Smith can't act, but details, details, details.

[Ptama]

10:44 PM on 06/12/2009

Will Smith Can't act? are you insane. I recommend you rent the following films then come back to this site. The pursuit of happiness; Seven pounds; I am Legend

Let us know what you think...

[robXdion]

11:53 PM on 06/12/2009

NO, he can't act. And don't come with the "but he makes that money tho'". Herding in mindless unsophisticated masses isn't really an indicator of acting skill, just popularity. Quantity isn't Quality. If you watched Will Smith do silent, thoughtful moments where he needs to show emotion in those movies you named it's almost laughable. He doesn't really have a source of deep pain to reflect on and it shows, badly. If this doesn't make sense, then compare Smith to Don Cheadle.

[Crissy Patters]

12:22 PM on 06/14/2009

ICAM!
I want a new actor to play POTUS, someone totally new on the scene, who'd knock the role out of thte park.

[HarlemFreeThought]

02:35 PM on 06/12/2009

FYI: According to the National Black Republican's website Denzel is a homeboy REPUBLICAN!!
http://www.nbra.info/index.cfm?fuseaction=pages.blackgop&x=5122282

[HC4BO]

02:48 PM on 06/12/2009

Colin Powell is not even on the list ???

[KevinH]

04:20 PM on 06/12/2009

OMG ... a black man that is a conservative!! The fact is that he doesn't publicize his political status like the rest of the losers in hollywood must mean there is something wrong with him, right?. Most conservatives don't walk around with their political views on their sleeve like liberals. Thank god!

The fact that you refer to him as a homeboy ... shows your mentality as a liberal.

[bellenoir55]

05:00 PM on 06/12/2009

Kevin H,Denzel may be Republican,but I doubt that he's a conservative,by THEIR standards
:-)

[iceage7]

02:30 PM on 06/12/2009

don cheadle should play Obamas father. He does the african accent just fine and looks close to Obamas father.

[iceage7]

02:27 PM on 06/12/2009

Will they go back to Obamas father coming to America and meeting Obamas mother. That would be great.

[VSamuels]

01:33 PM on 06/12/2009

Denzel has the walk, we know he can do the manerisms and he has the 1 Million Dollar smile. Smith is O.K. but what ultimately defines Obama isn't just his ears, it is that electric wattage smile, and I'm not sure if that is a signature which he can deliver. The guy on Saturday Nite Live was and does resemble Obama, but he looks far too omnious and mean, Obama is a very attractive and alluring character and this is one chief reason, he hasn't been able to deliver the type of performance that some others have done with Bush, Cheney and Palin portrayals.

Heck, maybe the actor who will play and bring Obama to life---has even been born yet!

Right now, I'm just enjoying the brother who is playing the brotha, that is Obama.

[darr]

12:20 PM on 06/12/2009

I agree that both Denzel and Will are both talented actors. I also agree that they are not the only two AA actors to choose from. For me watching a bio-pic, an actor doesn't have to look "just like" the person they are playing. I mean look as Sir Anthony Hopkins playing Richard Nixxon for pities sake. He looks nothing like Nixxon and his portrayal was dead on. It's the caliber of the actor, not how much they look like the subject.
Now here is a name out of left field. Jesse L. Martin (formerly Lt. Green on Law and Order).
He has soft spoken voice that can be extremely firm and persuasive, just like our Pres! I know some of you may have to get past the goatee to see him as Obama. Just imagine him without the beard, he could pass.
BTW, I agree that this is all speculation as a bio-pic of Obama is several years premature.
Well, there is my first post.

[chitown8]

12:08 PM on 06/12/2009

Honestly HP the entire interview was great. He called talking to John Travolta is like phone sex. Dave did a great job with Denzel last night.

I agree Harry Lennix or Hill Harper.

[conniedogs]

11:57 AM on 06/12/2009

I see Denzel as a really strong black man. I don't think any other actor could have captured Malcolm X quite the way he did. I think Will is a better choice to play the pres.

[swan1]

11:07 AM on 06/12/2009

Rather see Will as Obama, and that woman that played on "King of Queens" as Michelle. Will would have to lose weight .

[Whycee54]

10:56 AM on 06/12/2009

I hate to tell you America, but as much as I love Will Smith and Denzel, There are more out of work African American actors that could play Obama and do just as well. Why must every famous black person in history be played by Denzel or Will?

[brueso]

11:47 AM on 06/12/2009

of course you're right- but the way Hollywood works is to get the actors that are most likely to put aszes in the seats, and those two are the biggest African American stars out there.

[joewalters]

12:27 PM on 06/12/2009

Any production company that attempts this will automatically catch the curiosity of the public. People will go to see it. Just get a good director, producers, and writers behind it and you have a winner. Good director and producers (such as Spielberg, Spike Lee, etc.) would ensure the proper actors to assume the roles, even if they are unknowns.

[conniedogs]

11:48 AM on 06/12/2009

True, but hollywood isn't willing to give AA males the opportunity.

[laughable]

10:47 AM on 06/12/2009

Henry Lennix is the no-brainer, slam-dunk choice to play Obama in any biopic. I find it insulting and lazy (and I'm a white guy) that some people always consider the go-to people to play black leads to be either Will Smith or Denzel Washington. Good grief, there are many talented black actors out there, and Lennix is one of them. Also: he is a ringer for Obama.

[danadevin85]

10:57 AM on 06/12/2009

your right about Harry Lennix
he's perfect similar look,voice and the height even though Lennix is a tad bit taller
than President Obama

he already plays a president in the Little Britian USA tv series on HBO

[DalKimball82]

11:51 AM on 06/12/2009

Thank you for mentioning the talented and (super sexy IMHO) Harry Lennix!

So glad to know that I am not the only one who thought he would be great for the role of Barack Obama. Nothing against Will Smith but enough already and as much as I like and respect Mr. Washington and his work, I have to give a thumbs down to him as President Obama.

I like Regina King or Renee Goldsberry as Mrs. Obama.

[robXdion]

12:11 PM on 06/12/2009

Renee Goldsberry??? nuh-huh. . . .that's pretty funny considering she hasn't acted opposite a black male in years. That paramount to suggesting Wesley Snipes play Marcus Garvey.