John Boyega is keeping his head down and continuing to do the work despite fans comparing him to veteran actor Denzel Washington. The actor reached worldwide fandom early on in his career when he starred as Finn in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Since then, he has only grown in notoriety with each role he takes on, and his latest continues that trajectory.
Boyega, 30, is the lead in Breaking. The film is about a Marine Corps veteran in a desperate financial bind when he decides to rob a bank. The movie hit theaters on Friday (Aug. 26), and already fans have been unable to unsee the striking resemblance between the actor’s performance and that of Washington in the film John Q. In the latter flick, the Oscar-winning actor portrays a father who goes to extreme lengths to ensure his sick son gets the medical care he needs. As far as fans are concerned, Breaking is literally Boyega’s John Q moment.
The British-born actor, however, has a humble response to the flattering fan remarks. “I’m not involved in that conversation, man,” Boyega told Yahoo Entertainment. He continued, “If that’s what they see then that’s all a blessing. Denzel is one of the best actors in the industry. And I just started out. So for me, I haven’t got the time or the stripes to be able to even involve myself in such a conversation. I will definitely thank God for such an opportunity.” See what fans had to say in the tweets below.
Later this year, Boyega will star opposite actress Viola Davis in The Woman King. The film’s trailer is charged with energy as it shows an all-female militia known as the real-life Dahomey Tribe in their quest to protect their African kingdom.
“It’s not Black Panther. Black Panther is more of a fantasy, more magical,” he said about the film. Instead, Boyega explained that “The Woman King is quite grounded, and it deals with some tough conflicts. The Woman King is adding to the buffet for us to eat that we have out there. That’s what I want people to enjoy: The fact that we’re gonna have all these different films in the industry that’s been brewing that have a huge influence from African culture.” The movie hits theaters on Sept. 9.