Denzel Washington is unabashedly happy that the term “like father, like son” is an actual reality for him. In an interview with PEOPLE, the famed actor said he’s elated that his son John David Washington decided to trade in football playbooks for scripts given a string of injuries.
“He’s had I don’t know how many concussions, a broken collarbone, a torn up knee and Achilles [tendon],” Washington said. The veteran thespian’s offspring can be seen in HBO’s Ballers series and his feature role in Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman.
John David’s pro-football career continued from his collegiate journey at Morehouse College to the NFL’s St. Louis Rams. After being a part of the team for the 2006-07 season, John David went on to play for the UFL and NFL Europa before jumping into Hollywood. He also shared his thoughts on following in his father’s footsteps in an interview with Power 105.1’s The Breakfast Club.
Washington, who’s currently promoting the July 20 release of Equalizer 2, revealed that his son has refrained from asking him for help and gave praise to his wife, Pauletta Washington, for being a prominent figure in their children’s lives.
“He’s really good at what he does, and the fact that he’s been fighting to make his own mark, he didn’t want any help from me, I didn’t help him get onto Ballers or anything like that,” he said. “The only way I helped him get into Ballers was introducing him to football as a kid, so maybe that helped. But I’m just proud of he and all my children. My wife did a great job, they are good kids.”