Denzel Washington’s upcoming movie reunion with Spike Lee in High and Low‘s remake can pay off a casting wish first teased back in 1992. In their first acting-directing collaboration since Inside Man 18 years ago, Denzel Washington and Spike Lee are set to reunite for the fifth time in the forthcoming English-language remake of Akira Kurosawa’s 1963 Japanese crime thriller High and Low. Washington is confirmed to star in the new High and Low movie while Lee will return to the director’s chair, following in the footsteps of their previous films Mo’ Better Blues (1990), Malcolm X (1992), He Got Game (1998), and Inside Man (2006).
Though no confirmation has been made, it’s assumed that Denzel Washington will be playing a new version of Toshiro Mifune’s wealthy executive character, Kingo Gondo, in Lee’s High and Low. In Kurosawa’s movie, Gondo was forced to choose between using his money to gain control of a company or using it to free his employee’s kidnapped son. Outside of Washington, the cast and characters of the High and Low remake have yet to be revealed, leaving plenty of room for other frequent Lee collaborators to return. If so, the next of Denzel Washington and Spike Lee’s movies could fulfill a perfect casting set-up that dates back to their 1992 film.
High And Low Could Finally See Denzel & John David Washington Co-Star In A Movie
Parent-child acting duos in Hollywood have made for some incredibly memorable movies and TV shows, such as Clint and Scott Eastwood in Gran Torino, Andie MacDowell and Margaret Qualley in Maid, Martin and Charlie Sheen in Wall Street, and Carrie Fisher and Billie Lourd in the Star Wars sequel trilogy. Now, 32 years after briefly sharing the screen in a Spike Lee movie, Denzel Washington and his son, actor John David Washington, could finally join this list if the latter is cast in Lee’s groundbreaking High and Low remake. Given John David Washington’s rise to stardom in recent years, it would be even more fulfilling if both served as leads in the Apple TV+ project.
When John David Washington was only eight years old, he made his film debut in 1992 with a very minor appearance in Spike Lee’s Denzel Washington-starring movie Malcolm X. In the Oscar-nominated movie, John David Washington was credited as “Student in Harlem classroom,” highlighting the brevity of his role. John David Washington then made an uncredited appearance in the 1995 Denzel Washington movie Devil in a Blue Dress, in which he played a boy with a toy rifle. After more than thirty years, now is the perfect time to actually give the Tenet actor a starring role in a Spike Lee movie alongside his father.
John David Washington’s BlacKkKlansman Role Makes His Spike Lee Return More Likely
Nearly three decades after his minor background role in Malcolm X, John David Washington reunited with Spike Lee as the main actor in the director’s 2018 crime dramedy BlacKkKlansman. The film marked Washington’s first major starring movie role, with the acclaim for his performance and the movie’s critical and commercial success launching the actor into a fruitful Hollywood career. After BlacKkKlansman, which was nominated for Best Picture at the 2019 Oscars, John David Washington starred in hit movies like Christopher Nolan’s Tenet, Netflix’s Malcolm & Marie, David O. Russell’s Amsterdam, and Gareth Edwards’ The Creator.
Though John David and Denzel Washington didn’t return for Spike Lee’s following movie, Da 5 Bloods (2020), the former’s major part in BlacKkKlansman suggests he’ll reunite with the director again in the future. Lee has a reputation for bringing his frequent collaborators, especially those with leading roles, back for more of his movies, with Denzel Washington having starred in four of his films, John Turturro appearing in nine, and Giancarlo Esposito being cast in four Lee-directed features. Consequently, with John David Washington already appearing in two movies and his father confirmed for the next feature, his casting in Lee’s High and Low remake seems probable.
Spike Lee & Denzel Washington’s Next Movie Collaboration Already Faces 1 Big Problem
Although the news of Spike Lee and Denzel Washington collaborating again since 2006 is exciting, their upcoming project already faces one major issue.
Who John David Washington Could Play In Spike Lee’s High And Low Remake
If Denzel Washington is playing a new version of Kingo Gondo, then John David Washington could reasonably take on one of the other major characters, like Inspector Tokura, Kawanishi, or Aoki. Inspector Tokura is the lead investigator in the kidnapping case, with Kawanishi being Gondo’s secretary and Aoki being Gondo’s chauffeur whose son is kidnapped. Denzel and John David Washington don’t necessarily have to play father and son in Spike Lee’s movie, so there’s a variety of potential roles that the latter could fit. Additionally, Lee could add original characters for his High and Low remake – perhaps one specifically written for Denzel Washington’s son.
High and Low (Remake)
High and Low is a remake of the 1963 film by Akira Kurosawa, directed by Spike Lee and starring Denzel Washington. Details on the film are scarce, but the original film’s plot centers on a wealthy man who must continue to pay ransoms to kidnappers, slowly bringing him and his empire to ruin.
- Director
- Spike Lee
- Studio(s)
- Apple Original Films , A24
- Distributor(s)
- A24 , Apple TV+
- Cast
- Denzel Washington
- Where To Stream
- Apple TV+
