Denzel Washington gets into heated confrontation with a photographer for grabbing his hands, watch video

Denzel Washington involved into a heated exchange with photographer

Two-time Oscar-winning actor Denzel Washington recently made his Cannes Film Festival debut for the premiere of his upcoming film, Highest 2 Lowest, on Monday, May 19. The actor walked the red carpet in a stylish all-black avatar, but he is making the headlines for his frustrated confrontation with the photographers.

A video from the Cannes 2025 red carpet is going viral on social media. In the video, Denzel can be seen having a heated exchange with a photographer after he grabbed the actor’s hand in an attempt to get his attention.

The way Denzel Washington handled that situation at #cannes is how everyone in the film community should moving forward deal with ppl who come at us trashing our favorite movies and or actors. Telling us our opinions are wrong if we like a movie or not. Enough is enough! pic.twitter.com/6BSztZlabx
The Patric (@ThePatricIsReal) May 19, 2025

Denzel swiftly pulled his arm away and firmly repeated himself, telling the photographer to "Stop" multiple times. The video of the interaction is now going viral on social media, with Denzel’s fans supporting him and criticising the photographer.

The actor received a surprise Honorary Palme d'Or, the festival's highest honour, soon after his heated exchange. Filmmaker Spike Lee presented the award to the actor.

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However, Denzel was left stunned by the announcement and admitted in his speech, “This is a total surprise for me, so I'm a little emotional, but from the bottom of my heart, I thank you all. It was a great opportunity to collaborate with my brother once again — brother from another mother, Spike.”

Meanwhile, he attended the annual gala for the premiere of his film Highest 2 Lowest, which marked the fifth time he had collaborated with filmmaker Spike Lee. The film also stars Jeffrey Wright, Ilfenesh Hadera and A$AP Rocky.

Meanwhile, Highest 2 Lowest will be released in the selected theatres in the US on August 22. The film will be available to stream on Apple TV+ on September 5.