Kerry Washington appeared on the most recent episode of Trevor Noah‘s What Now? podcast and touched on one of the biggest revelations in her new memoir titled Thicker Than Water. The Scandal star writes about learning at the age of 41 that her father, Earl Washington, is not her biological father.
While speaking with the former Daily Show host, Washington shared that James Corden was “very concerned” for her when she started looking for her biological father. “James was like, 'I need to talk to you. I love you. I'm very concerned about you seeking your donor because you have this beautiful life and, you know, I know your parents. I know your kids. I understand how beautiful your life is, and I don't want you to give this person so much power that if they aren't who you want them to be, that you suddenly think your life is a failure or that you are unlovable or unworthy in some way,'” she recalled.
Washington added, “And he told me this beautiful story about some friends of his who used a donor. They went to a sperm bank and the rules at this sperm bank are that, the identity of the donor is not disclosed, but they can write a note to the future child. So this donor wrote a note to this child saying — and it gives me chills every time I think about it — saying, 'Dear kid, I want you to know that I am not your father. That who I am is just help. There are two people who are your parents. They loved you so much. They wanted to meet you so badly, and all they needed was a little bit of help. So they asked me to give them that help. But they are your parents.'”