- Kerry Washington is an Emmy-winning actress, known for roles in ‘Scandal’, ‘Django Unchained’, and more.
- Kerry was born in the Bronx to parents Valerie and Earl Washington.
- She’s been married to Nnamdi Asomugha since 2013, and they have two kids.
- Kerry spoke about her parents in an interview on ‘The View’ on October 16, 2023.
Kerry Washington has been a beloved actress for decades. From early career standouts in movies like She Hate Me to her critically acclaimed performances on Scandal to hit movies like Django Unchained, Kerry, 46, has been a massive star of both the big and small screen.
Kerry opened up about her personal life and career in the detailed memoir Thicker Than Water, which was released on Tuesday, September 26, 2023. In the book, she speaks about her family, including some revelations that surprised her. She opened up more about her parents in an interview on The View on October 16, 2023. With the release of her new book, HollywoodLife has compiled all the details you need to know about her parents, husband, and kids here!
Valerie Washington
Kerry was born to her parents Valerie and Earl Washington in 1977. Her mom was a college professor, teaching education. She was also a former elementary school teacher and taught at Lehman College, per Norwood News. Valerie was a guest on her daughter’s Street You Grew Up On series to discuss her upbringing in the Bronx in January 2022.
While Kerry has done well in the acting business, she has previously revealed that her mom asked her to pursue a more stable career. “She really, really wanted me to go to law school,” she told People in 2020. “Oh my God, it’s what she begged me to do. She used to say to me, ‘Closing arguments are just like monologues.'”
Earl Washington
Kerry’s dad, Earl, was a real estate broker as she was growing up. Like her mom, he also made appearances in some of her funny videos on social media. The actress opened up about one of the most shocking revelations about her dad in her new book. She revealed that she learned that she was conceived with the help of a sperm donor, and Earl is not her biological father. She revealed her parents told her in 2018, when she was planning to appear on the PBS show Finding Your Roots. “It really turned my world upside down,” she told People. “I didn’t know what my story was, but I was playing the supporting character in their story.”
Kerry also revealed that when she was younger her parents also used to get into huge arguments, which caused her to have panic attacks. “I was dizzied with terror, no ground beneath me; it was crazy-making, endless. And sad,” she wrote in Thicker Than Water.
The actress revealed that after learning that she was conceived by a donor, it was a chance to “re-investigate” her life in an interview on The View on October 16, 2023. She said that her parents were going to take the secret “to their grave,” but now she felt like it had a positive impact. “We were able to be in truth together and be closer than we’ve ever been before,” she said. On The View, she also said that she was looking to find her donor now.
Kerry also opened up about how “revelatory” it was to learn the truth. She explained that she thinks her dad must have had some doubts as she was growing up without knowing she was born from a donor. She explained that now she gets to love her parents more.”Up until this moment, every time that I have said ‘I love you’ to my dad, it’s been on the condition of this lie,” she said. “When my parents told me, I got to say to them, ‘Now, you get to feel what it feels like to be loved unconditionally, because you told me the truth, and I’m not going anywhere.'”
Nnamdi Asomugha
Kerry married her husband Nnamdi Asomugha in 2013. Nnamdi is a former football player, turned actor. He’s appeared in movies like The Good Nurse and Crown Heights. The pair exchanged vows in a private ceremony in Idaho back in 2013. It was very small and kept out of the spotlight. She joked about how secretive it was ahead of her 10th anniversary in an interview with Entertainment Tonight. “Do you remember how secret my wedding was? How private and secretive it was. That’s how the anniversary is going to be too,” she quipped.
Despite keeping things private, the pair have occasionally let people in on some details of their home life, and they’ve made red-carpet appearances together. Nnamdi did reveal that he thinks about working together in a 2017 interview with Vanity Fair. “We’d probably produce before acting, I would think,” he said.
Isabelle Amarchi Asomugha
Kerry gave birth to her first child, Isabelle, 9, in April 2014. The Ray star revealed that her daughter would often join her at work, and she was thankful to get to spend much time with her on set. “I’m really blessed because my daughter gets to be at work with me a lot so that’s really fun and wonderful,” she told Entertainment Tonight in 2015. “She brings a lot of joy wherever she is so it’s fun to have her around.”
The actress has been open about how being a mother to a daughter has informed the way that she looks at the world. “I do think being a ‘girl mom,’ makes you think about these issues in a different way,” she told ET in 2022. “They just make me want to do more and better and be there for them.”
Long before welcoming her first daughter, Kerry revealed that she underwent an abortion early in her career in her memoir. She said that at the time, she used a false name to keep a sense of privacy. “We’re at a moment where it’s really important to be telling the truth about our reproductive choices because some of those choices are being stripped away from us.,” she said.
Caleb Kelechi Asomugha
Kerry and Nnamdi welcomed their son, Caleb, 6, in October 2016. While the family mostly stays private, the Scandal alum has spoken about how they all like to keep active. “I love to work out. It’s really important to me; it’s part of the culture of my family. My husband was a professional athlete, so we hike, we swim, we’re very active,” she told Allure in 2017.
Anaiya Asomugha
Besides her two biological children, Kerry is also a stepmom to Nnamdi’s daughter Anaiya, 17, from a previous relationship. Nnamdi had his older daughter in 2005 from a past relationship, but it’s clear that Kerry still thinks of her as her own. During a 2018 appearance on Today, she corrected an anchor, when he referred to her as a “mother of two.” She showed that her relationship with her stepdaughter is very important to her when she said, “I am a mother of three.”