The real reason Denzel Washington didn’t star in David Fincher’s Se7en

When Denzel Washington agreed to star in 2001’s “Training Day,” his casting caused quite a bit of controversy. The problem, apparently, was that the esteemed actor had never played a villain at the time, and the NAACP was adamant that he not waste the good will he had built up over the past decade or so by doing so. For Denzel, however, the display of his diverse talent overrode any obligation to maintain his clean public image, and the star not only proved he was more than capable of playing an antagonist, but won his second Oscar for the effort. All of which makes one wonder about a parallel universe version of Denzel’s career — one where he agreed to star in David Fincher’s “Se7en” back in 1995.

Would the NAACP have objected to Washington starring in what Brad Pitt told the LA Times was “95’s feel-bad movie”? Fincher’s…