This film with Denzel Washington “almost killed” one of the greatest American directors

Earlier this month, Spike Lee (do the right thing, Malcolm, for taking the stage and talking about his career – and especially about him) Malcolm X Legendary and his upcoming 5th film with Denzel Washington, The Highest 2 The Lowest.

He calls it a partnership with an actor”The dynamic duo of D and Lee“, the filmmaker said (via The Hollywood Reporter):We are brothers. We’re just doing our job.Despite the long “hiatus” between their last two collaborations, namely 18 years since Inside Man, he admitted that it didn’t seem like it on set. “We know each other well. Besides, our families are very close.“

The Adventures of Malcolm X

Discussing one of their most famous projects, Spike Lee He revealed how much he had to turn Malcolm X It was not easy: in fact, the director had to face many obstacles.

“When I first came to Jeddah, I was filming Malcolm“, he recalled. “I was there for two weeks, waiting for permission from the Supreme Islamic Court to bring a camera into Mecca during the Hajj.“Finally, Spike Lee He said that he was authorized to send a team of Muslims there who were the first to receive such permission.

“This movie almost killed me“- he added. “This film was under budget from the beginning. I knew Warner Bros. knewThe first version he showed in the studio on the day of the Rodney King police brutality sentencing was 4 o’clock. “Los Angeles was on fire“, he explained. “They told me to cut the film significantly and I said no.“

“Absolutely not“, he also responded to the suggestion that he should shoot a scene at the Jersey Shore in January. Warner then dropped the film after Lee had already paid $1 million.half my salary I stayed.”

It was then that he made a list of black figures from whom he would try to request financial donations. “In fact, I begged: this is the only film that can be made. The first person I called was Bill Cosby“, he admitted. The actor handed him the check when the director showed up at his door. Among them were Tracy Chapman, Janet Jackson, Prince, and finally Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan. Lee joked about Jordan’s competitive nature, saying he asked how much Johnson gave him and he gave more.

He also spoke with Nelson Mandela on a scene scheduled for the last day of filming: “On the way to Johannesburg we had to make an emergency landing in Nairobi due to a bomb threat. This movie almost killed me– he repeated.

But the result made the film a masterpiece and Spike Lee He even described the work as Denzel Washington In Malcolm X from “One of the best performances in a biopic of all time”, a performance for which he was deservedly nominated for an Oscar. He also congratulated his friend on his recent role in Gladiator II, for which he was recently nominated for a Golden Globe.

Spike Lee It received an honorary Oscar in 2015 before winning its first Oscar in competition for Best Adapted Screenplay in 2019. BlackKkKlansman.

We are now waiting for his next film Denzel Washington, Highest 2 Lowest“A reinterpretation, not a remakeBetween Heaven and Hell by Akira Kurosawa, Lee said. He recalled that he got to know international cinema at the film school and was fascinated by the works of the legendary Japanese director. “So at first I was influenced by Kurosawa“, he said.

Highest 2 Lowest doesn’t have a release date yet. Meanwhile, Malcolm X may be re-emerging on VOD.