Denzel Washington’s Shocking Request on This Action Thriller 14 Years Ago!

Denzel Washington is clearly not one to overlook any detail when it comes to staging a fight scene. Olivier Schneider, a French stunt and fight coordinator who has worked with some of the biggest movie stars, experienced this firsthand on a Hollywood set.

Last year, invited by Legend, the professional recounted his encounter with the American actor and his rather unexpected request.

When Denzel Washington Counts the Hits

The anecdote dates back to the filming of “Safe House”, an action thriller directed by Daniel Espinosa, released in 2012. Denzel Washington co-starred with Ryan Reynolds and Robert Patrick.

Washington plays Tobin Frost, a former CIA agent turned fugitive. When the safe house where he is being interrogated is attacked, Matt Weston (Ryan Reynolds), a young agent tasked with overseeing the location, must flee with the man he was supposed to be guarding.

To prepare for the film’s numerous intense sequences, Olivier Schneider had previously created pre-visualizations with the stuntmen. But before even reviewing his work, Denzel Washington wanted to ensure that his collaborator fully understood the project, as Schneider shared on Legend:

“The first day I meet him, I have to present the pre-visualizations I had shot, that is, the fight scenes I had filmed with the stuntmen and his double, to show him what these fights would look like and what he would be doing. Before that, he tests me, asks me little questions (…) to see if I’ve read the script… (…) if I’ve done my homework, basically.“

“I’m the Star of the Movie”

Once reassured, the actor delves into the preparatory videos. It’s then that a particular detail catches his attention. Rather than focusing solely on the choreography, Washington starts to count the blows exchanged with his opponent very precisely.

“He [watches] one then two fights, he’s happy, then he tells me: ‘Wait, put it back a bit.’ I replay the fight and he says: ‘No, there he hit me six times, I hit him five times, I’m the star of the movie, he doesn’t hit me one more time.“

This remark somewhat surprises Olivier Schneider. For the coordinator, allowing Washington’s character to dominate this first encounter so clearly could especially weaken the rest of the story.

He tries to reason with him, explaining: “‘This opponent, he’s your antagonist, you have another fight with him at the end’ (…). So what’s the point of having another fight at the end if you already beat him the first time?’“

A Compromise Found… Down to the Punch

The argument eventually convinces Denzel Washington. However, he’s not willing to let his opponent gain the upper hand: the actor immediately finds a solution to maintain the balance between the two characters.

“So he’s going to hit me five times and I’m going to hit him five times!“

An amusing way to solve the problem: since his character couldn’t necessarily win this first confrontation, it was clearly not an option for him to lose by the number of hits either!

“Safe House” is now available on VOD.

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