John David Washington

John David Washington
Washington in 2018
Born (1984-07-28) July 28, 1984
Toluca Lake, Los Angeles, California, United States
Nationality American
Alma mater Morehouse College
Occupation Actor, American football player
Years active 1993–present
Relatives Denzel Washington

John David Washington (born July 28, 1984) is an American actor and former American football running back. He played college football at Morehouse and signed with the St. Louis Rams as an undrafted free agent in 2006. Professionally, Washington spent four years as the running back for the United Football League's Sacramento Mountain Lions.

Washington shifted to an acting career like his father, Denzel Washington and mother, Pauletta Washington. He is known for his roles in the HBO comedy series Ballers and in Spike Lee's 2018 film BlacKkKlansman.

Early life

Washington was raised in the Toluca Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, the son of actor Denzel Washington and actress Pauletta Washington (née Pearson); he is the oldest of their four children.[1] At the age of nine, he appeared as a student in a Harlem classroom in Spike Lee's 1992 feature film Malcolm X, which starred Washington's father in the title role.

Washington attended Campbell Hall School in Los Angeles, where he was a letterman in football, basketball, and track. He graduated from Campbell Hall School in 2002.

Football career

John David Washington
No. 33, 28
Position: Running back
Personal information
Height: 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight: 208 lb (94 kg)
Career information
College: Morehouse
Undrafted: 2006
Career history

College

At Morehouse College, Washington set a school record with 1,198 yards with a 5.6-yard average and nine touchdowns, and added ten receptions for 69 yards his senior year. He also holds the school's single-game (242 yards) and career (3,699 yards) leading rushing records. Washington led the conference in rushing in 2005.

Professional

After going undrafted in the 2006 NFL Draft, Washington was signed by the St. Louis Rams on May 1, 2006 as an undrafted free agent. Washington was released by the Rams on August 31.[2] Three days later, the Rams re-signed him to their practice squad.[3] Washington played in NFL Europe for the Rhein Fire in the 2007 offseason.[4]

Washington was drafted by the California Redwoods (later the Sacramento Mountain Lions) of the United Football League in the UFL Premiere Season Draft in 2009. He signed with the team on August 18.[5] Washington stayed with the team after that and returned for his fourth season with the Mountain Lions in 2012, until the league abruptly folded that October.[6][7]

Acting career

He returned to acting in 2015, in the role of Ricky Jerret in the HBO comedy series Ballers.[8] The series was well received by critics,[9] and has continued on for four seasons, as of 2018.

In September 2017, Washington was cast in the lead role of detective Ron Stallworth, in Spike Lee's thriller BlacKkKlansman, based on Stallworth's memoir.[10] The film competed for the Palme d'Or at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival, where it premiered on May 14.[11][12] It did not win the Palme d'Or, but was awarded the Grand Prix by the festival jury. The film began a U.S. theatrical release on August 10, 2018, a date chosen to coincide with the one year anniversary of the Charlottesville rally.[13] The film was a commercial success.[14]

In 2018, Washington also starred in the films Monsters and Men and Monster, both of which screened in the U.S. Dramatic Competition section at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival.[15][16][17] Also in 2018 he is slated to appear in The Old Man & the Gun, opposite Robert Redford, Casey Affleck, Danny Glover, Tika Sumpter, Tom Waits, and Sissy Spacek. The film is scheduled to be released on September 28, 2018, by Fox Searchlight Pictures.[18]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1992 Malcolm X Student in Harlem classroom
2017 Love Beats Rhymes Mahlik
2018 Monsters and Men Dennis Williams
Monster Richard "Bobo" Evans
BlacKkKlansman Detective Ron Stallworth
The Old Man & the Gun Lieutenant Kelley

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2015–present Ballers Ricky Jerret Main cast

Awards and nominations

Year Awards Category Nominated work Result
2018 NAACP Image Awards[19] Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series Ballers Nominated
IMDb STARmeter Awards[20] Breakout Star Himself Won
People's Choice Awards[21] The Drama Movie Star of 2018 BlacKkKlansman Pending

References

  1. ↑ Smith, Krista (April 11, 2018). "John David Washington on His Path from Pro Football to Ballers". Vanity Fair. Retrieved April 16, 2018.
  2. ↑ "Rams cut 11, including sixth-round pick". Yahoo! Sports. August 31, 2007. Retrieved August 31, 2007. It was widely speculated that John David Washington was a member of the St.Louis Rams but he never actually signed his contract due to a failed physical.
  3. ↑ "Rams sign seven to practice squad". St. Louis Rams. September 3, 2007. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
  4. ↑ "John David Washington". The Football Database. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
  5. ↑ "United Football League Signs 31 Players to California Redwoods' Roster". United Football League. August 18, 2009. Archived from the original on August 21, 2009. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
  6. ↑ "Mountain Lions begin season with morning practice". KTXL. September 20, 2012. Retrieved September 21, 2012.
  7. ↑ "John David Washington". TotalFootballStats.com. 2010. Archived from the original on December 9, 2011. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
  8. ↑ Andreeva, Nellie (February 13, 2014). "Dwayne Johnson's HBO Half-Hour Pilot 'Ballers' Picked Up To Series". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
  9. ↑ "Ballers: Season 1". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved August 7, 2018.
  10. ↑ Kroll, Justin (September 8, 2017). "Spike Lee, Jordan Peele Team Up on KKK Crime Thriller 'Black Klansman'". Variety. Retrieved November 20, 2017.
  11. ↑ "The 2018 Official Selection". Cannes Film Festival. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
  12. ↑ Debruge, Peter; Keslassy, Elsa (April 12, 2018). "Cannes Lineup Includes New Films From Spike Lee, Jean-Luc Godard". Variety. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
  13. ↑ Siegel, Tatiana; Gardner, Chris (May 14, 2018). "Cannes: Spike Lee's 'BlacKkKlansman' Draws 10-Minute Ovation". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 16, 2018.
  14. ↑ "BlacKkKlansman (2018) - Box Office Mojo". www.boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved 2018-09-29.
  15. ↑ "Sundance Film Festival Unveils Full 2018 Features Lineup". Variety. November 29, 2017. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  16. ↑ "John David Washington on Dad Denzel, Spike Lee's 'Black Klansman' and His Sundance Debut". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 21, 2018.
  17. ↑ Hipes, Patrick (January 18, 2018). "'Monsters And Men' Sundance First Look: "Can't You See What's Happening Out There?"". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 21, 2018.
  18. ↑ Perez, Rodrigo (June 5, 2018). "'The Old Man And The Gun' Trailer: Robert Redford Will Act One Last Time For Director David Lowery". The Playlist. Retrieved June 5, 2018.
  19. ↑ "2018 NAACP Image Award Winners: Complete List". The Hollywood Reporter. January 14, 2018. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
  20. ↑ "John David Washington Receives IMDb STARmeter Award". IMDb. Retrieved May 20, 2018.
  21. ↑ "2018 People's Choice Awards: Complete List of Nominations". E! News. September 5, 2018. Retrieved September 11, 2018.
  • "John David Washington". Just Sports Stats.
  • John David Washington on IMDb
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