Kerry Washington on Her Parents’ Plan to Take Sperm Donor Secret to the Grave: “They Thought They Were Protecting Me”

Kerry Washington says that her parents planned to take the secret of her being conceived by a sperm donor “to the grave,” in a move the actress says was an “act of love.”

The Scandal and UnPrisoned actress revealed that she found out over half a decade ago that her father wasn’t her biological parent in her new memoir, Thicker Than Water. The discovery, which is among the most talked about revelations from the book of the historically very private actress, was the result of her attempting to participate in the PBS series Finding Your Roots.

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While appearing on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert Tuesday night, Washington spoke further about the revelation that she previously said explained a “weird disconnect” she had with her dad. “They were going to take it to their graves and, in a lot of ways, I think they thought they were protecting me. This was an act of love,” Washington said. “They didn’t want me to feel different or othered from them, so they thought, ‘We’ll just never tell her.'”

During previous interviews with The New York Times and People, Washington shared that it was a decision, however, that was like being “born into a lie” and a secret that led to other complications in her life, including eating disorders, anxiety and self-esteem issues.

“I know that their intention was to protect me, to love me, to take care of me, to keep my world simple,” Washington previously told the Times. “I get many years of not telling me, but I’ve been an adult for over two decades.”

During the brief sit down with Colbert, Washington also spoke about her parents as pioneers in the early days of sperm donation — a reality that has complicated the search for Washington’s donor.

“When my parents did this, this is a long time ago — in the ’70s. So there weren’t fancy sperm banks with frozen sperm. This was the Wild West. They have no idea who this guy was. They were innovative,” the Little Fires Everywhere star said. “They were like renegades, my parents. They were doing something that not a lot of people were doing. It was very experimental and very secretive.”

The result of the trio having to talk out the truth of Washington’s family lineage was something that did the opposite of what her parents feared.

“What we realized is that them keeping that secret from me actually had the opposite impact that they wanted it to,” Washington explained. “When they told me the truth, it actually brought us closer together. There wasn’t this weird secret.”

Early in her appearance, Washington was asked about the experience of being the character instead of talking about ones she is playing, something she called “very strange.” But if the actress and producer were ever to bring her own life to the screen, she does have one person in mind to play her.

“There’s an actress named Joy Bryant, who’s also a Bronx girl. And she’s incredibly talented and I feel like she can do it,” Washington said.

“There you go, Joy,” Colbert responded. “Call your agent.”

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