Claim: Oscar-winning actor Denzel Washington sued U.S. Vice President JD Vance for $100 million after a courtroom argument.
Rating: A rumor that circulated online in July 2025 claimed Oscar-winning actor Denzel Washington sued U.S. Vice President JD Vance for $100 million after a courtroom argument.
For example, on July 4, a manager of the Valorium Story YouTube channel published a video ( archived ) with the title, "Denzel Washington SUES JD Vance for $100M — What He Reveals DESTROYS His Career Instantly." The clip received over 284,000 views, as of this writing. Other users also shared this rumor on Bluesky ( archived ), Facebook ( archived ), X ( archived ) and YouTube ( archived ).
According to the video, 17 million people watched proceedings between the famous actor and vice president, taking place in an unspecified U.S. district court in Washington.
According to the clip, Washington took issue with President Donald Trump's Medicaid cuts in his spending bill, best known as the "Big Beautiful Bill." The actor also did not like how Vance negatively characterized low-income families while in the courtroom. The video featured the following text description: Some users seemed to interpret the rumor as a factual recounting of real-life events.
However, this story about Washington arguing with Vance inside a U.S. district court was false.
Had the famous actor really argued with the vice president inside a courtroom, and had 17 million people truly watched the proceedings live.