holywood model: John David Washington Plays All the Right Notes in 'The Piano Lesson'

After a star-making run as a blockbuster action hero for directors like Christopher Nolan (<I>Tenet</I>) and Gareth Edwards (<I>The Creator</I>), John David Washington has spent much of the past two years paying his respects to a giant of 20th-century stage: August Wilson, the Pulitzer Prize-winning chronicler of Black-American life. In 2023, he made his Broadway debut in a revival of Wilson's family ghost story <I>The Piano Lesson</I>, set in 1930s Pittsburgh, and then he dove right into the same lead role—the willful, enterprising Boy Willie Charles—in a new movie adaptation directed by his little brother, Malcolm. (The film hits theaters today and streams on Netflix beginning November 22.) ELLE caught Washington during a sorely-needed pause from decorating his new apartment in Tribeca—admittedly not his forte.

The Piano Lesson, turning 40, and the women in his life." title="After a star-making run as a blockbuster action hero for directors like Christopher Nolan (Tenet) and Gareth Edwards (The Creator), John David Washington has spent much of the past two years paying his respects to a giant of 20th-century stage: August Wilson, the Pulitzer Prize-winning chronicler of Black-American life. In 2023, he made his Broadway debut in a revival of Wilson's family ghost story The Piano Lesson, set in 1930s Pittsburgh, and then he dove right into the same lead role—the willful, enterprising Boy Willie Charles—in a new movie adaptation directed by his little brother, Malcolm. (The film hits theaters today and streams on Netflix beginning November 22.) ELLE caught Washington during a sorely-needed pause from decorating his new apartment in Tribeca—admittedly not his forte. "I'm definitely getting coached up," he says, "and that's a good thing." Here, our latest ELLE Man talks about The Piano Lesson, turning 40, and the women in his life." height="auto">

John David Washington Plays All the Right Notes in 'The Piano Lesson'

After a star-making run as a blockbuster action hero for directors like Christopher Nolan (Tenet) and Gareth Edwards (The Creator), John David Washington has spent much of the past two years paying his respects to a giant of 20th-century stage: August Wilson, the Pulitzer Prize-winning chronicler of Black-American life. In 2023, he made his Broadway debut in a revival of Wilson's family ghost story The Piano Lesson, set in 1930s Pittsburgh, and then he dove right into the same lead role—the willful, enterprising Boy Willie Charles—in a new movie adaptation directed by his little brother, Malcolm. (The film hits theaters today and streams on Netflix beginning November 22.) ELLE caught Washington during a sorely-needed pause from decorating his new apartment in Tribeca—admittedly not his forte. "I'm definitely getting coached up," he says, "and that's a good thing." Here, our latest ELLE Man talks about The Piano Lesson, turning 40, and the women in his life.