Forest Whitaker
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- July 15, 1961
- Birthplace
- Longview, Texas, USA
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
- Rosetta
Rosetta TBA
Producer
- Sewing Hope
Sewing Hope TBA
as Narrator (voice)
Up Against It 2027
Actor
Transplant 2026
Producer
Bring Me the Horizon: L.I.V.E. in São Paulo 2026
as Self (archive footage)
Lucky Lu 2026
Executive Producer
Boomerang Atomic 2025
Executive Producer
To Live and Die and Live 2025
Producer
Havoc 2025
as Lawrence Beaumont
The King of Kings 2025
as Peter (voice)
Seaweed Stories 2024
as Self - Narrator (voice)
Fancy Dance 2024
Executive Producer
Big George Foreman 2023
as Doc Broadus
Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend 2022
as Self (archive footage)
Prophets of Change 2022
as Narrator
Andor: A Disney+ Day Special Look 2022
as Saw Gerrera (archive footage) (uncredited)
For the Sake of Peace 2022
Producer
Passing 2021
Producer
Respect 2021
as C. L. Franklin
Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey 2020
as Jeronicus Jangle
Nations United: Urgent Solutions for Urgent Times 2020
as Self
Chadwick Boseman: A Tribute for a King 2020
as Self
Devil's Pie: D'Angelo 2019
Producer
A Kid from Coney Island 2019
Executive Producer
Finding Steve McQueen 2019
as Howard Lambert
City of Lies 2018
as Jack Jackson
Burden 2018
as Reverend Kennedy
How It Ends 2018
as Tom
Sorry to Bother You 2018
as First Equisapien / Demarius, Producer
Triumph: The Untold Story of Perry Wallace 2018
as Narrator (voice)
The Forgiven 2018
as Desmond Tutu
Black Panther 2018
as Zuri
The Stories: The Making of 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story' 2017
as Self
Xenolinguistics: Understanding 'Arrival' 2017
as Self
Roxanne Roxanne 2017
Producer
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story 2016
as Saw Gerrera
- I Am You
I Am You 2016
as Narrator (voice)
Arrival 2016
as Colonel Weber
Songs My Brothers Taught Me 2015
Producer
Southpaw 2015
as Titus 'Tick' Wills
Dope 2015
as The Narrator (voice), Producer
Taken 3 2014
as Inspector Frank Dotzler
Two Men in Town 2014
as William Garnett
Food Chains 2014
Actor
Repentance 2014
as Angel
Zulu 2013
as Ali Sokhela
Black Nativity 2013
as Reverend Cornell Cobbs
Making a Scene | 11 Performances 2013
Actor
Out of the Furnace 2013
as Chief Wesley Barnes
Mysteries of the Unseen World 2013
as Narrator
The Butler 2013
as Cecil Gaines
Rising from Ashes 2013
as Narrator, Executive Producer
Fruitvale Station 2013
Producer
Pawn 2013
as Will
The Last Stand 2013
as Agent John Bannister
A Dark Truth 2012
as Francisco Francis
Freelancers 2012
as Dennis Larue
Catch.44 2011
as Ronny
A Man's Story 2011
as Self
Serving Life 2011
as Narrator (voice), Executive Producer
Monte Carlo 2011
Executive Producer
Lullaby for Pi 2010
as George
2Everything2Terrible2: Tokyo Drift 2010
as (archive footage)
The Experiment 2010
as Barris
My Own Love Song 2010
as Joey
Repo Men 2010
as Jake
Our Family Wedding 2010
as Brad Boyd
Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life 2010
as Lion
Hurricane Season 2010
as Al Collins
Where the Wild Things Are 2009
as Ira (voice)
Crips and Bloods: Made in America 2009
as Narrator
Winged Creatures 2009
as Charlie Archenault
Kassim the Dream 2009
Producer
Powder Blue 2009
as Charlie, Producer
Street Kings 2008
as Captain Jack Wander
Vantage Point 2008
as Howard Lewis
The Great Debaters 2007
as Dr. James Farmer Sr.
Ripple Effect 2007
as Philip, Executive Producer
Even Money 2007
as Clyde Snow
The Air I Breathe 2007
as Happiness
Before the Music Dies 2006
as Self - Narrator (voice)
The Last King of Scotland 2006
as Idi Amin
Everyone's Hero 2006
as Lonnie Brewster (voice)
The Marsh 2006
as Geoffrey Hunt
A Little Trip to Heaven 2005
as Abe Holt
Mary 2005
as Ted Younger
Odyssey in Rome 2005
Actor
American Gun 2005
as Carter, Executive Producer
Jiminy Glick in Lalawood 2005
as Forest Whitaker
Deacons for Defense 2005
as Marcus Clay
- The Misbehavers
The Misbehavers 2004
as Self
First Daughter 2004
as Narrator (voice), Director, Executive Producer
Shooting 'Panic Room' 2004
as Self
Chasing Papi 2003
Producer
- Making of Phone Booth
Making of Phone Booth 2003
as Self
Phone Booth 2003
as Captain Ramey
Door to Door 2002
Co-Executive Producer
Panic Room 2002
as Burnham
Feast of All Saints 2001
as Daguerreotypist Picard
The Fourth Angel 2001
as Agent Jules Bernard
- Ghost Dog: The Odyssey: The Journey Into the Life of a Samurai
Ghost Dog: The Odyssey: The Journey Into the Life of a Samurai 2001
Actor
The Follow 2001
as The Employer
Green Dragon 2001
as Addie, Executive Producer
A Tour of the Inferno: Revisiting 'Platoon' 2001
as Self
Clint Eastwood: Out of the Shadows 2000
as Self
Four Dogs Playing Poker 2000
as Mr. Ellington
Battlefield Earth 2000
as Ker
The Paperboy 2000
as Narrator
Witness Protection 1999
as Steven Beck
Light It Up 1999
as Officer Dante Jackson
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai 1999
as Ghost Dog
Hope Floats 1998
Director, Executive Music Producer
Body Count 1998
as Crane
Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault 1996
as Mr. Rucker
Phenomenon 1996
as Nate Pope
Mr. Holland's Opus 1995
as Bobby Tidd as an adult (uncredited)
Waiting to Exhale 1995
Director
Species 1995
as Dan Smithson, Empath
Smoke 1995
as Cyrus Cole
Prêt-à-Porter 1994
as Cy Bianco
Clint Eastwood: The Man from Malpaso 1994
as Self
The Enemy Within 1994
as Col. MacKenzie Casey
Blown Away 1994
as Anthony Franklin
Jason's Lyric 1994
as Maddog
Bank Robber 1993
as Officer Battle
Lush Life 1993
as Buddy Chester
Last Light 1993
as Fred Whitmore
Strapped 1993
Director
Body Snatchers 1993
as Major Collins
Consenting Adults 1992
as David Duttonville
The Crying Game 1992
as Jody
Article 99 1992
as Dr. Sid Handleman
Diary of a Hitman 1991
as Dekker
A Rage in Harlem 1991
as Jackson, Co-Producer
Criminal Justice 1990
as Jessie Williams
Downtown 1990
as Dennis Curren
Johnny Handsome 1989
as Dr. Steven Fisher
Bird 1988
as Charlie 'Bird' Parker
Bloodsport 1988
as Rawlins
Good Morning, Vietnam 1987
as Edward Garlick
Stakeout 1987
as Det. Jack Pismo
Hands of a Stranger 1987
as Sergeant Delaney
Platoon 1986
as Big Harold
The Color of Money 1986
as Amos
A Little Off Mark 1986
Thanks
Vision Quest 1985
as Balldozer
- The Grand Baby
The Grand Baby 1983
Actor
Fast Times at Ridgemont High 1982
as Charles Jefferson
Tag: The Assassination Game 1982
as Gowdy's Bodyguard
Credits from TMDB.