Don’t mess with the Equalizer.

Denzel Washington was caught getting into a tense exchange with a photographer at France’s Cannes Film Festival on Monday, May 19.

The Oscar winner, 70, looked fired up when he approached the line of shutterbugs at the world premiere of Spike Lee’s “Highest 2 Lowest,” in which Washington stars.

He was talking to Lee, 68, and being approached by A$AP Rocky, 36, who also stars in the film, when one photographer decided to grab him in an attempt to get the A-lister’s attention.

The move appeared to set Washington off because the “Gladiator II” actor decided to confront him.

Firmly pointing his finger in the photographer’s face, the actor repeatedly screamed “stop” as he approached the man.

Ignoring Washington’s concerns by laughing in the award winner’s face, the star continued shouting at the man.

When the superstar turned around to walk away, the photographer grabbed his arm, provoking Washington to snap.

Pulling his arms from the cameraman’s grasp, Washington showed the man he meant business.

“Stop it!” the actor shouted, with the veins popping from his neck. “Stop!”

The Post reached out to Washington’s rep for comment.

Washington didn’t let the heated altercation keep him down, though.

He was surprised at the Cannes Film Festival with an honorary Palme d’Or honor from inside the theater before the film’s premiere.

After showing a reel of his legendary career, festival chief Thierry Frémaux addressed the crowd to give Washington the prestigious honor.

“It’s a very special day,” he said, per Deadline. “Denzel, because you are here, we want to make something special for you … it’s a kind of way for us to tell you our adoration, what you have done in cinema. Nobody knows about that except Spike Lee, who wrote me to do that.”

Lee walked up to the stage with Washington to present the coveted award to his dear friend.

“This is my brother right here. I love him, I love him. I’m glad you’re here where all the people love you too,” Lee told him.

“This is a total surprise for me so I’m a little emotional, but from the bottom of my heart, I thank you all,” Washington said to the crowd. “It was a great opportunity to collaborate with my brother once again — brother from another mother, Spike.”

“To be here once again in Cannes, you know, we’re a very privileged group in this room that we get to make movies and wear tuxedos and nice clothes and dress up and get paid for it as well,” he added, prompting laughter from his peers. “You know, we’re just blessed beyond measure, I’m blessed beyond measure, and from the bottom of my heart, I thank you all. Thank you.”

“Highest 2 Lowest” is a thriller and the English reinterpretation of Akira Kurosawa’s 1963 Japanese movie “High and Low.” The latter was loosely based on the 1959 novel “King’s Ransom” by Ed McBain (real name Evan Hunter).

The movie follows David King (Washington), a successful executive who becomes an extortion victim when a kidnapper mixes up his son (Aubrey Joseph) with his driver’s kid and holds him for ransom.

Jeffrey Wright plays the chauffeur.

“Highest 2 Lowest” is scheduled to hit theaters on Aug. 22 and will be available on Apple TV+ in September.

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – Three weeks ago, Kandace Washington buried her eldest son LSU standout receiver Kyren Lacy who died by suicide. Sadly, this isn’t the first time Washington has experienced this type of tragedy.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. We sat down with Washington, who is a school counselor, to discuss how she’s using her story of strength and resilience to inspire others who may be struggling. She also explains how her voice has guided her through the darkest of times…including now.

Singing has been a saving grace for Washington. It’s how she coped with the loss of her father as a child and now her son Kyren, both dying by suicide.

“You never think that you’re going to bury your child, so in my mind I don’t think anything can get any worse and then this happened and I’m like…I don’t understand,” Washington said.

She adds, “Growing up when I was four or five unfortunately my father committed suicide and then when I was 13 my mom passed away from ALS.”

The void left her sister to run a household of four.

“My oldest sister was in college when my mom passed away. She actually had a scholarship to sing in the choir at Southern University and she left Southern to come and raise us after all that happened. So that was pretty tough growing up without parents,” Washington explained.

Washington became a parent herself at 17…giving birth to Kyren while still in high school. Now she’s a high school counselor in Texas.

“This new normal is just a part of my calling,” Washington said.

She plans to use her story to help her students find their way.

“We see it. A lot of students struggling with mental health. Different things that they’re going through at home. How to balance. How to juggle everything,” said Washington.

She is a counselor now offering unique insight on the subject of suicide.

“Just give them some hope, some light at the end of the tunnel. And I can share it, you know, from both perspectives you know. Because at one point it took me almost 40 years to even understand what my dad was going through because I was looking at it as, you know, you left. You didn’t think about me. You didn’t care about me. It took me over 40 years to just really have empathy and to understand that you know the weight of the world sometimes is a lot. And so now that I’m experiencing it with Karen again… I just have so much empathy. And then I’ve seen some of the things that he’s had to go thought and endure and I have a lot of empathy for my dad and Kyren.”

And she has advice for other parents.

“I would just encourage parents to talk to their kids, and to listen. To listen and to understand,” Washington said.

She also recommends talking to your children about the dangers of social media and bullying online.

“If you’re on social media and you’re commenting negative things and when you close your phone and you close your laptop and you feel good about yourself… something is wrong,” Washington said.

Washington believes her son Kyren became a target after he was arrested in January after of being accused of driving recklessly and causing a deadly accident. She says the crash and all that followed pushed things over the edge.

“People go through things. They make mistakes. They make wrong decisions. Everybody has. They only difference with my son is everybody knew who he was,” Washington says.

Washington explained she still can’t fully comprehend what her son was feeling before his death but hopes time will bring clarity and healing.

“I believe that with time, everything will reveal itself, but right now it’s a lot of unanswered questions,” she said.

What Washington knows for certain is that her family, her faith, and her music will see her through as she returns to her job as a counselor in the fall. She hopes to preserve her son’s legacy by continuing his work to uplift the community.

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The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup is headed to the Nation’s Capital in June with a handful of matches.

Set to be held at Audi Field in Washington, D.C., the opening match for the venue is June 18 when Al Ain FC takes on Juventus FC.

The other teams set to play in Washington D.C. includes FC Salzburg, Al Hilal and Wydad AC. The site will host three group stage matches in total.

Soccer fans looking to witness a part of the action have plenty of options available as tickets are now available.

Here’s how to buy 2025 FIFA Club World Cup tickets in Washington D.C.

Shop 2025 FIFA Club World Cup Washington D.C. tickets

Washington 2025 FIFA Club World Cup tickets

• GROUP STAGE: June 18 – Al Ain FC vs. Juventus FC – Shop tickets
• GROUP STAGE: June 22 – FC Salzburg vs. Al Hilal – Shop tickets
• GROUP STAGE: June 26 – Wydad AC vs. Al Ain FC – Shop tickets

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