Forest Whitaker
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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.
Known for
Credits
Black Panther (2018)
as Zuri
Arrival (2016)
as Colonel Weber
Platoon (1986)
as Big Harold
Taken 3 (2014)
as Inspector Frank Dotzler
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
as Saw Gerrera
Bloodsport (1988)
as Rawlins
Pawn (2013)
as Will
Southpaw (2015)
as Titus 'Tick' Wills
Havoc (2025)
as Lawrence Beaumont
Panic Room (2002)
as Burnham
Johnny Handsome (1989)
as Dr. Steven Fisher
Vantage Point (2008)
as Howard Lewis
Species (1995)
as Dan Smithson, Empath
Phone Booth (2003)
as Captain Ramey
Sorry to Bother You (2018)
as First Equisapien / Demarius
Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)
as Charles Jefferson
Street Kings (2008)
as Captain Jack Wander
The Last Stand (2013)
as Agent John Bannister
Phenomenon (1996)
as Nate Pope
The Butler (2013)
as Cecil Gaines
Big George Foreman (2023)
as Doc Broadus
Good Morning, Vietnam (1987)
as Edward Garlick
Where the Wild Things Are (2009)
as Ira (voice)
First Daughter (2004)
as Narrator (voice)
Out of the Furnace (2013)
as Chief Wesley Barnes
How It Ends (2018)
as Tom
Catch.44 (2011)
as Ronny
The Color of Money (1986)
as Amos
The King of Kings (2025)
as Peter (voice)
Blown Away (1994)
as Anthony Franklin
The Last King of Scotland (2006)
as Idi Amin
The Great Debaters (2007)
as Dr. James Farmer Sr.
Repo Men (2010)
as Jake
The Experiment (2010)
as Barris
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999)
as Ghost Dog
Zulu (2013)
as Ali Sokhela
A Little Trip to Heaven (2005)
as Abe Holt
The Crying Game (1992)
as Jody
Everyone's Hero (2006)
as Lonnie Brewster (voice)
City of Lies (2018)
as Jack Jackson
Serving Life (2011)
as Narrator (voice)
Stakeout (1987)
as Det. Jack Pismo
Battlefield Earth (2000)
as Ker
Mr. Holland's Opus (1995)
as Bobby Tidd as an adult (uncredited)
Prêt-à-Porter (1994)
as Cy Bianco
Dope (2015)
as The Narrator (voice)
Powder Blue (2009)
as Charlie
The Air I Breathe (2007)
as Happiness
Winged Creatures (2009)
as Charlie Archenault
Mary (2005)
as Ted Younger
Finding Steve McQueen (2019)
as Howard Lambert
Consenting Adults (1992)
as David Duttonville
Smoke (1995)
as Cyrus Cole
Repentance (2014)
as Angel
Respect (2021)
as C. L. Franklin
Body Snatchers (1993)
as Major Collins
Diary of a Hitman (1991)
as Dekker
Our Family Wedding (2010)
as Brad Boyd
A Dark Truth (2012)
as Francisco Francis
Freelancers (2012)
as Dennis Larue
Jiminy Glick in Lalawood (2005)
as Forest Whitaker
Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey (2020)
as Jeronicus Jangle
The Forgiven (2018)
as Desmond Tutu
Feast of All Saints (2001)
as Daguerreotypist Picard
Article 99 (1992)
as Dr. Sid Handleman
Four Dogs Playing Poker (2000)
as Mr. Ellington
Hurricane Season (2010)
as Al Collins
Bird (1988)
as Charlie 'Bird' Parker
My Own Love Song (2010)
as Joey
The Enemy Within (1994)
as Col. MacKenzie Casey
Vision Quest (1985)
as Balldozer
Two Men in Town (2014)
as William Garnett
A Man's Story (2011)
as Self
Witness Protection (1999)
as Steven Beck
The Fourth Angel (2001)
as Agent Jules Bernard
Crips and Bloods: Made in America (2009)
as Narrator
The Misbehavers (2004)
as Self
Hands of a Stranger (1987)
as Sergeant Delaney
Food Chains (2014)
Actor
Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault (1996)
as Mr. Rucker
Before the Music Dies (2006)
as Self - Narrator (voice)
Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend (2022)
as Self (archive footage)
Downtown (1990)
as Dennis Curren
Body Count (1998)
as Crane
American Gun (2005)
as Carter
The Paperboy (2000)
as Narrator
Shooting 'Panic Room' (2004)
as Self
Even Money (2007)
as Clyde Snow
Burden (2018)
as Reverend Kennedy
Making of Phone Booth (2003)
as Self
Tag: The Assassination Game (1982)
as Gowdy's Bodyguard
Making a Scene | 11 Performances (2013)
Actor
Deacons for Defense (2005)
as Marcus Clay
A Tour of the Inferno: Revisiting 'Platoon' (2001)
as Self
Jason's Lyric (1994)
as Maddog
Black Nativity (2013)
as Reverend Cornell Cobbs
Green Dragon (2001)
as Addie
Chadwick Boseman: A Tribute for a King (2020)
as Self
Lush Life (1993)
as Buddy Chester
The Marsh (2006)
as Geoffrey Hunt
Prophets of Change (2022)
as Narrator
Criminal Justice (1990)
as Jessie Williams
2Everything2Terrible2: Tokyo Drift (2010)
as (archive footage)
A Rage in Harlem (1991)
as Jackson
Bank Robber (1993)
as Officer Battle
Lullaby for Pi (2010)
as George
Rose's Baby (2027)
Actor
Ripple Effect (2007)
as Philip
Light It Up (1999)
as Officer Dante Jackson
Rising from Ashes (2013)
as Narrator
Odyssey in Rome (2005)
Actor
Last Light (1993)
as Fred Whitmore
Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life (2010)
as Lion
Andor: A Disney+ Day Special Look (2022)
as Saw Gerrera (archive footage) (uncredited)
The Follow (2001)
as The Employer
Clint Eastwood: The Man from Malpaso (1994)
as Self
Seaweed Stories (2024)
as Self - Narrator (voice)
Xenolinguistics: Understanding 'Arrival' (2017)
as Self
I Am You (2016)
as Narrator (voice)
Clint Eastwood: Out of the Shadows (2000)
as Self
Mysteries of the Unseen World (2013)
as Narrator
The Grand Baby (1983)
Actor
Nations United: Urgent Solutions for Urgent Times (2020)
as Self
The Stories: The Making of 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story' (2017)
as Self
Ghost Dog: The Odyssey: The Journey Into the Life of a Samurai (2001)
Actor
Sewing Hope (—)
as Narrator (voice)
Triumph: The Untold Story of Perry Wallace (2018)
as Narrator (voice)