Forest Whitaker
Acting
1961-07-15 · Longview, Texas, USA
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.
Filmography
Up Against It
2027 · Movie
Bring Me the Horizon: L.I.V.E. in São Paulo
2026 · Movie
Lucky Lu
2026 · Movie
To Live and Die and Live
2025 · Movie
Havoc
2025 · Movie
The King of Kings
2025 · Movie
Transplant
2024 · Movie
My Generation
2024 · Series
Seaweed Stories
2024 · Movie
Hollywood Black
2024 · Series
The Emperor of Ocean Park
2024 · Series
Fancy Dance
2024 · Movie
Big George Foreman
2023 · Movie
Extrapolations
2023 · Series
Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend
2022 · Movie
Prophets of Change
2022 · Movie
Andor
2022 · Series
The Jennifer Hudson Show
2022 · Series
Andor: A Disney+ Day Special Look
2022 · Movie
For the Sake of Peace
2022 · Movie
Cannes Festival
2022 · Series
Passing
2021 · Movie
Clint Eastwood: A Cinematic Legacy
2021 · Series
Respect
2021 · Movie
By Whatever Means Necessary: The Times of Godfather of Harlem
2020 · Series
Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey
2020 · Movie
Nations United: Urgent Solutions for Urgent Times
2020 · Movie
Chadwick Boseman: A Tribute for a King
2020 · Movie
Godfather of Harlem
2019 · Series
Devil's Pie: D'Angelo
2019 · Movie
A Kid from Coney Island
2019 · Movie
Finding Steve McQueen
2019 · Movie
City of Lies
2018 · Movie
Burden
2018 · Movie
How It Ends
2018 · Movie
Sorry to Bother You
2018 · Movie
Triumph: The Untold Story of Perry Wallace
2018 · Movie
The Forgiven
2018 · Movie
Black Panther
2018 · Movie
Steve
2017 · Series
The Stories: The Making of 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'
2017 · Movie
Xenolinguistics: Understanding 'Arrival'
2017 · Movie
Roxanne Roxanne
2017 · Movie
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
2016 · Movie
I Am You
2016 · Movie
Arrival
2016 · Movie
Star Wars: Go Rogue
2016 · Series
Roots
2016 · Series
Songs My Brothers Taught Me
2015 · Movie
Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter
2015 · Series
Southpaw
2015 · Movie
Dope
2015 · Movie
Empire
2015 · Series
Taken 3
2014 · Movie
Star Wars Rebels
2014 · Series
Two Men in Town
2014 · Movie
Food Chains
2014 · Movie
Repentance
2014 · Movie
Zulu
2013 · Movie
Black Nativity
2013 · Movie
Making a Scene | 11 Performances
2013 · Movie
Out of the Furnace
2013 · Movie
Mysteries of the Unseen World
2013 · Movie
The Butler
2013 · Movie
Rising from Ashes
2013 · Movie
Fruitvale Station
2013 · Movie
Pawn
2013 · Movie
The Last Stand
2013 · Movie
A Dark Truth
2012 · Movie
Freelancers
2012 · Movie
Catch.44
2011 · Movie
A Man's Story
2011 · Movie
Serving Life
2011 · Movie
Monte Carlo
2011 · Movie
Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior
2011 · Series
Lullaby for Pi
2010 · Movie
2Everything2Terrible2: Tokyo Drift
2010 · Movie
The Experiment
2010 · Movie
My Own Love Song
2010 · Movie
Repo Men
2010 · Movie
Our Family Wedding
2010 · Movie
Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life
2010 · Movie
Hurricane Season
2010 · Movie
Where the Wild Things Are
2009 · Movie
Brick City
2009 · Series
Crips and Bloods: Made in America
2009 · Movie
Winged Creatures
2009 · Movie
Kassim the Dream
2009 · Movie
Powder Blue
2009 · Movie
Street Kings
2008 · Movie
Vantage Point
2008 · Movie
The Great Debaters
2007 · Movie
Ripple Effect
2007 · Movie
Even Money
2007 · Movie
The Air I Breathe
2007 · Movie
Before the Music Dies
2006 · Movie
The Last King of Scotland
2006 · Movie
Everyone's Hero
2006 · Movie
The Marsh
2006 · Movie
A Little Trip to Heaven
2005 · Movie
Mary
2005 · Movie
Odyssey in Rome
2005 · Movie
Criminal Minds
2005 · Series
American Gun
2005 · Movie
Jiminy Glick in Lalawood
2005 · Movie
Deacons for Defense
2005 · Movie
American Dad!
2005 · Series
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
2005 · Series
The Misbehavers
2004 · Movie
First Daughter
2004 · Movie
Shooting 'Panic Room'
2004 · Movie
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
2003 · Series
Chasing Papi
2003 · Movie
Making of Phone Booth
2003 · Movie
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
2003 · Series
Phone Booth
2003 · Movie
The Twilight Zone
2002 · Series
Door to Door
2002 · Movie
American Idol
2002 · Series
Panic Room
2002 · Movie
The Shield
2002 · Series
Live from E!
2002 · Series
Feast of All Saints
2001 · Movie
The Fourth Angel
2001 · Movie
Ghost Dog: The Odyssey: The Journey Into the Life of a Samurai
2001 · Movie
The Follow
2001 · Movie
Green Dragon
2001 · Movie
The Hire
2001 · Series
A Tour of the Inferno: Revisiting 'Platoon'
2001 · Movie
Clint Eastwood: Out of the Shadows
2000 · Movie
Four Dogs Playing Poker
2000 · Movie
Battlefield Earth
2000 · Movie
The Paperboy
2000 · Movie
Witness Protection
1999 · Movie
Light It Up
1999 · Movie
The Early Show
1999 · Series
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
1999 · Movie
Where Are They Now?
1999 · Series
Hope Floats
1998 · Movie
Body Count
1998 · Movie
The View
1997 · Series
Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault
1996 · Movie
The Daily Show
1996 · Series
Phenomenon
1996 · Movie
Mr. Holland's Opus
1995 · Movie
Waiting to Exhale
1995 · Movie
Species
1995 · Movie
Smoke
1995 · Movie
Prêt-à-Porter
1994 · Movie
Clint Eastwood: The Man from Malpaso
1994 · Movie
ER
1994 · Series
The Enemy Within
1994 · Movie
Inside the Actors Studio
1994 · Series
Blown Away
1994 · Movie
Jason's Lyric
1994 · Movie
Bank Robber
1993 · Movie
Lush Life
1993 · Movie
Last Light
1993 · Movie
Strapped
1993 · Movie
Body Snatchers
1993 · Movie
Consenting Adults
1992 · Movie
The Crying Game
1992 · Movie
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
1992 · Series
Article 99
1992 · Movie
Diary of a Hitman
1991 · Movie
A Rage in Harlem
1991 · Movie
Criminal Justice
1990 · Movie
Downtown
1990 · Movie
Johnny Handsome
1989 · Movie
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
1988 · Series
Bird
1988 · Movie
Bloodsport
1988 · Movie
Good Morning, Vietnam
1987 · Movie
Stakeout
1987 · Movie
Hands of a Stranger
1987 · Movie
Platoon
1986 · Movie
The Color of Money
1986 · Movie
A Little Off Mark
1986 · Movie
North and South
1985 · Series
Amazing Stories
1985 · Series
Vision Quest
1985 · Movie
The Grand Baby
1983 · Movie
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
1982 · Movie
Tag: The Assassination Game
1982 · Movie
Cagney & Lacey
1982 · Series
Hill Street Blues
1981 · Series
Diff'rent Strokes
1978 · Series
Saturday Night Live
1975 · Series
The Oscars
1953 · Series
Today
1952 · Series
Rise of the Empress
Series
Rosetta
Movie
Sewing Hope
Movie