Star of 'Black Panther' reveals Denzel Washington paid for his acting classes - and finally gets to thank him

'I've basically been holding this secret my whole career'

Jacob Shamsian
Thursday 08 March 2018 06:30 EST
Comments
(Getty Images)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Denzel Washington is the secret reason why Chadwick Boseman is such a great actor.

On the Oscars red carpet, Boseman declined to get into the details. But on NBC's "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" on Wednesday, the "Black Panther" star explained that Washington paid part of his tuition through a scholarship program while he took a summer class studying drama at Oxford University.

"I've basically been holding this secret my whole career. When I came back, I got a beneficiary letter and it said Denzel Washington paid for you," Boseman said.

Boseman said he didn't want to say anything publicly unless he had become more successful. He first told the story in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine published in February.

"I'm sure he has no idea. It was random," Boseman said. "I couldn't wait to write my thank-you letter! ... I've been waiting to meet him, so I can tell him."

Since the article was published, Boseman had the chance to meet Washington. Boseman told Fallon that he joked about it.

"Oh, so that's why I'm here - you owe me money!" Washington told Boseman. "I came to collect!"

Read more:

• How much the best paid workers in 20 professions earn
• Seven outdated men’s style ‘rules’ that you can now ignore
• 16 skills that are hard to learn but will pay off forever

Read the original article on Business Insider UK © 2016. Follow Business Insider UK on Twitter.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in