Denzel Washington Gives a Lesson on How to Pronounce His Name — and We’ve Been Doing It Wrong

Celebrities can have careers that last for decades, and there will still be things about them that fans might not know. Two-time Academy Award winner Denzel Washington revealed an interesting bit of information about his name — and as it turns out, fans have been pronouncing it all wrong.

Denzel Washington is well-known for being one of the greatest actors of his generation, largely due to his plethora of serious standout roles. However, every once and a while, he shows his fun side, which is how the conversation surrounding his name came up.

Denzel Washington is so famous that his name has been the inspiration for many children’s names born after he burst onto the Hollywood scene. Although, as it turns out, his name is pronounced differently than we all thought.

While appearing on Jimmy Kimmel Live! to promote his latest film, Highest 2 Lowest, Denzel explained that the mispronunciation of his name began with his mother during childhood. “My name is pronounced Denzel (DEN-zil),” he began, before explaining that since he was named after his father, his mother switched up the pronunciation to avoid confusion.

“So she said, ‘From now on, you’re Denzel (den-ZEL),’” he recalled. “That’s how it got pronounced ‘Denzel. She said [to me], ‘You’re Denzel (den-ZEL).’ [And to my father,] ‘You’re Denzel (DEN-zil).’”

He also noted that his famous name has resulted in many with his namesake. “I know. There’s a lot of Denzels now,” he told Jimmy. “And this is how you know they named themselves after me, because my name is not pronounced Denzel.”

Dating back to the start of their working relationship with 1990s musical drama Mo’ Better Blues, Denzel and Spike are back together again after a 19-year hiatus — and the two spoke about their reunion in a recent interview with The New Yorker.

“The script came to me first,” Denzel explained. “I hoped that Spike would be interested in it, so I called him up. He said, ‘Send it to me.’ He read it. He said, ‘Let’s make it,’ and here we are.”

Singing the praises of his frequent collaborator and long-time friend, Spike shared what audiences take away from the film. “I’ve become a better director, working with Mr. Denzel Washington,” he told the outlet. “This film is about morals, and what someone will do and won’t do. The audience will ask themselves, ‘If you’re in this situation, would you pay the ransom?’”

The two sent fans into a tailspin when they both hinted that this would be their last collaboration, given that Denzel has publicly shared his impending retirement. Luckily for fans, now it appears that those retirement plans are on hold.

“I no longer use the word retirement,” Denzel told Vanity Fair. “I’m looking for opportunities to bring God’s purpose to my work. That’s where I’m at.” Spike chimed in that he now hopes their movie-making magic can continue. “I have to stop saying it,” he told the outlet. “I hope it will happen [again].”