With BlacKkKlansman, visionary filmmaker Spike Lee is telling the in-your-face, fearless story of real-life American hero Ron Stallworth (John David Washington), the first African American detective to service in the Colorado Springs Police Department in the early 1970s. Set on making a name for himself, Stallworth devises a mission to infiltrate and expose the Ku Klux Klan, sending his more seasoned colleague (Adam Driver) right into the middle of the investigation, to help take down the extremist hate group as they attempt to go mainstream.

During this 1-on-1 phone interview with Collider, actor John David Washington (in a truly masterful, stand-out performance that will have audiences talking and leave them excited to see what’s next from him) talked about getting to meet the real Ron Stallworth and the feeling he had holding his Ku Klux Klan membership card, learning to trust his instincts while making this film, what Spike Lee means to him, as a filmmaker and artist, his path from professional football to the family business of acting (his father is Academy Award winner Denzel Washington), what he’s looking for in a project, and whether he’d like to direct, at some point.

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Image via Focus Features

Collider:  I have to tell you that I loved this movie and I thought you were really tremendous in it. I feel like, with the world that we’re currently living in, with endless things to feel mad, sad and anxious about, this was the movie that I needed to see, right now. So, thank you!

JOHN DAVID WASHINGTON:  Wow, thank you! Thank you so much for those words. I appreciate that.

This seems like one of those stories that you can only tell because it’s based in truth, otherwise people just wouldn’t believe it. What were the craziest aspects of this story to you? What were the times that you were like, “I cannot believe this actually happened!”?

WASHINGTON:  The real-life moment was when I first got to meet Ron [Stallworth] in person and he passed around his Ku Klux Klan membership card. You read the stories and you read the book, and you do your research, then getting to not just meet him, but holding that card made all of this ridiculous stuff that I learned about and heard about that much truer. It just brought it home to me. This man really accomplished this mission and he was successful. There’s a whole bunch of ridiculous moments, but the security detail that they would do was just crazy. I don’t want to give away any of the movie away, but because it’s grounded, it’s from truth and it really happened, we were able to be as true as we wanted to be. This is a piece of American history.

You’ve talked about the confidence being a part of this film gave you, as an artist. What were you most scared of, going into this, and how different do you feel, as an actor, after having had this experience?

WASHINGTON:  I felt a little anxious/nervous representing a real person in a Spike Lee film. The history that comes along with this, it was exciting, too, at the same token. Spike Lee wanted me for a reason, and because of how collaborative the process was and how much teamwork was involved, and how there were no egos, he really respected my choices and my opinions. He literally told me one day, “Just trust your instincts. Ron Stallworth is not the bible. There’s a lot that I want you to give to it, as much as you are receiving from it. Trust that, and go with it.” So, when you have a legendary director like that telling you, “I chose you because of your abilities,” I’ll never be the same. I’m good to go now.

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What has Spike Lee meant to you? Seeing his work, as a filmmaker and artist, and then working with him, what has he meant to you, throughout your life?

WASHINGTON:  He’s given men and women of color a platform. We’re not just in this industry. Both in front and behind the cameras. So many people – DPs, writers, and the assistants that go on to be directors and writers – come from the School of Spike Lee. He’s almost set up an Institution of Spike Lee. We’re all like his children. He’s just so encouraging about that and he’s so supportive. So, I just feel like I’m a part of this huge family, and a part of history. I’m connected to a Wesley Snipes and I’m connected to Giancarlo Esposito because of the history of films that we’ve all been a part of with Spike Lee.

A big portion of your performance in this is through conversations on the phone. What’s it like to have a phone receiver as a scene partner, and what are the challenges of making all of that work?

WASHINGTON:  The challenges were presented as they were in the story that we were telling. It was really an art imitating life moment, where I got to use these words. They’re hateful words because that’s the language they recognize and speak. Topher Grace was so incredible. Ryan [Eggold] was so incredible. As artists and actors, that it made it easier to do that. I could just trust who I was talking to. We were in the same uncomfortable bubble together, for the good of storytelling, for the betterment of the craft, and for truth-telling, so I felt comfortable because of who I was opposite of.

After deciding to go a different route, in your life, and play football, which led to five concussions and broken ribs, what ultimately led you to decide to enter the family business, after all, and then get really serious about it?

WASHINGTON:  I wanted to do it my whole life. Football helped me with confidence that I needed. It gave me a sense of independence and earning my own money and my own keep. That’s what it served. It gave me the strength to be able to deal with rejection, politics, hard work, and being introduced to pain and embracing what’s uncomfortable. Whenever you’re feeling moments of discomfort, that means true change is happening for you. Understanding that change is a process, not an event, so it takes time. But, I wouldn’t change a thing on how I got to acting. I got to it at the right time, especially because I love it and care about the craft so much. I needed a lot of these life experiences to help inform me with how to relate to people that went through real things and real-life experiences, like Ron Stallworth. I know what adversity feels like. It’s different, but we can relate, on a lot of levels. If it weren’t for those experiences that I had from football, before acting, I don’t know if I’d be able to relate, in the same way.

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Image via Focus Features

At this point in your career, what’s guiding you? What are you looking for, in the projects that you pursue and want to do?

WASHINGTON:  People that are as happy as Spike Lee, Reinaldo Marcus Green (on Monsters and Men) and David Lowery (on The Old Man & the Gun) to tell stories as they are, and as I am. I want to work with people that are trying to service the films that they do and make them the best projects that they can. That’s what drives me. It’s great ‘cause there are people out there like that, who are great at what they do, and not just great, but they’re not jerks about it. They know how to treat people with respect, care and love. They’re polite and very professional. They know what they’re doing, but if they don’t, they don’t act like they do. They take all suggestions, and the best idea in the room wins.

I’ve seen the trailer for Monsters and Men, and it seems like that’s another very powerful, very relevant story. Why was that an important story for you to tell?

WASHINGTON:  Well, like Ron Stallworth, being a detective or police officer, in this country, is a thankless job. The ones that are doing it the right way, sometimes get overshadowed by a lot of the misconduct that’s going on, so it’s an opportunity to share the perspective of the minority police officers out there, both men and women, and show them to people. Like myself, people don’t know what they have to go through and what they have to see, every day, protecting a stranger or saving a family’s life, and the pressures of that. That was important to me ‘cause I didn’t know. Seeing what they go through, I can relate to them. They’re people, too. I think Tupac said it once, “We wanna call them, too,” and it’s true. We need them. So, I wanted to celebrate and endorse the ones that are doing their job the right way, and that got into the protecting and serving business the right way. They’re just helping people, and the truly humanitarian work that they can do is important. Being able to display that, in this film, was a no-brainer, for me.

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Do you already know what you’re going to do next, as an actor, or are you trying to find that next thing, right now?

WASHINGTON:  I’m trying to find the next thing right now.

You’ve set yourself a high bar.

WASHINGTON:  If I agree with you, I agree because of the people I got to work with, and just being able to share the same enthusiasm and respect for the craft. That’s a high bar ‘cause not everybody feels the same way. These directors I got to work with do.

I’ve heard Spike Lee talk about how this is a film about the choice between love and hate. If that’s the case, does it sadden you to know that we haven’t come all that far, especially when you see the footage from Charlottesville, at the end of this film, or does it make you more hopeful that maybe people can get their head on straight and get their act together, a little bit?

WASHINGTON:  Both. It saddens me. I was a bit embarrassed for my country, watching this film in France [at Cannes]. At the same time, there are some encouraging things about how we’ve evolved, as people, whether it’s expressing our resistance through hash tags, or taking a knee. I feel like that’s evolution. There’s a lot of harsh language being used in this film, but it’s the language of hate and it’s necessary. It was on purpose. It wasn’t for shock value or entertainment value, but it was accurate to the story. That is hate, and that is the kind of language that hate uses. Let’s start changing that. Let’s start using other words that could help bridge the gap, a little bit.

When you work with a filmmaker like Spike Lee, does it give you any desire to want to delve deeper and try your own hand at directing, at some point?

WASHINGTON:  It definitely makes me want to learn more. Being on that set was like being in a master class, but I would like to get a few more experiences like that to maybe get to a place where I could do that, on that side of the camera. I need a lot more experience, for my acting, too. Being with a master, it just opened me up, even more so, as an artist.

BlacKkKlansman is now playing in theaters.

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