Rotten Tomatoes has released a video sit-down with Denzel Washington and Spike Lee, giving the longtime collaborators space to reflect on their decades-long creative partnership while promoting their latest joint, Highest 2 Lowest. The conversation moves between serious reflection and playful banter, covering their experience on Malcolm X, Knicks games, and their thoughts on purpose and spirituality.
Revisiting Malcolm X and Nelson Mandela’s Role
Lee recalled the challenges of portraying Elijah Muhammad while making Malcolm X. “I called Minister Louis Farrakhan and said, ‘I would like to have a sit down with you,’” Lee explained. “And he said to me, ‘Spike, I don’t care what you do with our brother Malcolm, but be very careful what you say about the honourable [American religious leader] Elijah Muhammad.’”
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The director went on to reveal how Nelson Mandela, who delivers the film’s closing words, refused to speak one of Malcolm’s most iconic lines. “He said, ‘Mr. Lee, I cannot say, By any means necessary.’ And it wasn’t until later that day I said, ‘He can’t say that because he’s going to run for president.’” Lee explained that this choice led him to cut between Mandela and Washington’s performance to bring the moment to screen.
Lee also described how Washington channelled Malcolm beyond simple performance. “You have to allow the spirit of that person to come into you… Otherwise it’s just makeup, the hair, the costume. But that’s surface.”
Denzel Washington on His Craft and Faith
Washington offered his own perspective on how he approaches roles and his career today. “I don’t have any favourite moments. That’s not how I work. I work from the inside out,” he said. “The older I get, by the grace of God, the better I get at what I’m doing. And I don’t think the world has seen my best work yet.”
He added a reflection that summed up his spiritual outlook: “Man gives the award, God gives the reward. I’m interested in the reward. That’s what phase of my life I’m in.”
How Washington Influenced Lee as a Director
For Lee, working with Washington has been a lesson in filmmaking itself. “D has made me a better director because of his acting,” Lee said. “What to do and what not to do.”
Washington, who has directed five films of his own, admitted that stepping behind the camera was humbling. “What I learned once I got behind the camera was how much I didn’t know,” he said with a laugh. “I’m still an amateur, but I steal from the best. […] You put the best actors and actresses up there and get out of the way.”
A Partnership Built to Last
As their latest film makes its way to audiences, both men agreed their bond is deeper than simply making movies. “Every time I see these five films, even the recent one, I see something I did not see before. For me, that shows you the depth of the work,” Lee reflected.
Highest 2 Lowest marks Washington and Lee’s sixth feature together, extending a partnership that has lasted over 30 years and produced some of modern cinema’s most enduring work.
Highest 2 Lowest opened in U.S. cinemas on August 15 and will be streaming globally on Apple TV+ from September 5.
