Kerry Washington Exposes Family Secret That Turned Her World 'Upside Down'
Kerry Washington is opening up about a family secret her parents kept from her that turned her world 'upside down.'
The major revelation is the subject of her new memoir, Thicker Than Water, but ahead of the book's release later this month, Washington spoke with People about the surprise, telling the publication that she only recently discovered that her father, Earl Washington, is not her biological father.
"It really turned my world upside down," she said.
Washington learned about her parents' truth after telling them that she planned to appear on Henry Louis Gates Jr.’s Finding Your Roots TV show on PBS, which uses DNA testing to look at people's ancestors.
In response, Washington's mother, Valerie Washington, and father, Earl, sat down with Gates to share the secret, and the host told them it was best to share the potentially intense news off-screen.
The Little Fires Everywhere actress recalled how she felt after she sat down and received the news in 2018 that her parents had used an anonymous sperm donor after suffering from fertility issues: "When I got this information, I was like, 'Oh. I now know my story.'"
Washington said she always felt like her parents weren't telling her something, noting, "I didn't know what my story was, but I was playing the supporting character in their story." Her parents also admitted that previously, they hadn't planned to tell her at all.
Reflecting on the life-changing news, Washington looked back on past anxiety, self-esteem issues, and an eating disorder that she dealt with over the years. She considered if part of the issues had to do with subconsciously knowing her parents had a secret.
The 46-year-old told the outlet, "I think that dissonance of like, 'Somebody is not telling me something about my body.' made me feel like there was something in my body I had to fix."
Learning this truth about her family led Washington to write her new memoir, which she said her parents were "not thrilled" about, though they became more supportive as time went on.
She said of Thicker Than Water: "This is really kind of me working to understand my life up until now, given this new information that I have that, in many ways, felt like sort of the missing puzzle piece."
The personal memoir is available on shelves on Tuesday, Sept. 26, and it is Washington's first book.
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