Drama
Courage Under Fire 1996
Bill's pick over Devil in a Blue Dress; plays cooler as a courtroom investigation than a straight war movie, he says, and Meg Ryan's performance holds up.
The Big Picture · Draft
The Denzel Washington Draft
September 12, 2023/ 109 min/ Sean Fennessey · Amanda Dobbins
Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins bring in Chris Ryan, Van Lathan, and Bill Simmons for a snake draft of Denzel Washington's filmography, six categories deep, sparked by the release of Equalizer 3.
30 films across 1 segment.
AI-generated This episode was transcribed and analyzed with AI models. The matches aren't perfect — expect the occasional misheard title or a link to the wrong film.
The Denzel Washington Draft drafting Denzel Washington's filmography
Bill Simmons
Action or Thriller
Out of Time 2003
Denzel as a cop hiding an affair with Sanaa Lathan while investigating his own crime; Bill calls it sweaty and underrated.
Spike Lee or Tony Scott Movie
He Got Game 1998
Ray Allen plays the son; the group's advice on rewatch is to fast-forward the Milla Jovovich subplot.
Blockbuster
The Equalizer 2014
A late-career reset that the group says worked out better than Neeson's Taken.
Oscar Nominee
Training Day 2001
Denzel's second Best Actor win, playing a dirty cop; Van and CR debate whether it was really a makeup Oscar for Malcolm X.
Wildcard
Ricochet 1991
Pre-Malcolm X psycho-stalker thriller with John Lithgow; Bill says it ran on cable for years.
Amanda Dobbins
Drama
The Preacher's Wife 1996
Whitney Houston's last stretch before things got rough, per the group; Amanda insists it counts as drama despite Wikipedia calling it a Christmas comedy.
Action or Thriller
The Taking of Pelham 123 2009
Amanda's husband put it on during COVID; she rates Denzel good and Travolta 'atrocious.'
Spike Lee or Tony Scott Movie
Unstoppable 2010
The runaway-train movie with Chris Pine, the last of five Denzel-Tony Scott collaborations.
Blockbuster
The Pelican Brief 1993
Bill and Van pass on it out of loyalty to Amanda; the group spends more time on the studio-mandated cut sex scene with Julia Roberts than the plot.
Oscar Nominee
Malcolm X 1992
Van calls it the role Denzel 'should have won his first Best Actor for.'
Wildcard
Much Ado About Nothing 1993
Kenneth Branagh's Shakespeare adaptation, with Keanu Reeves and Emma Thompson.
Chris Ryan
Drama
Philadelphia 1993
Overshadowed by Tom Hanks's Oscar, but CR calls Denzel's performance courageous for confronting his character's own prejudice head-on.
Action or Thriller
The Siege 1998
Denzel against Bruce Willis and Annette Bening; the group notes it got semi-canceled at release over its depiction of a Muslim internment camp.
Spike Lee or Tony Scott Movie
Man on Fire 2004
Called 'the most Tony Scott of the Tony Scott movies' and CR's favorite of Denzel's avenging-angel roles.
Blockbuster
The Magnificent Seven 2016
CR stands by it over Book of Eli, to general disbelief from the table.
Oscar Nominee
Flight 2012
CR almost took it a round earlier; the last great Robert Zemeckis movie, per the group.
Wildcard
Mississippi Masala 1991
A blind spot CR only closed the weekend before taping; Mira Nair's interracial romance.
Van Lathan
Drama
American Gangster 2007
Van admits the movie itself falls short but says the Frank Lucas/Blue Magic story and closing shot make it worth defending anyway.
Action or Thriller
The Equalizer 2 2018
Has Van's favorite Denzel line reading, the 'I'm only going to be able to do it once' monologue.
Spike Lee or Tony Scott Movie
Déjà Vu 2006
Time-travel thriller shot in New Orleans; Van's one-line review is 'a noble failure.'
Blockbuster
Remember the Titans 2000
Personally significant to Van; one of the rare Denzel films where he isn't carrying every scene, with a young Ryan Gosling in the ensemble.
Oscar Nominee
Fences 2016
August Wilson adaptation opposite Viola Davis, who won her own Oscar for the role.
Wildcard
Mo' Better Blues 1990
Van's favorite film of all time, full stop; a Spike Lee joint about a jazz trumpeter.
Sean Fennessey
Drama
Devil in a Blue Dress 1995
Carl Franklin's Easy Rawlins noir; Sean's biggest Denzel regret is that no sequels got made.
Action or Thriller
The Manchurian Candidate 2004
Jonathan Demme's remake, reworked around PTSD and post-9/11 paranoia.
Spike Lee or Tony Scott Movie
Inside Man 2006
Sean calls Spike and Tony the two directors Denzel performs best with, and ranks this second only to Man on Fire.
Blockbuster
Crimson Tide 1995
Submarine standoff with Gene Hackman, plus an uncredited script polish from Quentin Tarantino.
Wildcard
Fallen 1998
Gregory Hoblitt's demonic-possession thriller with John Goodman and Elias Koteas.
On the board, undrafted honorable mentions
Carbon CopyA Soldier's StoryCry FreedomThe Mighty QuinnVirtuosityThe Bone CollectorThe HurricaneThe Book of EliRoman J. Israel, Esq.The Tragedy of MacbethThe Equalizer 3The Little Things
Also mentioned raised along the way
Personal Denzel origin stories, before the draft started Heart Condition
In passing ChinatownThe Hunt for Red OctoberDas BootThe Golden ChildLove FieldPrimal FearOne False MoveLove & BasketballThe Thomas Crown AffairSpeedBram Stoker's DraculaKama Sutra: A Tale of LoveBasic InstinctBasic Instinct 2SliverJadeCliffhangerFair PlayRaising CainBlow OutSafe HouseGladiator II
Not films filtered out: TV, games, ads
TV St. ElsewhereThe Morning ShowWinning TimeAnd Just Like ThatSex LifeYellowstoneTrue DetectiveSuccessionDexter
Games FIFA World Cup Launch Edition
Ads Off the Pike (podcast promo)FanDuelBoar's HeadCarvanaTalk About PD