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