Kerry Washington Reveals She’s Had An Abortion + Opens Up About Learning Her Dad Is Not Her Biological Father & She Was Conceived Via Sperm Donor

Kerry Washington Reveals She’s Had An Abortion + Opens Up About Learning Her Dad Is Not Her Biological Father & She Was Conceived Via Sperm Donor

Actress Kerry Washington is letting the world in on the ups and downs of her personal life. 

Kerry Washington made her screen debut in 1994 and has appeared in many projects since then including “Little Man,” “Mr. & Mrs. Smith,” and “For Colored Girls.” However, she reached a whole other level of fame in 2012 thanks to her leading role in the TV series “Scandal,” which ran for seven seasons. Despite being a household name, the mother-of-three has remained fairly quiet over the years about her world away from the spotlight, until now. 

Kerry Washington

In her soon-to-be-released memoir entitled “Thicker Than Water,” Kerry Washington, 46, reveals that she had an abortion in her 20s. The unexpected pregnancy came in between the success of “Save the Last Dance” in 2001 and Kerry’s leading role in Spike Lee’s 2003 film “She Hate Me.” In her book, Kerry shares that she gave the medical staff a fake name to protect her privacy.

During a recent interview with PEOPLE, Kerry spoke about her decision to end her pregnancy. 

“I struggled a lot in the beginning with whether or not to include my abortion story. At first I wasn’t really sure how it fit into this story of my life. But I started to feel like it was really important for me to share this.”

Kerry Washington

“Thicker Than Water” also covers when the “Unprisoned” star discovered that her dad, Earl Washington, is not her biological father. According to the memoir, Kerry found out the truth before she was set to appear in an episode of “Finding Your Roots” – a docuseries that uses DNA testing to inform celebrities about their family history. After telling her parents she was going to be on the PBS series, Kerry soon received a text from them inviting her to come over for a chat. 

She was ultimately informed by her mom – Valerie Washington – and dad that they struggled with fertility issues and decided to use an anonymous sperm donor to help conceive her. Kerry addressed this major moment in her life while chatting with PEOPLE and said, 

“When I got this information, I was like, ‘Oh. I now know my story.’ I didn’t know what my story was, but I was playing the supporting character in their story.”

“Thicker Than Water” is scheduled to be released on September 26.

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