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
Taken 3 (2014)
as Inspector Frank Dotzler
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
as Saw Gerrera
Southpaw (2015)
as Titus 'Tick' Wills
Platoon (1986)
as Big Harold
The Last Stand (2013)
as Agent John Bannister
Bloodsport (1988)
as Rawlins
Street Kings (2008)
as Captain Jack Wander
Panic Room (2002)
as Burnham
Havoc (2025)
as Lawrence Beaumont
Vantage Point (2008)
as Howard Lewis
Phone Booth (2003)
as Captain Ramey
Big George Foreman (2023)
as Doc Broadus
Species (1995)
as Dan Smithson, Empath
The Color of Money (1986)
as Amos
The King of Kings (2025)
as Peter (voice)
Everyone's Hero (2006)
as Lonnie Brewster (voice)
Repo Men (2010)
as Jake
Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)
as Charles Jefferson
Phenomenon (1996)
as Nate Pope
The Butler (2013)
as Cecil Gaines
The Last King of Scotland (2006)
as Idi Amin
Good Morning, Vietnam (1987)
as Edward Garlick
The Experiment (2010)
as Barris
City of Lies (2018)
as Jack Jackson
Sorry to Bother You (2018)
as First Equisapien / Demarius
Out of the Furnace (2013)
as Chief Wesley Barnes
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999)
as Ghost Dog
Where the Wild Things Are (2009)
as Ira (voice)
How It Ends (2018)
as Tom
Blown Away (1994)
as Anthony Franklin
The Great Debaters (2007)
as Dr. James Farmer Sr.
First Daughter (2004)
as Narrator (voice)
Mr. Holland's Opus (1995)
as Bobby Tidd as an adult (uncredited)
Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey (2020)
as Jeronicus Jangle
Vision Quest (1985)
as Balldozer
The Crying Game (1992)
as Jody
Battlefield Earth (2000)
as Ker
Prêt-à-Porter (1994)
as Cy Bianco
The Air I Breathe (2007)
as Happiness
Body Snatchers (1993)
as Major Collins
Dope (2015)
as The Narrator (voice)
Catch.44 (2011)
as Ronny
Respect (2021)
as C. L. Franklin
Winged Creatures (2009)
as Charlie Archenault
Powder Blue (2009)
as Charlie
Stakeout (1987)
as Det. Jack Pismo
Even Money (2007)
as Clyde Snow
Pawn (2013)
as Will
My Own Love Song (2010)
as Joey
Consenting Adults (1992)
as David Duttonville
Diary of a Hitman (1991)
as Dekker
Our Family Wedding (2010)
as Brad Boyd
Witness Protection (1999)
as Steven Beck
Johnny Handsome (1989)
as Dr. Steven Fisher
A Rage in Harlem (1991)
as Jackson
Chadwick Boseman: A Tribute for a King (2020)
as Self
The Marsh (2006)
as Geoffrey Hunt
Bring Me the Horizon: L.I.V.E. in São Paulo (2026)
as Self (archive footage)
Smoke (1995)
as Cyrus Cole
Jiminy Glick in Lalawood (2005)
as Forest Whitaker
The Enemy Within (1994)
as Col. MacKenzie Casey
Zulu (2013)
as Ali Sokhela
The Fourth Angel (2001)
as Agent Jules Bernard
Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend (2022)
as Self (archive footage)
Hurricane Season (2010)
as Al Collins
The Forgiven (2018)
as Desmond Tutu
A Dark Truth (2012)
as Francisco Francis
Light It Up (1999)
as Officer Dante Jackson
Body Count (1998)
as Crane
Freelancers (2012)
as Dennis Larue
Andor: A Disney+ Day Special Look (2022)
as Saw Gerrera (archive footage) (uncredited)
Feast of All Saints (2001)
as Daguerreotypist Picard
Article 99 (1992)
as Dr. Sid Handleman
Finding Steve McQueen (2019)
as Howard Lambert
A Little Trip to Heaven (2005)
as Abe Holt
Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault (1996)
as Mr. Rucker
Mary (2005)
as Ted Younger
Two Men in Town (2014)
as William Garnett
Bird (1988)
as Charlie 'Bird' Parker
Hands of a Stranger (1987)
as Sergeant Delaney
American Gun (2005)
as Carter
A Man's Story (2011)
as Self
Serving Life (2011)
as Narrator (voice)
Four Dogs Playing Poker (2000)
as Mr. Ellington
Crips and Bloods: Made in America (2009)
as Narrator
The Stories: The Making of 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story' (2017)
as Self
Up Against It (2027)
Actor
Tag: The Assassination Game (1982)
as Gowdy's Bodyguard
Clint Eastwood: Out of the Shadows (2000)
as Self
Jason's Lyric (1994)
as Maddog
Repentance (2014)
as Angel
Downtown (1990)
as Dennis Curren
Nations United: Urgent Solutions for Urgent Times (2020)
as Self
2Everything2Terrible2: Tokyo Drift (2010)
as (archive footage)
Black Nativity (2013)
as Reverend Cornell Cobbs
Before the Music Dies (2006)
as Self - Narrator (voice)
Bank Robber (1993)
as Officer Battle
Food Chains (2014)
Actor
Lullaby for Pi (2010)
as George
Ghost Dog: The Odyssey: The Journey Into the Life of a Samurai (2001)
Actor
A Tour of the Inferno: Revisiting 'Platoon' (2001)
as Self
Green Dragon (2001)
as Addie
Burden (2018)
as Reverend Kennedy
Criminal Justice (1990)
as Jessie Williams
Last Light (1993)
as Fred Whitmore
The Paperboy (2000)
as Narrator
The Follow (2001)
as The Employer
Making a Scene | 11 Performances (2013)
Actor
Prophets of Change (2022)
as Narrator
Ripple Effect (2007)
as Philip
Making of Phone Booth (2003)
as Self
Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life (2010)
as Lion
Clint Eastwood: The Man from Malpaso (1994)
as Self
Mysteries of the Unseen World (2013)
as Narrator
Xenolinguistics: Understanding 'Arrival' (2017)
as Self
Triumph: The Untold Story of Perry Wallace (2018)
as Narrator (voice)
Shooting 'Panic Room' (2004)
as Self
Rising from Ashes (2013)
as Narrator
Lush Life (1993)
as Buddy Chester
Odyssey in Rome (2005)
Actor
Deacons for Defense (2005)
as Marcus Clay
The Grand Baby (1983)
Actor
Seaweed Stories (2024)
as Self - Narrator (voice)
The Misbehavers (2004)
as Self
I Am You (2016)
as Narrator (voice)
Sewing Hope (—)
as Narrator (voice)