Denzel Washington keeps August Wilson’s Pittsburgh cycle in the family with ‘The Piano Lesson.’

In “The Piano Lesson,” which debuts on Netflix Friday, the screen legend hands the reins to his son, Malcolm Washington, who makes his directorial debut in a production starring his brother, John David Washington, and featuring contributions from his sisters.

Denzel Washington’s quest to bring the works of Pittsburgh playwright August Wilson to the screen have already produced several exceptional films, and performances, in “Fences” and “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.” 

In “The Piano Lesson,” which debuts on Netflix Friday, he hands the reins to his son, Malcolm Washington, who makes his directorial debut in a production starring his brother, John David Washington, Danielle Deadwyler, Samuel L. Jackson, Erykah Badu, Ray Fisher and Corey Hawkins. 

The film, set in 1930s Pittsburgh, is about a family wrestling with the legacy of a family heirloom, and of slavery. Like all but one of the 10 plays comprising Wilson’s revered Pittsburgh cycle, “The Piano Lesson” is set in the city’s Hill District, where Wilson was born in 1945.

“The Piano Lesson” deals profoundly with ancestry and heritage, which makes it all the more fitting that the new film adaptation, produced by Denzel Washington, is a family affair.

“There are so many legacies tied into this,” says Malcolm Washington, a 2013 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania. “I think it’s part of our duty when you’re in the position to make a film like this to honor that and uphold it. We’re here because so many people fought and sacrificed and acted to give opportunity for the next generation. This film and the story of it, ultimately, is much bigger than my family.”

Denzel Washington said it was his son’s idea that he might direct “The Piano Lesson.” A 2022 Broadway production had run of Wilson’s Pulitzer Prize-winner with much of the same cast, including John David.

“Malcolm said he had a take,” recalls Denzel. “He said, ‘Let me put something together.’ So he made a little short. I looked at it like, ‘Whoa, OK. You want to make the movie? This is great, make the movie.’”

Yet Malcolm didn’t immediately go for it. He told his father: “Let me see if I see the movie first.” He began working on a treatment and ultimately co-authored the script with Virgil Williams ( “Mudbound” ).

“At first, I was like, ‘See the movie’? But I get it now,” says Denzel. “He’s a real filmmaker. He took his time, and he didn’t just jump in.”

While John David, the 40-year-old star of “BlacKkKlansman” and “Tenet,” has firmly established himself as his own leading man in Hollywood, Malcolm, an alum of the American Film Institute’s directing program, is just stepping into the spotlight. “He knew what he wanted,” says Black. 

“And he wasn’t afraid to reach out to people who knew more than he knew.”

During the making of “The Piano Lesson,” Denzel largely kept his distance to let Malcolm work. Still, his passion for Wilson’s plays pervaded throughout the production.

“He’s such a fan of August Wilson and it’s such an important part of his legacy to continue telling August’s stories,” Malcolm says. “His main thing with all of us was to keep that focus: We’re here to honor one of our greats.”

“The Piano Lesson” is a Washington family production in other ways, too. Malcolm and John David’s mother, Pauletta Washington, plays the role of Mama Ola. The movie is dedicated to their mother.

“I started with a clear idea that this is about fathers and sons,” Malcolm says. “As we were shooting, I just really started to see this mother-daughter story, and my mom is such an inspiration for me. I always saw my mom as tied into the Berniece story.”

Malcolm’s sisters are also involved. Olivia Washington plays Mama Ola as a young woman, and Katia Washington is an executive producer. Ironically, their father, Denzel, is almost the only one in the family not in the movie. But Malcolm, wanting everyone in the family somehow represented within the film, asked his father to participate with a brief voice recording.

“Am I in it?” Denzel says. “I recorded something. I didn’t get credit. Did I get credit? I don’t think so!”

Keystone senior community editor Patrick Berkery contributed to this report.