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