Training Day: Ethan Hawke lost the Oscar but received unforgettable advice from Denzel Washington

“I gained so much experience working with Denzel because his way of seeing things is so unique…”

In 2002, Ethan Hawke is nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for the very popular Training Day, by Antoine Fuqua. A triller also carried by Denzel Washingtonwho won the statuette for best actor for this film that night, while his acting partner saw the prestigious prize pass under his nose and go to Jim Broadbent, acclaimed for Iris.

Is it a bad memory for Ethan Hawke though? Absolutely not: now aged 53, the actor says in the show Who's Talking to Chris Wallace, relayed by Variety, having received unforgettable advice from Denzel that evening, which made him put this into perspective “failure”.

“It's better that you didn't win, the star began. Losing was best in this case. You don't need an award to make your status more legitimate. No, what is needed is to change the status of the Oscars themselves. That's how he thinks. That's why I was talking to you about Babe Tuth's way of playing (a baseball champion who revolutionized his sport, editor’s note). Part of the reason the Academy has so much power is because Denzel won two statuettes. Two prizes which did not change who he was, but which did, however, change this institution.”

Denzel Washington and Halle Berry proudly pose with their Oscars on March 25, 2002.

Ethan Hawke continues his reflection by saying of Denzel Washington, also an Oscar winner for his supporting role in Glory, in 1990, that he is “simply the best actor of our generation.”

“I gained such experience, and this voice to boost me, working with Denzel, because his way of seeing things is so unique, he continues. I'm sure it would have been interesting to see how Babe Ruth tied her shoes. Evolve with someone who creates so much energy, observe the way he works, study how he entered this profession and how he became the best in his field. Personally, I was incredibly inspired to see my dream job carried out at this level (by Denzel Washington, editor’s note).“

After this experience, Ethan Hawke was again nominated for an Oscar, for his supporting role in Boyhoodby Richard Linklater, but also for their screenplay for Before Sunset And Before Midnight. So when the journalist asks him if he regrets having lost this prize for Training Dayhe answers :

“No. Well yeah, I guess I would have liked to have won it, but I didn't. And then I was at the Oscars, sitting next to Denzel Washington and nominated against Ian McKellen. I had already won in a way, it was impossible for me to see things any other way.

Training Day can be (re)watched on Première Max