Beloved Hollywood staple and charismatic leading manDenzel Washingtonhas been delivering knockout-after-knockout performances for decades, with the Oscar-winning movie star dazzling audiences with his impeccable roles in movies likeMalcolm X, Training Day, American Gangster,andThe Equalizertrilogy. The seasoned star has portrayed a human rights activist, classic Shakespearean character, corrupt cop, and notorious drug lord, and in 2012, Washington tried his hand at playing an alcoholic airline pilot.
In Robert Zemeckis' critically-acclaimed dramaFlight, Washington appears as a pilot who manages to avoid a catastrophic disaster in the sky after his plane malfunctions and is forced to crash-land, though he is forced to face reality when his addiction to alcohol is revealed. Nominated for two Academy Awards,Flightis a riveting, must-see thrill ride that features a brilliant performance by Washington and marks a return to form for Zemeckis after years of focusing on motion-capture films.
A Harrowing Thrill Ride for Moviegoers
With an illustrious and enduring career spanning more than four decades, Hollywood veteran Denzel Washington continued showcasing just why he is consideredone of the greatest actorsof all time when he headlined the gripping 2021 dramaFlight.Washington teamed up with directing great Robert Zemeckis to tell the harrowing story, which focuses onalcoholic airline pilot William “Whip” Whitaker Sr. as he manages to avoid a horrific catastrophe after he successfully crash-lands his plane into an open field as a result of mechanical failure.
After waking up in the hospital following a head injury, Whip discovers that his quick thinking helped protect 96 out of the 102 passengers aboard the plane and he is initially hailed a hero for his courageous actions in the sky.When it is ultimately revealed that Whip was intoxicated during the treacherous flight, he realizes that he must prepare for the biggest fight of his life as he pushes to save not only his career but also himself. Plagued by his inner demons and all-consuming addiction to alcohol, Whip goes on a life-changing journey on his quest to get sober as he is also forced to face those affected by the tragic crash.
Zemeckis & Washington Spectacularly Unite
Washington is joined on-screen by a decorated all-star castincluding Don Cheadle, Kelly Reilly, Bruce Greenwood, and John Goodman, and marked the first silver screen collaboration between the Oscar-winning actor and Zemeckis despite them both being cinema staples for decades.The terrifying fictional crash depicted was loosely based on the 2000 crash of Alaska Airlines Flight 291, which led to the deaths of 88 passengers and crew members as a result of a broken jack-screw that became loose and led to a catastrophic failure. Its heroic pilots were able to fly the plane inverted before it tragically crashed into the Pacific Ocean.
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Zemeckis himself is an experienced pilot who had logged over 1,600 hours in the cockpit by the timeFlightdebuted, and it took the legendary filmmaker more than a decade to get the project off the ground due to its unusual premise and budgetary constraints. Despite being considered a gamble by studios, the drama was ultimately given a budget of $31 million, with both Zemeckis and Washington waiving their customary fees to combat the relatively small budget. The director toldThe Los Angeles Times:
“In today’s Hollywood, you can’t make a movie that is about ideas and complex characters for a lot of money. The development system destroys the possibility of ambiguity. It’s just the way things have evolved. And it’s very disappointing.”
Prior to helming the engrossing picture, Zemeckis had heavily focused his efforts on making motion-capture movies like2004’sThe Polar Expressand 2009’sA Christmas Carol, though John Gatins' screenplay forFlightimmediately captured the attention of both the director and leading man.Zemeckis enjoyed that Whip’s heart-wrenching story wasn’t black-and-white and that he was a complicated character who couldn’t be written simply as a good or bad guy. Washington revealed in the same interview what attracted him to the project:
“I hadn’t done anything like it. And the fact that [Gatins] made it about a pilot was absolutely the most dramatic thing he could do. If Whip had worked at the post office, it sure wouldn’t have been as interesting, would it?”
An Oscar-Nominated Big Screen Hit
Flightsoared its way into theaters on August 14, 2025, dazzling moviegoers with its stunning visuals, riveting premise, and Washigton’s powerhouse performance, with many commending both the director and actor for its realisticdepiction of addictionand alcoholism. The engrossing picture went on to dominate the box office and earned more than $161 million during its theatrical run, with the studio’s lofty gamble to spearhead an R-rated standalone drama paying off spectacularly for both Paramount Pictures and the talented cast and crew.
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Washington received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his beautifully raw and complex portrayal in the thrilling film, and he also took home the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor for his impressive contributions to the drama.Flightlanded on numerous critics' Top Ten lists including those by Roger Ebert, Richard Roeper, and Entertainment Weekly, while audiences awarded the movie a stellar A- CinemaScore.
Flightcurrently holds a 77% Rotten Tomatoes score and 76% on the Popcornmeter, and highlights both Zemeckis' and Washington’s phenomenal skills as creative minds, ascritics raved that it was a return to form for the skilled director and one of the actor’s finest performances to date. In their rave review of the Oscar-nominated spectacle,Slate Magazine calledFlight, “A unique, audacious studio movie, kicking off as a star-driven spectacle before whittling itself down to a raw and riveting character study.”
