John David Washington Quotes

It was a mixed blessing to have famous parents. It was tough to go to auditions and be bad, since I couldn't be anonymous.

When I went to drama school, I thought that everybody would think I was only there because my dad was on TV.

I knew that I needed to do something that I desperately loved. There was a period where I did question if it was acting because I knew that I would be making things hard on myself. I knew that there was going to be a little bit of a hullabaloo because of my dad being who he is and all that.

Prior to my father's death, I was having a hard time committing to a career as an artist, but that's not because of who he was - it was because of who I am. It's true, though, that I felt I shouldn't compete with him, and that those feelings went away after he died.

I adored my birth father and constantly worried that I was being disloyal to him and his schoolteacher roots if I spent too much time performing and enjoying it.

I think when your parents are as rebellious as mine were, it's difficult to top them. So what's the point?

I was born into big celebrity. It could only diminish.

I thought people would think I only wanted to be an actor because my dad was, rather than because I had an innate calling.

For me it was a normality having a father who was a world champion. I grew up with that, so it was never extra pressure. And I've never felt the need to emerge from his shadow.

For a long time I was scared I'd find out I was like my mother.

My father represented India at the Olympics, and I also want to do that.

I wanted my children to be able to see me play at the World Cup.

I guess I want very much to be recognized for my abilities, for the work I put in, and yet it's still always there - who my parents were. As much as I love my parents, if that was the last thing ever said about me - that I was their daughter - I would be disappointed that my contributions weren't strong enough on their own.

People are always asking me what it's like to be Judy Garland's daughter. It's hard to be a legend's child.

My father was an all-American football player.

In 'The Big Chill,' those characters are in middle age, thinking, 'Oh, God, I've turned into my parents. I've failed.' And in 'Beside Still Waters,' we're showing the struggles of people who actually want to be like their parents and feel they can't live up to their heights.

I'm sure my father had more to do with my career than I would like to give him credit for. I would love to think it was all me!

I think some of the pressure comes from the expectations of other people. Like if your father played baseball, they expect you to be the big lifesaver or something when you play a sport.

I kind of always took it for granted the fact that my parents were Olympic medalists.

My brother David was a great athlete and I knew there was no way I could live up to that.

I'll never totally get away from being who I am, which first, to many, is the daughter of Nat King Cole, which became even more intensified with the 'Unforgettable' album.

Both my parents were huge stars. I would never have attempted to become as big of stars as they were because they lived in a different era.

My dad, he would go through these periods of self-doubt. We'd do something that was controversial or that wasn't welcomed by everybody, and he'd go, 'Well, Shirley, our parents cursed us with ethics, and we passed it on to our children.'

In pessimistic moments, when I was trudging London in search of an employer wanting to make use of such talents as I could offer, it seemed to me, almost, that my father had got to where he was by climbing upon my infant shoulders, that he had filched from me my good name and had left me with nothing but the empty fame of being his son.

When I first started pursuing acting professionally out of college, it was very much in my head that there would be comparisons with potentially both of my parents, and I found that pretty intimidating.