You're Not A Sci-Fi Fan If You Haven't Seen Denzel Washington's 2006 Thriller

When one thinks of Denzel Washington, one normally conjures up images of intense dramas, with classics like "Malcolm X," "Philadelphia," and "Training Day" probably springing to mind for most. One probably doesn't, however, think of more fantastical genres like science fiction or horror, as the actor has seldom ventured into those territories. But at least once, Washington starred in a sci-fi film that, while largely overlooked, is among the most compelling time travel stories to ever make it to screen: The 2006 thriller "Déjà Vu."

Few talk about "Déjà Vu" anymore, but at the time, it was a big hit in theaters and a riveting, time-twisted story helmed by Tony Scott, the man behind all-time greats like "Top Gun." Scott and Washington had a long history together, and "Déjà Vu" is the third of five films they teamed for after "Crimson Tide" and "Man on Fire" (their final film together also happens to be one of Quentin Tarantino's favorite films).

Here, though, Washington plays Douglas Carlin, an ATF agent on the hunt for a terrorist bomber. But when he's called in to assist the FBI's own investigation of the bombing, he learns that the top-secret technology they're using to track the bomber's activity may actually be capable of sending him back in time to before the bombing occurred. Blending elements of hard science fiction with thrilling action and suspense, "Déjà Vu" follows in the footsteps of movies like "Timecop" and "Minority Report" with its story of a man who uses timey-wimey technology to stop a deadly villain before they can strike. 

Many actors take their dramatic roles extremely seriously and often research the subject matter deeply while exploring the real-life analogs of their characters to prepare for a film. Denzel Washington himself is known for this approach: He rode with a police sergeant for his role in the 1991 thriller "Ricochet," used real flight simulators to ready himself for his role as a pilot in "Flight," and practiced basketball every day for "He Got Game." But when it came to "Déjà Vu," the actor admits he didn't do much research into the time travel aspects, and in fact, steered clear intentionally.

"I didn't want to know," Washington said in an interview with the BBC when asked about whether he tried to understand the time travel logic of the film. "My character doesn't know, so I didn't want to know. In some respects, I guess I'm the eyes and ears of the audience." But Washington does know why these kinds of stories seem to resonate with audiences, even if the underlying science doesn't make a lot of sense. "Probably now more than ever, there's a desire to control what's going on in our lives because we obviously can't seem to control what's going on in our world."

Rather than try to grasp the time travel elements, Washington instead focused on his role as an ATF agent and spent time with a real one. "It's a great job being able to step into all kinds of professions and into other people's shoes."