During an impassioned interview, actor Denzel Washington stood his ground on his Christian faith and made it abundantly clear that he wants nothing to do with woke cancel culture, citing his faith in God as what gives him the ability to not fear being “canceled,” stating, “I follow God. I don’t follow man.”
For background, Washington spoke to a journalist alongside filmmaker Spike Lee on August 15, 2025, and during their conversation, the journalist asked Washington to weigh in on the concept of being “canceled.” In response, the actor did not miss a beat, boldly saying, Who cares?” and clearly stating that his sense of worth comes from God, not from people.
When Washington was asked for his thoughts on cancel culture and the idea of being “canceled” himself, Washington responded, “What does that mean, to be canceled?” He went on to explain his view of cancel culture, saying, “Who cares? What made public support so important to begin with? You can’t lead and follow at the same time, and you can’t follow and lead at the same time.”
Continuing, the actor said that he only follows God, not people, explaining, “I don’t follow anybody. I follow the heavenly spirit. I follow God, I don’t follow man. I have faith in God. I have hope in man, but look around, it ain’t working out so well.” He added, “You can’t be canceled if you haven’t signed up. Don’t sign up.”
Furthermore, Washington said in an August 11, 2025, interview with Jake Hamilton and explained his perspective on success and faith further. When asked about what motivates him in his life and acting career, he told Hamilton, “I don’t do it for Oscars,” adding, “I really don’t care about that kind of stuff. I’ve been at this a long time. There’s times when I won and shouldn’t have won, and shouldn’t have won and won. Man gives the award. God gives the reward.”
In addition, Washington said point-blank that he is “not interested in Oscars,” going on to say, “You know, people will ask me, well, where do you keep it? I say, next to the other one. I’m not bragging. I’m just telling you how I feel about it. On my last day, it ain’t gon’ do me a bit of good.”
Speaking candidly, the actor told Hamilton that he doubts that God cares about the earthly rewards he receives. He said, “I don’t think God ever asks how many Oscars you have.” He continued, “Long as [God] says, ‘Go, now, get on up here,’ I’m alright.”
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