Flight (2012)
- During the filming of Flight, Denzel Washington improvised one of the most famous lines in the movie.
- Many of the practical effects used in the climax were achieved without any CGI.
- Before Denzel Washington was cast, several major A-list stars turned down the lead role because they felt the script was too risky.
Flight is a 2012 American drama directed by Robert Zemeckis. Denzel Washington stars as Captain William "Whip" Whitaker, an airline pilot who miraculously saves 96 of 102 passengers when his plane suffers a catastrophic mechanical failure by performing an unprecedented inverted dive maneuver. Hailed as a hero, Whip's life begins to unravel when the investigation reveals he was intoxicated during the flight β legally drunk with cocaine in his system β forcing him to confront his alcoholism while his legal team, led by Don Cheadle, attempts to shield him from criminal charges.
Denzel Washington's performance was a masterwork of denial, charm, and self-destruction β Whip is simultaneously a genuinely skilled pilot whose instincts saved lives and a deeply sick man whose addiction will destroy everything the crash didn't. The opening crash sequence, filmed with practical effects and stomach-churning realism, was one of the most gripping aviation disaster scenes ever filmed. Flight earned $161 million worldwide on a $31 million budget and earned Washington an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.
