"A Really Extraordinary Experience": Kerry Washington Reflects On Filming Tarantino's Oscar-Nominated 2012 Western

Summary Kerry Washington found portraying a woman who was a victim of slavery in Django Unchained emotionally taxing, given the historical context.

Washington's dual role filming Django Unchained and Scandal provided a stark contrast in characters and emotions.

Washington's performance as Hildi in Django Unchained added significant depth to the movie by showcasing a horrifying part of American history.

Kerry Washington has reflected on filming Quentin Tarantino's 2012 Oscar-nominated Western Django Unchained, describing the emotional weight behind participating in the movie. Set prior to the Civil War, the Tarantino movie follows title character Django (Jamie Foxx), a slave who becomes a bounty hunter, bringing criminals to justice in a gunslinger-type fashion. Washington portrays his wife, Hildi, who is owned by a plantation run by Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio). The movie was nominated for five Oscars, with Christoph Waltz winning Best Supporting Actor and Tarantino winning Best Original Screenplay.

Speaking with ELLE about her time filming Django Unchained, Washington reflected on the emotional experience of bringing the history of slavery to the big screen, especially the violent elements. The actor went on to describe how she was doing reshoots while also filming the first seasons of her TV series Scandal, recalling the feelings she had switching between two very different roles. Check out what Washington had to say below:

This was my reunion with Jamie [Foxx] and I was also such a huge Quentin Tarantino fan, so to get to work with both of them was extraordinary. This was one of the harder and more emotionally taxing roles of my career. To have to step back into those times and into the horrific circumstances that our ancestors survived through was hard. We were doing it on real plantations in New Orleans so you felt the spirit of our elders all around us. I was really grateful to Leo [DiCaprio], Christoph [Waltz], Sam [Jackson], and Jamie. There was a real solidarity in the cast where we took care of each other since the circumstances of the story were so awful and violent. And I think Sam’s performance in this film is one of my most favorite things he’s ever done. It was just so profound. Overall, it was a really extraordinary experience. And this crazy thing happened where our schedule kept getting extended, so I shot Django in between seasons one and two of Scandal. So I had this crazy couple of weeks where during the week I was playing Olivia Pope and on the weekends I was having to do reshoots for Django. It felt like historical, psychological, and emotional whiplash to go back and forth between being the most powerful Black woman in the United States who’s the embodiment of agency, authority, and power to a woman who was without agency and was considered 3/5 of a human being according to our constitution.

Washington first worked with Jamie Foxx on the 2004 movie Ray.

Why Washington's Django Unchained Performance Is So Important

While the poor treatment of slaves during the mid-19th century in America is showcased throughout the movie, Washington's performance as Hildi is especially memorable due to her suffering under Calvin. The violent rescue mission Django must go on is motivated by her, making her an important element for his character while also having moments of her own that elevate the movie. Her performance also helped emphasize those of the whole Django Unchained cast, assisted by her rescue being such a major factor of the movie's story progression.

However, for Washington, it's clear the role held more meaning behind the camera, as it dealt with a horrifying part of American history that her ancestors had to endure. Her role in the film was a sharp contrast to her character in Scandal, that of Olivia Pope, whose political crisis management film makes her one of the most powerful people in the United States. To film both of these roles at the same time was clearly a struggle for the actor, but one that ended up being worthwhile given how memorable both of her performances wound up being.

By portraying a woman who was a victim of slavery during the Civil War era, Washington was able to help Django Unchained portray a dark part of American history through an important lens. While the emotional turmoil of such a role is clear in her words, she ultimately provided the movie with a vital layer of history that wouldn't have been the same without her contribution. Without her part to play in the Tarantino movie, it wouldn't have been nearly as memorable as it is today.

Source: ELLE