Denzel Washington is struggling with his speech after suffering a gruesome injury.
During a Saturday appearance on The New York Times’ “The Interview” podcast, the 70-year-old actor revealed that he is recovering after he severely damaged a crucial body organ.
“I bit my tongue almost half-off a few months ago,” Washington said.
“It’s affecting my speech,” he continued. “It forces me to slow down. I have to use it.”
Washington explained that his health issue has led to complications as he prepares for his titular role in the upcoming Broadway revival of William Shakespeare’s iconic play “Othello,” which also stars Jake Gyllenhaal.
“I have a line: ‘Whither will you that I go to answer this your charge?’ It’s hard because my tongue is swollen,” the Academy Award winner said. “It has affected everything.”
Washington did not provide details as to how he injured his tongue or what medical attention he received to treat the wound.
However, the “Gladiator: 2” star shared that he was leaning on his faith to overcome his challenges in the wake of the incident.
“That’s why you pray every day,” he explained. “I’m like, ‘OK, Lord, I’m here, I think this is what you wanted me to do.’ Now I’m not sure why, but one can say coincidence and serendipity and all those things.”
On Dec. 21, Washington, who is the son of a preacher, was baptized by Bishop James Pullings Jr. at the Kelly Temple in New York City. During his appearance on the podcast, the actor shared that he is taking courses to obtain his minister’s license.
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While reflecting on whether his work as an actor helps people, Washington explained that he is only seeking validation from a higher power.
“At this point, everything I’m doing is through the lens of what God thinks, not what they think,” he said. “I don’t know what they think,” he said.
“You go down that hole, you’ll never come out of that,” Washington added. “When people say, ‘What do you want people to get from this movie?’ or ‘What do you want them to get from this play?’ I always say, ‘It depends upon what they bring to it.’ There’s some interesting themes [in ‘Othello’] of jealousy and envy and pain and death.”
“And Kenny [Leon], the brilliant director, he’s putting it in what he calls the near future. So all of those things — jealousy, envy — it takes on a whole new thing with the information age.”
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Washington also expressed his belief that Gyllenhaal would be “brilliant” in the role of Othello’s nemesis Iago.
“He’s nuts. I love him,” the Tony Award winner said of Gyllenhaal. “He’s complicated. But he’s already got a handle on it.”
“I’m not worried about that, because I don’t like to learn the lines too soon,” he added. “I was telling a young actor who asked, ‘Why don’t you like to learn them too soon?’ I said: ‘Because then I’m the voice I’m listening to delivering the cues to myself.’
“‘I want to hear it from you, and that’s going to affect how I say what I say.’ For me, that works.”
“Othello” will premiere at New York City’s Ethel Barrymore Theatre on March 25 and will run through June 8.
