Forest Whitaker
Acting
Biography
Forest Steven Whitaker (born July 15, 1961) is an American actor, producer, director, and activist. He is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a British Academy Film Award, and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. After making his film debut in Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), Whitaker went on to earn a reputation for intensive character study work for films, such as Platoon (1986), Good Morning, Vietnam (1987), Bird (1988), The Crying Game (1992), Phenomenon (1996), Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999), The Great Debaters (2007), The Butler (2013), Arrival (2016), and Respect (2021). He has also appeared in blockbusters, such as Panic Room (2002), Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) as Saw Gerrera, and Black Panther (2018) as Zuri. For his portrayal of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in the British historical drama film The Last King of Scotland (2006), Whitaker won the Academy Award for Best Actor. Whitaker made his directorial debut with the television film Strapped (1993), and directed the films Waiting to Exhale (1995), Hope Floats (1998), and First Daughter (2004). Apart from his film career, Whitaker is also known for his humanitarian work and activism. In 2011, he was inducted as a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, later receiving a promotion to Special Envoy for Peace and Reconciliation, and serves as the CEO of Whitaker Peace and Development Initiative (WPDI), a non-profit outreach program.
Born: July 15, 1961
Place of Birth: Longview, Texas, USA
Known For
Filmography
as Lawrence Beaumont
as Peter (voice)
as Narrator
as Narrator (voice)
as Oliver Garland
as Ghost Dog (archive footage)
as Doc Broadus
as Auggie Bolo
as Self (archive footage)
as Narrator
as Saw Gerrera
as Self
as Saw Gerrera (archive footage) (uncredited)
as Self - Guest
as C. L. Franklin
as Jeronicus Jangle
as Ellsworth 'Bumpy' Johnson
as Howard Lambert
as Jack Jackson
as Reverend Kennedy
as Tom
as First Equisapien / Demarius
as Narrator (voice)
as Desmond Tutu
as Zuri
as Saw Gerrera
as Colonel Weber
as Saw Gerrera (voice)
as Fiddler
as The Narrator (voice)
as Titus 'Tick' Wills
as Eddie Barker
as Inspector Frank Dotzler
as Saw Gerrera (voice)
as William Garnett
as Angel
as Ali Sokhela
as Reverend Cornell Cobbs
as Chief Wesley Barnes
as Narrator
as Cecil Gaines
as Narrator
as Will
as Agent John Bannister
as Francisco Francis
as Dennis Larue
as Ronny
as Self
as Narrator (voice)
as Steven Beck
as Sam Cooper
as George
as (archive footage)
as Barris
as Joey
as Jake
as Brad Boyd
as Al Collins
as Ira (voice)
as Narrator
as Charlie Archenault
as Charlie
as Captain Jack Wander
as Howard Lewis
as Dr. James Farmer Sr.
as Philip
as Clyde Snow
as Happiness
as Self - Narrator (voice)
as Idi Amin
as Lonnie Brewster (voice)
as Geoffrey Hunt
as Abe Holt
as Ted Younger
as Sam Cooper
as Carter
as Forest Whitaker
as Marcus Clay
as Turlington (voice)
as Narrator (voice)
as Self
as Self
as Self
as Captain Ramey
as Self - Host
as Self
as Burnham
as Jon Kavanaugh
as Self
as Daguerreotypist Picard
as Agent Jules Bernard
as The Employer
as Addie
as The Employer
as Mr. Ellington
as Ker
as Narrator
as Officer Dante Jackson
as Self
as Ghost Dog
as Self
as Crane
as Self
as Mr. Rucker
as Self
as Nate Pope
as Bobby Tidd as an adult (uncredited)
as Dan Smithson, Empath
as Cyrus Cole
as Cy Bianco
as Curtis Ames
as Col. MacKenzie Casey
as Self
as Anthony Franklin
as Maddog
as Officer Battle
as Buddy Chester
as Fred Whitmore
as Major Collins
as David Duttonville
as Jody
as Dr. Sid Handleman
as Dekker
as Jackson
as Jessie Williams
as Dennis Curren
as Dr. Steven Fisher
as Self
as Charlie 'Bird' Parker
as Rawlins
as Edward Garlick
as Det. Jack Pismo
as Sergeant Delaney
as Big Harold
as Amos
as Cuffey
as Jerry
as Balldozer
as Charles Jefferson
as Gowdy's Bodyguard
as Night Manager
as Self - Host
as Self - Presenter
as Self