Forest Whitaker
Known for: Acting
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
Series
The Daily Show
Self
1996
Series
Criminal Minds
Sam Cooper
2005
Series
American Dad!
Turlington (voice)
2005
Series
Saturday Night Live
Self - Host
1975
Series
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
Self
2005
Series
The View
Self
1997
Series
The Jennifer Hudson Show
Self
2022
Series
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Self - Guest
2003
Series
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
Self
1988
Series
ER
Curtis Ames
1994
Series
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
1992
Series
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
Self
2003
Series
The Shield
Jon Kavanaugh
2002
Series
American Idol
Self
2002
Series
Empire
Eddie Barker
2015
Series
Hill Street Blues
1981
Series
Andor
Saw Gerrera
2022
Series
Star Wars Rebels
Saw Gerrera (voice)
2014
Series
Cagney & Lacey
Night Manager
1982
Series
Godfather of Harlem
Ellsworth 'Bumpy' Johnson
2019
Series
Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter
Self
2015
Film
Black Panther
Zuri
2018
Series
Steve
Self
2017
Series
The Twilight Zone
Self - Host
2002
Series
Today
Self
1952
Series
Amazing Stories
Jerry
1985
Film
Taken 3
Inspector Frank Dotzler
2014
Film
Arrival
Colonel Weber
2016
Series
The Oscars
Self - Presenter
1953
Series
The Oscars
Self
1953
Series
North and South
Cuffey
1985
Series
Extrapolations
Auggie Bolo
2023
Series
Live from E!
Self
2002
Where Are They Now?
Self
1999
Film
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Saw Gerrera
2016
Film
Platoon
Big Harold
1986
Film
Southpaw
Titus 'Tick' Wills
2015
Film
Bloodsport
Rawlins
1988
Film
The Last Stand
Agent John Bannister
2013
Film
Panic Room
Burnham
2002
Film
Street Kings
Captain Jack Wander
2008
Film
Sorry to Bother You
First Equisapien / Demarius
2018
Series
The Early Show
Self
1999
Film
Vantage Point
Howard Lewis
2008
Film
Phone Booth
Captain Ramey
2003
Film
Havoc
Lawrence Beaumont
2025
Series
Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior
Sam Cooper
2011
Film
The King of Kings
Peter (voice)
2025
Film
Species
Dan Smithson, Empath
1995
Series
Roots
Fiddler
2016
Film
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Charles Jefferson
1982
Series
The Hire
The Employer
2001
Film
Everyone's Hero
Lonnie Brewster (voice)
2006
Film
Big George Foreman
Doc Broadus
2023
Series
The Emperor of Ocean Park
Judge Oliver Garland
2024
Film
Repo Men
Jake
2010
Film
The Color of Money
Amos
1986
Film
The Butler
Cecil Gaines
2013
Film
The Great Debaters
Dr. James Farmer Sr.
2007
Film
The Last King of Scotland
Idi Amin
2006
Film
Good Morning, Vietnam
Edward Garlick
1987
Film
City of Lies
Jack Jackson
2018
Film
First Daughter
Narrator (voice)
2004
Film
Where the Wild Things Are
Ira (voice)
2009
Series
Hollywood Black
Self
2024
Film
Out of the Furnace
Chief Wesley Barnes
2013
Film
Phenomenon
Nate Pope
1996
Film
The Experiment
Barris
2010
Film
How It Ends
Tom
2018
Series
Clint Eastwood: A Cinematic Legacy
Self
2021
Film
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
Ghost Dog
1999
Film
Blown Away
Anthony Franklin
1994
Film
Battlefield Earth
Ker
2000
Film
Dope
The Narrator (voice)
2015
Film
Body Snatchers
Major Collins
1993
Film
Mr. Holland's Opus
Bobby Tidd as an adult (uncredited)
1995
Film
The Crying Game
Jody
1992
Film
Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey
Jeronicus Jangle
2020
Film
The Air I Breathe
Happiness
2007
Film
Vision Quest
Balldozer
1985
Film
Respect
C. L. Franklin
2021
Film
Prêt-à-Porter
Cy Bianco
1994
Film
Winged Creatures
Charlie Archenault
2009
Film
Catch.44
Ronny
2011
Film
A Rage in Harlem
Jackson
1991
Film
Powder Blue
Charlie
2009
Film
Even Money
Clyde Snow
2007
Film
Stakeout
Det. Jack Pismo
1987
Film
The Forgiven
Desmond Tutu
2018
Film
Zulu
Ali Sokhela
2013
Series
By Whatever Means Necessary: The Times of Godfather of Harlem
Self
2020
Film
Witness Protection
Steven Beck
1999
Film
Johnny Handsome
Dr. Steven Fisher
1989
Film
Smoke
Cyrus Cole
1995
Film
Our Family Wedding
Brad Boyd
2010
Film
Consenting Adults
David Duttonville
1992
Film
Diary of a Hitman
Dekker
1991
Film
My Own Love Song
Joey
2010
Film
Pawn
Will
2013
Film
A Dark Truth
Francisco Francis
2012
Film
Mary
Ted Younger
2005
Film
The Marsh
Geoffrey Hunt
2006
Film
Freelancers
Dennis Larue
2012
Film
Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend
Self (archive footage)
2022
Series
My Generation
Self - Narrator (voice)
2024
Film
The Enemy Within
Col. MacKenzie Casey
1994
Film
Bring Me the Horizon: L.I.V.E. in São Paulo
Self (archive footage)
2026
Series
Diff'rent Strokes
1978
Series
Cannes Festival
Self - Guest
2022
Film
Finding Steve McQueen
Howard Lambert
2019
Film
Light It Up
Officer Dante Jackson
1999
Film
Body Count
Crane
1998
Film
Two Men in Town
William Garnett
2014
Film
A Little Trip to Heaven
Abe Holt
2005
Film
The Fourth Angel
Agent Jules Bernard
2001
Film
Hurricane Season
Al Collins
2010
Film
Article 99
Dr. Sid Handleman
1992
Film
Andor: A Disney+ Day Special Look
Saw Gerrera (archive footage) (uncredited)
2022
Film
Up Against It
2027
Film
Chadwick Boseman: A Tribute for a King
Self
2020
Film
Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault
Mr. Rucker
1996
Film
Feast of All Saints
Daguerreotypist Picard
2001
Film
Bird
Charlie 'Bird' Parker
1988
Film
Hands of a Stranger
Sergeant Delaney
1987
Film
Jiminy Glick in Lalawood
Forest Whitaker
2005
Film
Crips and Bloods: Made in America
Narrator
2009
Series
Inside the Actors Studio
Self
1994
Film
Jason's Lyric
Maddog
1994
Film
Serving Life
Narrator (voice)
2011
Film
A Man's Story
Self
2011
Series
Star Wars: Go Rogue
Saw Gerrera (voice)
2016
Film
Four Dogs Playing Poker
Mr. Ellington
2000
Film
Repentance
Angel
2014
Film
American Gun
Carter
2005
Film
Downtown
Dennis Curren
1990
Film
2Everything2Terrible2: Tokyo Drift
(archive footage)
2010
Film
Tag: The Assassination Game
Gowdy's Bodyguard
1982
Film
Bank Robber
Officer Battle
1993
Film
Burden
Reverend Kennedy
2018
Film
The Stories: The Making of 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'
Self
2017
Film
Black Nativity
Reverend Cornell Cobbs
2013
Film
Before the Music Dies
Self - Narrator (voice)
2006
Film
Green Dragon
Addie
2001
Film
Food Chains
2014
Film
A Tour of the Inferno: Revisiting 'Platoon'
Self
2001
Ghost Dog: The Odyssey: The Journey Into the Life of a Samurai
2001
Film
Nations United: Urgent Solutions for Urgent Times
Self
2020
Film
Clint Eastwood: Out of the Shadows
Self
2000
Film
Lush Life
Buddy Chester
1993
Film
Prophets of Change
Narrator
2022
Film
Lullaby for Pi
George
2010
Film
Shooting 'Panic Room'
Self
2004
Film
Xenolinguistics: Understanding 'Arrival'
Self
2017
Film
Making a Scene | 11 Performances
2013
Making of Phone Booth
Self
2003
Film
Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life
Lion
2010
Film
The Paperboy
Narrator
2000
Film
Last Light
Fred Whitmore
1993
Film
Criminal Justice
Jessie Williams
1990
Film
The Follow
The Employer
2001
Film
Mysteries of the Unseen World
Narrator
2013
Film
Clint Eastwood: The Man from Malpaso
Self
1994
Film
Deacons for Defense
Marcus Clay
2005
Film
Ripple Effect
Philip
2007
Film
Triumph: The Untold Story of Perry Wallace
Narrator (voice)
2018
Film
Seaweed Stories
Self - Narrator (voice)
2024
Film
Odyssey in Rome
2005
Film
Rising from Ashes
Narrator
2013
The Grand Baby
1983
I Am You
Narrator (voice)
2016
The Misbehavers
Self
2004
Sewing Hope
Narrator (voice)