Kerry Washington revealed that her dance moves were taught to her by Jennifer Lopez.
Appearing on Good Hang With Amy Poehler, Washington shared how Lopez became her dance instructor.
“She taught me how to dance!” Washington said. “We had this dance teacher named Larry Maldonado. And Larry was a dream. Larry taught me so much. He was like this very eccentric, gay man dance teacher. He ran the dance program at the Boys & Girls Club, and he got really sick in the ʼ80s, like a lot of people did.”
Eventually, Maldonado was hospitalized, and Lopez was called in as his substitute.
“I remember, right before she left to go off to LA to pursue her dream of being famous,” Washington continued. “She did this duet dance with Larry, who had fallen ill. So, he must have gotten better and was back. And it was very risqué. We weren’t supposed to watch it. The girls were like, ‘No, this is not for you.’ It was like later on in the dance program, but we all hid in the wings cause we couldn’t not watch it.”
Washington expressed her gratitude for Lopez and spoke about how she inspired her to pursue her dreams.
“It was beautiful. She was beautiful,” Washington said of Lopez, 56. “She’s always been a real inspiration for me.”
“She’s never hired me to dance in any of her videos,” Washington joked. “I don’t know what that says.”
WASHINGTON IS STARRING IN ‘IMPERFECT WOMEN’
Although she may not be a dance icon, Washington is an acclaimed actress. Her latest, Imperfect Women, is an eight-part psychological thriller on Apple TV+. It explores the complex, often fractured dynamics of a decades-long friendship. Based on the 2020 novel by Araminta Hall and adapted for television by Annie Weisman (Physical), the series stars an elite trio: Elisabeth Moss as Mary, Washington as Eleanor, and Kate Mara as Nancy.