ComingSoon spoke to Kerry Washington about her latest film, The Six Triple Eight. The talented actress discussed her role in the film, working with Tyler Perry, and more. The World War II drama begins streaming on Netflix on December 20.
“The Six Triple Eight is inspired by the first and only Women’s Army Corps unit of color to serve overseas in WWII. Despite facing racism and sexism – and grueling working conditions – they were committed to serving their country with honor and distinction. Given an extraordinary mission and united in their determination, these unsung heroes delivered hope and shattered barriers. Written and directed by Tyler Perry, the film stars Kerry Washington as Major Charity Adams, the commanding officer of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion,” says the synopsis.
Tyler Treese: You’re playing a real-life hero in Charity Adams, and playing a real figure obviously adds a lot of weight to your performance. What was the research process like, and really finding the heart of this character, compared to a standard fictional film?
Kerry Washington: Oh, it’s such a good question. I’ve been so lucky in my career that I’ve been able to play a lot of real people, whether it was Ray Charles’s wife or Idi Amin’s wife. That character was kind of a conglomerate of different wives, or Anita Hill or even Olivia Pope was inspired by Judy Smith. So, I have had many journeys of kind of figuring out how to dive into the research. Charity Adams made it really easy because she wrote a memoir, and I read it a couple of times, and then I kind of reread it and had parts highlighted and photocopied and hanging in my dressing room and in my apartment.
I listened to interviews with her, I watched documentary footage, I talked to people who knew her and worked with her. I really just tried to get as much as I could to ground my approach to the character because I wanted to make sure that, I mean, listen, I’ve been really lucky in my career to play some very iconic characters in television and in film, but I wanted to make sure that when people were watching Charity Adams, they weren’t thinking about anybody other than Charity Adams, because she’s a real hero, like a true global hero. So I wanted to make sure that the work I did created enough space to hold her legacy separate from anybody else I had ever played.
You get to do this really intense delivery as the Army officer. How is it giving those very firm speeches? Because you can tell that she’s strict because she wants her whole squad to be the best they can be, but you also have a warmth to your character at times, which kinda balances out. How is it doing that?
Yeah. I feel like I learned a lot about leadership from Charity Adams because she has this beautiful balance of being both fierce but loving. She’s strong but kind. She really does a great job balancing being a commander, but also bringing some of those maternal qualities because so loves them and cares for them. And I think that kind of gentle, compassionate leadership is such a powerful example and one that I’m trying to carry in my heart going forward.
I love that. There’s a lot you can take from this movie and I love seeing you work with Ebony Obsidian. She really shows a lot here.
How amazing is she?
Yeah. How is she as a scene partner? Because it looks like she has such a bright future.
Yeah, I’m really excited about Ebony. One of the things I’m most excited about as a producer is getting to introduce all of these young women to the world. They’re all so special, so gifted, so talented, but Ebony really is our way into this story. She’s the heart of the film in so many ways. She is how we enter this journey, and she takes us with her. I just think she does it with such beauty and courage.
I think this film is really gonna surprise a lot of people, especially seeing this different side from Tyler Perry that we haven’t really seen a ton of, but he tackles the serious subject matter with, you know, such grace. So what stood out about seeing his approach to this?
Yeah, I had seen A Jazzman’s Blues on Netflix, which is another film Tyler directed a couple years ago, and it was stunning. It was unlike anything I’d ever seen him do. I got really excited about the prospect of him directing this film. When he told me he was doing it, I was like, “Oh, he’s really in his filmmaker era, and I’m so happy that I get to be a part of it.” He talks about how with Jazzman he fell in love with filmmaking. That even though he had made a gajillion movies before that he fell in love with filmmaking on Jazzman. I feel like he really, really kind of even found more of his voice on The Six Triple Eight.
Thanks to Kerry Washington for taking the time to talk about Netflix‘s The Six Triple Eight.
