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.
The Daily Show
1996 · TV
Criminal Minds
2005 · TV
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
2005 · TV
American Dad!
2005 · TV
ER
1994 · TV
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
1988 · TV
Saturday Night Live
1975 · TV
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
2003 · TV
The Jennifer Hudson Show
2022 · TV
The View
1997 · TV
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
1992 · TV
American Idol
2002 · TV
Steve
2017 · TV
Hill Street Blues
1981 · TV
Andor
2022 · TV
The Shield
2002 · TV
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
2003 · TV
Today
1952 · TV
Empire
2015 · TV
Godfather of Harlem
2019 · TV
Cagney & Lacey
1982 · TV
Black Panther
2018 · Movie
Star Wars Rebels
2014 · TV
The Oscars
1953 · TV
Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter
2015 · TV
Amazing Stories
1985 · TV
The Twilight Zone
2002 · TV
Arrival
2016 · Movie
North and South
1985 · TV
Live from E!
2002 · TV
Extrapolations
2023 · TV
Platoon
1986 · Movie
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
2016 · Movie
Taken 3
2014 · Movie
Bloodsport
1988 · Movie
Southpaw
2015 · Movie
Phone Booth
2003 · Movie
Zulu
2013 · Movie
Havoc
2025 · Movie
The Early Show
1999 · TV
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
1982 · Movie
Vantage Point
2008 · Movie
Panic Room
2002 · Movie
Roots
2016 · TV
The Emperor of Ocean Park
2024 · TV
The Hire
2001 · TV
Species
1995 · Movie
Johnny Handsome
1989 · Movie
Phenomenon
1996 · Movie
Street Kings
2008 · Movie
The Last Stand
2013 · Movie
Good Morning, Vietnam
1987 · Movie
Pawn
2013 · Movie
Out of the Furnace
2013 · Movie
Sorry to Bother You
2018 · Movie
Where the Wild Things Are
2009 · Movie
Clint Eastwood: A Cinematic Legacy
2021 · TV
Blown Away
1994 · Movie
Repo Men
2010 · Movie
Hollywood Black
2024 · TV
Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior
2011 · TV
First Daughter
2004 · Movie
The Butler
2013 · Movie
The King of Kings
2025 · Movie
The Last King of Scotland
2006 · Movie
Big George Foreman
2023 · Movie
Catch.44
2011 · Movie
The Great Debaters
2007 · Movie
A Little Trip to Heaven
2005 · Movie
The Crying Game
1992 · Movie
The Color of Money
1986 · Movie
Battlefield Earth
2000 · Movie
Body Snatchers
1993 · Movie
Everyone's Hero
2006 · Movie
Cannes Festival
2022 · TV
The Experiment
2010 · Movie
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
1999 · Movie
Mr. Holland's Opus
1995 · Movie
Dope
2015 · Movie
Respect
2021 · Movie
City of Lies
2018 · Movie
How It Ends
2018 · Movie
Bring Me the Horizon: L.I.V.E. in São Paulo
2026 · Movie
Smoke
1995 · Movie
Powder Blue
2009 · Movie
Diff'rent Strokes
1978 · TV
Prêt-à-Porter
1994 · Movie
Freelancers
2012 · Movie
My Generation
2024 · TV
The Air I Breathe
2007 · Movie
Finding Steve McQueen
2019 · Movie
Stakeout
1987 · Movie
Consenting Adults
1992 · Movie
Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey
2020 · Movie
Winged Creatures
2009 · Movie
Feast of All Saints
2001 · Movie
By Whatever Means Necessary: The Times of Godfather of Harlem
2020 · TV
Vision Quest
1985 · Movie
Our Family Wedding
2010 · Movie
Jiminy Glick in Lalawood
2005 · Movie
Hurricane Season
2010 · Movie
Mary
2005 · Movie
A Dark Truth
2012 · Movie
The Enemy Within
1994 · Movie
Bird
1988 · Movie
Serving Life
2011 · Movie
My Own Love Song
2010 · Movie
Inside the Actors Studio
1994 · TV
2Everything2Terrible2: Tokyo Drift
2010 · Movie
Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend
2022 · Movie
Food Chains
2014 · Movie
Hands of a Stranger
1987 · Movie
Jason's Lyric
1994 · Movie
Four Dogs Playing Poker
2000 · Movie
The Fourth Angel
2001 · Movie
American Gun
2005 · Movie
The Forgiven
2018 · Movie
Even Money
2007 · Movie
Star Wars: Go Rogue
2016 · TV
Repentance
2014 · Movie
Article 99
1992 · Movie
Tag: The Assassination Game
1982 · Movie
Two Men in Town
2014 · Movie
Burden
2018 · Movie
Clint Eastwood: Out of the Shadows
2000 · Movie
A Man's Story
2011 · Movie
Chadwick Boseman: A Tribute for a King
2020 · Movie
Crips and Bloods: Made in America
2009 · Movie
Diary of a Hitman
1991 · Movie
Light It Up
1999 · Movie
Deacons for Defense
2005 · Movie
Downtown
1990 · Movie
Mysteries of the Unseen World
2013 · Movie
A Rage in Harlem
1991 · Movie
Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault
1996 · Movie
Prophets of Change
2022 · Movie
Andor: A Disney+ Day Special Look
2022 · Movie
Making a Scene | 11 Performances
2013 · Movie
Body Count
1998 · Movie
Before the Music Dies
2006 · Movie
Lullaby for Pi
2010 · Movie
Green Dragon
2001 · Movie
The Marsh
2006 · Movie
The Paperboy
2000 · Movie
Lush Life
1993 · Movie
Black Nativity
2013 · Movie
Shooting 'Panic Room'
2004 · Movie
Witness Protection
1999 · Movie
Criminal Justice
1990 · Movie
Xenolinguistics: Understanding 'Arrival'
2017 · Movie
Ripple Effect
2007 · Movie
A Tour of the Inferno: Revisiting 'Platoon'
2001 · Movie
Bank Robber
1993 · Movie
Rising from Ashes
2013 · Movie
Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life
2010 · Movie
Clint Eastwood: The Man from Malpaso
1994 · Movie
Last Light
1993 · Movie
Odyssey in Rome
2005 · Movie
The Follow
2001 · Movie
The Stories: The Making of 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'
2017 · Movie
Seaweed Stories
2024 · Movie
Nations United: Urgent Solutions for Urgent Times
2020 · Movie
Triumph: The Untold Story of Perry Wallace
2018 · Movie
