Denzel Washington suffered a tremendous loss this year when his mother, Lennis Washington, passed away at the age of 97. During an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, while promoting his latest film, The Tragedy of Macbeth, he became emotional talking about her.

Colbert offered his condolences to Washington, saying it was a “great blessing to have your mother so long.” Washington responded that it was a life well-lived, both for herself and her family.

“She didn’t get cheated. Nor did my brother or sister,” Washington said.

When Colbert recalled a quote Washington made that “a mother is a son’s first love,” that’s when the two-time Academy Award winner’s emotions got the best of him.

“A mother is a son’s first true love,” Washington said. “A son, especially their first son, is a mother’s, last true love. That’s…now I’m getting choked up.” 

Things got more lighthearted when Washington, 66, elaborated on his point by saying that he saw the truth of the sentiment in the relationship between his wife, Pauletta Washington, and their son, actor John David Washington.

“I don’t care what he does, she’s going, ‘Alright baby,’ ” Washington continued.

The Equalizer actor credited his mom for being by his side for important moments in his life, but that she had earned her time to rest.

“She was there for everything and she went home,” he said.

Colbert then showed a photograph of Washington with his wife and mother at the 1990 Academy Awards, where he won his first Oscar — Best Supporting Actor in Glory — that year.

As Washington took a tissue from Colbert to wipe away his tears, he marveled at the fact that this was the first time he’s become emotional about his mother’s death.

“This is terrible! Didn’t cry at her funeral,” Washington said. “I guess I saved it up for you.”

Denzel Washington attends a press conference for “The Tragedy Of Macbeth” on Sept. 24, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Jim Spellman/Getty Images)

Washington didn’t cry at his father’s funeral in 1991 either, but it was because the two had a strained relationship. “I never shed a tear for my father,” Washington told The Week. “That sounds like a book or a song. I never did all through the funeral and all that. There was no connection.”

Washington, however has always credited his mother with putting him on the right path.

“She taught us right from wrong,” he told Women Working. “My mother said to me when I was 59, ‘Denzel, you do a lot of good. You have to do good the right way and you know what I’m talking about.’ I don’t drink anymore, I don’t do any of those things.”

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