Mens Journal

T

HE ROLE OF RICKY JERRETwas the

most diff icult part that veteran cast-

ing director Sheila Jaffe ever had to

f ill. Over the course of a year she auditioned

a thousand actors for the co-starring role on

the hit HBO seriesBallers. Most of the actors

captured the mercurial running back’s out-

size ego but in a way that was too macho

and too angry.

She needed someone who could come off

as a hothead and still be likable. She needed

someone who could be sympathetic while

bedding a teammate’s mother someone who

could remain charming while beating up a

fellow club patron who disrespected his alma

mater. Basically Jerret needed to be a more

eloquent Ricky Williams with all Dez Bry-

ant’s f lair — and temper.

Unable to f ind the right actor she tried

for the real thing and began scouting former

players. Then she remembered hearing that

Denzel Washington had a kid who played

professionally. So she threw a Hail Mary

and called Denzel’s agent to inquire about

John Dav id who hadn’t appeared onscreen

since he was nine years old when he stood

“I FELT LIKE RUDY IN

A WAY. I WAS THAT

TRY-HARD GUY

WHO WOULD DO

ANYTHING TO PLAY.”

up in a classroom and exclaimed “I am

Malcolm X!” at the end of his father’s film.

“IwashopingJohnDavidinheritedthe

acting gene” says Jaffe. “Clearly he did.”

John David Washington the oldest of

Denzel’s four kids not only scored the role

but he became one of the best things about

Ballers which kicked off its sophomore

season in July. “This character he made me

giggle at f irst because I know guys with his

spirit” John David says. “But what really

attracted me to Jerret was the cultural mis-

understanding of a guy like this. A lot of

NFL guys are misunderstood. I felt like I

hadanopportunityto take amagnifying

glasstowhyheactslikethisbecauseof

what he’s dealt with and the kind of pres-

sures he’s under.”

The role put the 32-year-old under his own

kind of pressure. He’d spent most of his life

running away from Hollywood because of the

very large shadow cast by his two-time Acad-

emy Award–winning father. Football became

a way for him to build his own identity.

“I’ve had the acting bug since I was like

f ive” Washington says. “But growing up I

saw how people treated me differently when

they knew who my father was even the stuff

I did on the f ield. Sometimes I’d rush for 100

yards and the headline would beDENZEL’SSON

RUNS FOR 100 YARDS. That’s where the sup-

pression of that bug came from.”

As a 5-foot-9 200-pound running back

at Morehouse College in Atlanta Wash-

ington set a school record for career rushing

yards. In 2006 the Rams signed him as an

undrafted free agent. For two years he drilled

all week with the team but come Sunday

had to watch from the stands. Such is the life

of an NFL practice-squad player.

“I felt like Rudy in a way” Washington

says referring to the famous underdog player

at Notre Dame. “I wasn’t the team mascot

but I was like that try-hard guy who was will-

ing to do anything to play because he genu-

inely and purely loved the game.”

The highlights of his NFL career came

in the preseason an eight-yard scramble

on his f irst carry and a catch on the game-

winning drive of an exhibition game. Dur-

ing his second season the backup running

back got hurt and coaches told Washington

to be ready to suit up. But the night before

the game the Rams signed a player from

Outrunning

Denzel’s Shadow

With his father’s outsize stature looming overhead

John David Washington stiff-armed Hollywood for the NFL.

Now he’s merged the two — and become the best thing

on HBO’sBallers.byMATTHEW KREDELL

NOTEBOOK

TV

MEN’S JOURNAL 44 SEPTEMBER 2016

DOMINIC MILLER