Denzel Washington reveals we've been pronouncing his name wrong — Thanks to his Mom’s clever trick

enzel Washington, 70, star of Highest 2 Lowest, revealed on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on September 2 that most people have been mispronouncing his name. The actor, whose full name is Denzel Hayes Washington, Jr., explained how his mother, Lennis Washington, influenced the pronunciation that stuck.

Washington recounted how the need to differentiate him from his father, Denzel Washington Sr., led to the current pronunciation.

“So she said, ‘From now on, you’re Denzel (den-zelle),’ ” he said, using the longer “e” vowel sound.

“She said [to me], ‘You’re Denzel (den-zelle).’ [And to my father,] ‘You’re Denzel (den-zil)…,’ ” Washington added.

He emphasised the distinction while pointing out that the shorter pronunciation “den-zil” belonged to his father.

Mother’s Clever solution

Washington explained that sharing a name with his father prompted his mother to create the different pronunciations:

“When my mother would call out the name ‘Denzel,’ the both of us would show up,” he said. “So she said, ‘From now on, you’re Denzel (den-zelle).’ ”

Naming trends inspired by Washington

Kimmel noted the recent surge in NFL players named Denzel. Washington joked about his influence: “And this is how you know they named themselves after me, because my name is not pronounced Denzel. My name is pronounced Denzel (den-zil),” he said.

He continued with humor: “There ought to be some kind of compensation for this, shouldn’t I?”

Kimmel agreed: “You should get a small percentage of each jersey sale.”

Promoting Highest 2 Lowest

Washington appeared on the late-night show as he continues promoting his new movie, Highest 2 Lowest, which releases on Apple TV on September 5.