Tenet’s John David Washington left red-faced over household chores by ‘Uncle’ Samuel L Jackson on live TV

Denzel Washington made his 36-year-old son, actor John David Washington, do “household chores” while staying in his childhood bedroom during the pandemic.

Washington, the star of Christopher Nolan’s Tenet, revealed during a Friday (11 September) appearance on US talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live! that he had moved back in with his parents during lockdown.

Samuel L Jackson, who was guest hosting Kimmel’s show and has known Washington since he was a child, jokingly asked whether Denzel had ordered his son to do chores.

“You still had to do chores though, right? I know that Denzel likes some order in the house,” Jackson asked.

Washington was left red-faced after the interaction, laughing: “I can’t believe we’re doing this”.

“There was a chore or two,” Washington sheepishly added. “My chore was to make sure I was down for dinner in time.”

“That’s not a chore!” Jackson protested. “A chore is sweeping the driveway, or taking the garbage out. Something legit that earns your keep!”

Washington shot back: “How about cooking? There you go, I earned my keep that way.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Washington confirmed that Jackson had instilled “knowledge, experience and understanding” onto him over the years, with Jackson such a familiar presence in his life that he is affectionately referred to as “Uncle Sam”.