Reel Talk | Kerry Washington & Don Cheadle

CheadleWashington

The wonderful world of Kerry Washington continues to spin as she is joined by Emmy-winning actor, Don Cheadle for a candid conversation on the industry, race and gender as well as their activism.

Washington has made the rounds recently sharing her views as a part of a panel for The Hollywood Reporter’s Emmy Roundtable of Dramatic Actresses.

The two discussed a bevy of topics as a part of the Variety Magazine’s Road To the Emmy series. Some of the notable comments included:

“But I also feel like I’ve been able to do things as a woman in this business that I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to do as a man, just like with race, like be able to play Ray Charles’ wife if I wasn’t a black woman. So it sometimes makes things more challenging, but has also allowed for unique experiences like Hotel Rwanda and Ray and The Last King (of Scotland), roles that really use our gender and our race.” – Washington

CheadleWashington 2

“People come up to me now and ask me, “What can I do to start?” and I have no idea. When I started acting, I walked into a room with a casting director; I met the producer, the director. Now they go in a room and there’s a camera in a corner or they’re taping themselves at home (and) emailing them in, and that’s just antithetical to the way I — I don’t even know how to start now. I count myself very fortunate. I don’t think I’m “there,” quote unquote. I always feel like it’s a grind.” – Cheadle

“I have more opportunities than Josephine Baker and Lena Horne and Diahann Carroll had. … This is a business where, if you’re looking for consistency and dependability in your work, this is not the career for you.” – Washington

Watch their discussion below: