Kathrine Frich
It did not take long for the internet sleuths at Snopes to step in and rate the claim completely false.
Scrolling through social media often feels like walking through a hall of mirrors.
Viral posts and celebrity quotes fly across the screen so fast that it is tough to tell fact from fiction.
Even people in the highest offices sometimes fall for a fake story online.
A viral boast
On Monday, October 12, President Donald Trump jumped on Truth Social to share a glowing tribute supposedly written by Oscar-winning actor Denzel Washington, according to HuffPost.
The message originally came from an X account called “Red Eagle Updates” and painted the Hollywood star as a die-hard fan of the president.
“BOOM: Denzel Washington: ‘I’ve worked with a lot of people in my life, and I’ve never met anyone braver, smarter, or who cares more about America than Donald Trump. He’s a great friend and an even better president. I’m proud to be a steadfast supporter and I’ll never apologize for it,’” the original post read, as cited by HuffPost.
The post wrapped up by asking followers if they agreed with the actor. HuffPost noted that it contacted both the White House and Washington’s team for a response.
Recycled fake news
It did not take long for the internet sleuths at Snopes to step in and rate the claim completely false. The fact-checking outlet reported that it “found no reporting that Washington spoke favorably of Trump” across major networks like Fox News, CNN, ABC News, or CBS News.
“If any actor of Washington’s prominence who had never publicly expressed such support in the past were to say the words attributed to them in the meme, national and international outlets covering entertainment and politics would have widely reported it,” Snopes added, according to HuffPost.
In fact, the exact same word-for-word tribute had already made the rounds online in fake memes attached to actor Matthew McConaughey and Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger, Snopes pointed out. Back in 2018, the site also debunked a separate false rumour claiming Washington said Trump’s election saved America from an “Orwellian police state.”
In reality, the movie star usually stays away from party politics and has called out both Democrats and Republicans over the years. During a November 2024 chat with the UK newspaper The Times, Washington warned everyday voters that they are “being manipulated by both sides.”
