Forest Whitaker
Encyclopedia
Forest Steven Whitaker is an American actor, producer
, and director
. He has earned a reputation for intensive character study work for films such as Bird
and Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
, and for his recurring role as ex-LAPD Lieutenant Jon Kavanaugh
on the gritty, award-winning television series, The Shield
.
Whitaker won an Academy Award for his performance as Uganda
n dictator Idi Amin
in the 2006 film The Last King of Scotland
. Whitaker has also won a Golden Globe
, and a BAFTA.
, and his family moved to South Central Los Angeles
when he was four. His father, Forest Whitaker, Jr., was an insurance salesman and the son of novelist Forest Whitaker, Sr. His mother, Laura Francis (née
Smith), was a special education teacher who put herself through college and earned two Masters degrees while raising her children. Whitaker has two younger brothers, Kenn and Damon, and an older sister, Deborah.
As a teenager, Whitaker commuted from Carson
to wealthy Palisades High School
on LA's West Side
. There, he was all-league defensive tackle on the football team quarterbacked by Jay Schroeder
, a future NFL
player. While in high school, he also took voice lessons, performed in musicals, and caught the "acting bug"; his first role as an actor was the lead in Dylan Thomas'
play, Under Milk Wood
. Whitaker graduated from "Pali High" in 1979.
Whitaker then attended California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
(Cal Poly Pomona)
on a football scholarship, but due to a debilitating back injury, he changed his major to music (voice). He toured England with the Cal Poly Chamber Singers in 1980. While still at Cal Poly, he briefly changed his major to drama. He was accepted to the Music Conservatory at the University of Southern California
to study opera as a tenor, and subsequently was accepted into the University's Drama Conservatory. He graduated from USC in 1982. He also earned a scholarship to the Berkeley, California
branch of the Drama Studio London
.
's coming-of-age
teen-retrospective
, Fast Times at Ridgemont High
. He co-starred alongside Judge Reinhold
, Phoebe Cates
, and Sean Penn
. In 1986, he appeared in Martin Scorsese's
film, The Color of Money
(with Paul Newman
and Tom Cruise
), and in Oliver Stone's
Platoon
. The following year, he co-starred with Robin Williams
in the comedy Good Morning, Vietnam
.
In 1988, Whitaker played in the film Bloodsport
alongside Jean-Claude Van Damme
and he had the lead role as musician Charlie Parker
in the Clint Eastwood
-directed film, Bird. To prepare himself for the part, he sequestered himself in a loft with only a bed, couch, and saxophone, having also conducted extensive research and taken alto sax lessons. His performance, which has been called "transcendent," earned him the Best Actor
award at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival
and a Golden Globe nomination. Whitaker continued to work with a number of well-known directors throughout the 1990s. He starred in the 1990 film Downtown with Anthony Edwards
and Penelope Ann Miller
. Neil Jordan
cast him in the pivotal role of "Jody" in his 1992 film, The Crying Game
. Todd McCarthy, of Variety
, described Whitaker's performance as "big-hearted," "hugely emotional," and "simply terrific." In 1994, he was a member of the cast that won the first ever National Board of Review Award for Best Acting by an Ensemble for Robert Altman's
film, Prêt-à-Porter
. He gave a "characteristically emotional performance" in Wayne Wang
and Paul Auster
's 1995 film, Smoke
.
Whitaker played a serene, pigeon-raising, bushido
-following, mob
hit man in Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
, a 1999 film written and directed by Jim Jarmusch
. Many consider this to have been a "definitive role" for Whitaker. In a manner similar to his preparation for Bird, he again immersed himself in his character's world—he studied Eastern philosophy and meditated for long hours "to hone his inner spiritual hitman." Jarmusch has told interviewers that he developed the title character with Whitaker in mind; the New York Times review of the film observed that "[I]t's hard to think of another actor who could play a cold-blooded killer with such warmth and humanity."
Whitaker next appeared in what has been called one of the "worst films ever made," the 2000 production of Battlefield Earth
, based on the novel of the same name by L. Ron Hubbard
. The film was widely criticized as a notorious commercial and critical disaster. However, Whitaker's performance was lauded by the film's director, Roger Christian
, who commented that, "Everybody's going to be very surprised" by Whitaker, who "found this huge voice and laugh." Battlefield Earth "won" seven Razzie Awards
; Whitaker was nominated for Worst Supporting Actor, but lost to his co-star, Barry Pepper
.
In 2001, Whitaker had a small, uncredited role in the Wong Kar-wai
-directed The Follow, one of five short films produced by BMW
that year to promote its cars. He co-starred in Joel Schumacher's
2002 thriller, Phone Booth
, with Kiefer Sutherland
and Colin Farrell
. That year, he also co-starred with Jodie Foster
in Panic Room. His performance as the film's "bad guy" was described as "a subtle chemistry of aggression and empathy."
Whitaker's 2006 portrayal of Idi Amin
in the film, The Last King of Scotland
earned him positive reviews by critics as well as multiple awards and honors. To portray the dictator, Whitaker gained 50 pounds, learned to play the accordion
, and immersed himself in research. He read books about Amin, watched news and documentary footage, and spent time in Uganda meeting with Amin's friends, relatives, generals, and victims; he also learned Swahili
and mastered Amin's East Africa
n accent. His performance earned him the 2007 Academy Award for Best Actor
in a Leading Role, making him the fourth African-American actor in history to do so, joining the ranks of Sidney Poitier
, Denzel Washington
, and Jamie Foxx
. For that same role, he was also recognized with a Golden Globe
, Screen Actors Guild Award, BAFTA Award, and accolades from the New York Film Critics Circle, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association
, the National Board of Review, and the Broadcast Film Critics Association
among others.
In 2007, Whitaker played Dr. James Farmer Sr. in The Great Debaters
, for which he received an Image Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor. In 2008, Whitaker appeared in three films, first as a business man known only as Happiness, who likes butterflies, in the film The Air I Breathe
. He also portrayed a rogue police captain in Street Kings, and a heroic tourist in Vantage Point
.
, he played a bully in the 1985 episode "Bully for Arnold". That same year, Whitaker also played the part of a comic book salesman in the Amazing Stories
episode "Gather Ye Acorns". Throughout the 1990s, Whitaker mainly had roles in television films, including Criminal Justice, The Enemy Within, and Witness Protection
.
From 2002 to 2003, Whitaker was the host and narrator of 44 new episodes of the Rod Serling
classic, The Twilight Zone
, which lasted one season on UPN
. After working in several film roles, he returned to television in 2006 when he joined the cast of FX's police serial The Shield
, as Lieutenant Jon Kavanaugh
, who was determined to prove that the lead character, Vic Mackey
, is a dirty cop. As opposed to with his previous character work, Whitaker states that he merely had to draw on his childhood years growing up in South Central Los Angeles for the role. He received rave reviews for his performance—Variety
called it a "crackling-good guest stint"—and he reprised the role in the show's 2007 season.
In the fall of 2006, Whitaker started a multi-episode story arc on ER
as Curtis Ames, a man who comes into the ER with a cough, but quickly faces the long-term consequences of a paralyzing stroke
; he then takes out his anger on Doctors Luka Kovač
and Abby Lockhart
. Whitaker received a 2007 Emmy Award
nomination for his performance on the series. Also in 2006, Whitaker appeared in T.I.
's music video "Live in the Sky" alongside Jamie Foxx
.
Whitaker has recently been cast in the Criminal Minds
spin-off, Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior
.
, for HBO in 1993. In 1995, he directed his first feature
, Waiting to Exhale
, which was based on the Terry McMillan
novel of the same name. Roger Ebert
observed that the tone of the film resembled Whitaker's own acting style: "measured, serene, confident." Whitaker also directed co-star Whitney Houston
's music video of the movie's theme song, "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)
".
Whitaker continued his directing career with the 1998 romantic comedy, Hope Floats
, starring Sandra Bullock
and Harry Connick, Jr.
He directed Katie Holmes
in the romantic comedy
, First Daughter
in 2004; he had co-starred with Holmes in Phone Booth
in 2002. Whitaker served as an executive producer on First Daughter. He had previously gained experience as the executive producer of several made-for-television movies
, most notably the 2002 Emmy-award winning Door to Door
, starring William H. Macy
. He produced these projects through his production company, Spirit Dance Entertainment, which he shut down in 2005 to concentrate on his acting career.
Previously, in 2005, the Deauville (France) Festival of American Film paid tribute to him. Whitaker was the recipient of the 2,335th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
on April 16, 2007. He received an Honorary Degree from Xavier University of Louisiana
in 2009 at the 82nd Commencement Ceremony. He has also produced Monte Carlo. He produced many years ago for the new film with Selena Gomez
.
. The Whitakers have four children: two daughters together (Sonnet and True), his son (Ocean) from a previous relationship, and her daughter (Autumn) from a previous relationship. On Inside the Actors Studio
, Whitaker said that a genetic test indicated he was of Igbo descent on his father's side, and Akan
descent on his mother's side.
. He also trains in the Filipino martial art of Kali, under Dan Inosanto
.
has been called "intriguing" by some critics and "gives him a sleepy, contemplative look." Whitaker has explained that the condition is hereditary and that he has considered having surgery to correct it, not for cosmetic reasons but because it affects his vision.
with his daughter, True, promoting vegetarianism on behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)
. He is also a supporter and public advocate for Hope North, a boarding school and vocational training center in northern Uganda
for escaped child soldiers, orphans, and other young victims of the country's civil war.
in his 2008 presidential campaign. On April 6, 2009, Whitaker was given a chieftancy title in Imo State
, Nigeria
. Whitaker, who was named a chief among the Igbo
community of Nkwerre
, was given the title Nwannedinamba of Nkwerre, which means A Brother in a Foreign Land.
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
, and director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
. He has earned a reputation for intensive character study work for films such as Bird
Bird (1988 film)
Bird is a 1988 American biographical film, produced and directed by Clint Eastwood of a screenplay written by Joel Oliansky. The film is a tribute to the life and music of jazz saxophonist Charlie "Bird" Parker...
and Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai is a 1999 American crime action film written and directed by Jim Jarmusch. Forest Whitaker stars as the title character, the mysterious "Ghost Dog", a hitman in the employ of the Mafia, who follows the ancient code of the samurai as outlined in the book of Yamamoto...
, and for his recurring role as ex-LAPD Lieutenant Jon Kavanaugh
Jon Kavanaugh
Lieutenant Jon Kavanaugh is a fictional Lieutenant in the Los Angeles Police Department on the FX television show The Shield. He was portrayed by method actor Forest Whitaker.-Kavanaugh's career before the investigation:...
on the gritty, award-winning television series, The Shield
The Shield
The Shield is an American television drama series starring Michael Chiklis which premiered on March 12, 2002 on FX in the United States and concluded on November 25, 2008 after seven seasons...
.
Whitaker won an Academy Award for his performance as Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
n dictator Idi Amin
Idi Amin
Idi Amin Dada was a military leader and President of Uganda from 1971 to 1979. Amin joined the British colonial regiment, the King's African Rifles in 1946. Eventually he held the rank of Major General in the post-colonial Ugandan Army and became its Commander before seizing power in the military...
in the 2006 film The Last King of Scotland
The Last King of Scotland (film)
The Last King of Scotland is a 2006 British drama film based on Giles Foden's novel of the same name, adapted by screenwriters Peter Morgan and Jeremy Brock, and directed by Kevin Macdonald...
. Whitaker has also won a Golden Globe
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
, and a BAFTA.
Early life
Whitaker was born in Longview, TexasLongview, Texas
Longview is a city in Gregg and Harrison Counties in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 80,455. Most of the city is located in Gregg County, of which it is the county seat; only a small part extends into the western part of neighboring Harrison County. It is...
, and his family moved to South Central Los Angeles
South Los Angeles
South Los Angeles, often abbreviated as South L.A. and formerly South Central Los Angeles, is the official name for a large geographic and cultural portion lying to the southwest and southeast of downtown Los Angeles, California. The area was formerly called South Central, and is still widely known...
when he was four. His father, Forest Whitaker, Jr., was an insurance salesman and the son of novelist Forest Whitaker, Sr. His mother, Laura Francis (née
Married and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Smith), was a special education teacher who put herself through college and earned two Masters degrees while raising her children. Whitaker has two younger brothers, Kenn and Damon, and an older sister, Deborah.
As a teenager, Whitaker commuted from Carson
Carson, California
Carson is a city in Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2010 census, Carson had a total population of 91,714. Located south of downtown Los Angeles and approximately 14 miles away from the Los Angeles International Airport, it is known as a suburb of the city....
to wealthy Palisades High School
Palisades Charter High School
Palisades Charter High School is a secondary school in Los Angeles, California, United States. The public high school serves the neighborhoods of Pacific Palisades, Palisades Highlands, Kenter Canyon and portions of Brentwood...
on LA's West Side
West Los Angeles (region)
The Los Angeles Westside is an urban region in western Los Angeles County, California, United States. It has no official definition, but, according to the Los Angeles Times, it comprises , encompassing 18 districts in the city of Los Angeles and two unincorporated neighborhoods, plus the cities of...
. There, he was all-league defensive tackle on the football team quarterbacked by Jay Schroeder
Jay Schroeder
Jay Brian Schroeder is a former professional American football quarterback in the National Football League who played for the Washington Redskins , Los Angeles Raiders , Cincinnati Bengals and Arizona Cardinals .He attended Palisades High School and was a high school football teammate of actor...
, a future NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
player. While in high school, he also took voice lessons, performed in musicals, and caught the "acting bug"; his first role as an actor was the lead in Dylan Thomas'
Dylan Thomas
Dylan Marlais Thomas was a Welsh poet and writer, Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 11 January 2008. who wrote exclusively in English. In addition to poetry, he wrote short stories and scripts for film and radio, which he often performed himself...
play, Under Milk Wood
Under Milk Wood
Under Milk Wood is a 1954 radio drama by Welsh poet Dylan Thomas, adapted later as a stage play. A movie version, Under Milk Wood directed by Andrew Sinclair, was released during 1972....
. Whitaker graduated from "Pali High" in 1979.
Whitaker then attended California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, or Cal Poly Pomona, is a public university located in Pomona, California, United States...
(Cal Poly Pomona)
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, or Cal Poly Pomona, is a public university located in Pomona, California, United States...
on a football scholarship, but due to a debilitating back injury, he changed his major to music (voice). He toured England with the Cal Poly Chamber Singers in 1980. While still at Cal Poly, he briefly changed his major to drama. He was accepted to the Music Conservatory at the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
to study opera as a tenor, and subsequently was accepted into the University's Drama Conservatory. He graduated from USC in 1982. He also earned a scholarship to the Berkeley, California
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
branch of the Drama Studio London
Drama Studio London
Drama Studio London is a drama school based in Ealing, London, England, United Kingdom. It is accredited by the National Council for Drama Training, London and is a Member of the Conference of Drama Schools...
.
Film work
Whitaker has a long history of working with well-regarded film directors and fellow actors. In his first onscreen role of note, he played a football player in the 1982 film version of Cameron CroweCameron Crowe
Cameron Bruce Crowe is an American screenwriter and film director. Before moving into the film industry, Crowe was a contributing editor at Rolling Stone magazine, for which he still frequently writes....
's coming-of-age
Coming of age
Coming of age is a young person's transition from childhood to adulthood. The age at which this transition takes place varies in society, as does the nature of the transition. It can be a simple legal convention or can be part of a ritual, as practiced by many societies...
teen-retrospective
Retrospective
Retrospective generally means to take a look back at events that already have taken place. For example, the term is used in medicine, describing a look back at a patient's medical history or lifestyle.-Music:...
, Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Fast Times at Ridgemont High is a 1982 American coming-of-age teen comedy film written by Cameron Crowe and adapted from his 1981 book of the same name...
. He co-starred alongside Judge Reinhold
Judge Reinhold
Judge Reinhold is an American actor, perhaps best known for co-starring in movies such as Beverly Hills Cop, Ruthless People, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, and The Santa Clause trilogy.-Early life:...
, Phoebe Cates
Phoebe Cates
Phoebe Cates is an American film actress, model, and entrepreneur known for her roles in several teen films, most notably Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Gremlins.-Early life:...
, and Sean Penn
Sean Penn
Sean Justin Penn is an American actor, screenwriter and film director, also known for his political and social activism...
. In 1986, he appeared in Martin Scorsese's
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
film, The Color of Money
The Color of Money
The Color of Money is a 1986 film directed by Martin Scorsese from a screenplay by Richard Price, based on the 1984 novel of the same name by Walter Tevis....
(with Paul Newman
Paul Newman
Paul Leonard Newman was an American actor, film director, entrepreneur, humanitarian, professional racing driver and auto racing enthusiast...
and Tom Cruise
Tom Cruise
Thomas Cruise Mapother IV , better known as Tom Cruise, is an American film actor and producer. He has been nominated for three Academy Awards and he has won three Golden Globe Awards....
), and in Oliver Stone's
Oliver Stone
William Oliver Stone is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Stone became well known in the late 1980s and the early 1990s for directing a series of films about the Vietnam War, for which he had previously participated as an infantry soldier. His work frequently focuses on...
Platoon
Platoon (film)
Platoon is a 1986 American war film written and directed by Oliver Stone and stars Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe and Charlie Sheen. It is the first of Stone's Vietnam War trilogy, followed by 1989's Born on the Fourth of July and 1993's Heaven & Earth....
. The following year, he co-starred with Robin Williams
Robin Williams
Robin McLaurin Williams is an American actor and comedian. Rising to fame with his role as the alien Mork in the TV series Mork and Mindy, and later stand-up comedy work, Williams has performed in many feature films since 1980. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance...
in the comedy Good Morning, Vietnam
Good Morning, Vietnam
Good Morning, Vietnam is a 1987 American comedy-drama film set in Saigon during the Vietnam War, based on the career of Adrian Cronauer, a disc jockey on Armed Forces Radio Service , who proves hugely popular with the troops serving in South Vietnam, but infuriates his superiors with what they call...
.
In 1988, Whitaker played in the film Bloodsport
Bloodsport (film)
Bloodsport is a 1988 American martial arts film directed by Newt Arnold and starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, Donald Gibb and Leah Ayres. The film is based on the claimed adventures of Frank Dux, and was followed by three sequels Bloodsport II: The Next Kumite , Bloodsport III and Bloodsport 4: The...
alongside Jean-Claude Van Damme
Jean-Claude Van Damme
Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg , professionally known as Jean-Claude Van Damme, is a Belgian martial artist and actor, best known for his martial arts action films, the most successful of which include Bloodsport , Kickboxer , Double Impact , Universal Soldier , Hard Target , Timecop ,...
and he had the lead role as musician Charlie Parker
Charlie Parker
Charles Parker, Jr. , famously called Bird or Yardbird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer....
in the Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
-directed film, Bird. To prepare himself for the part, he sequestered himself in a loft with only a bed, couch, and saxophone, having also conducted extensive research and taken alto sax lessons. His performance, which has been called "transcendent," earned him the Best Actor
Best Actor Award (Cannes Film Festival)
The Best Actor Award is an award presented at the Cannes Film Festival. It is chosen by the jury from the 'official section' of movies at the festival. It was first awarded in 1946.- Award Winners :-External links:* * ....
award at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival
1988 Cannes Film Festival
- Jury :*Ettore Scola*Claude Berri*David Robinson*Yelena Safonova*George Miller*Hector Olivera*Nastassja Kinski*Philippe Sarde*Robby Muller*William Goldman-Feature film competition:* A World Apart by Chris Menges...
and a Golden Globe nomination. Whitaker continued to work with a number of well-known directors throughout the 1990s. He starred in the 1990 film Downtown with Anthony Edwards
Anthony Edwards
Anthony Charles Edwards is an American actor and director. He has appeared in various movies and television shows, including Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Top Gun, Zodiac, Revenge of the Nerds, Northern Exposure and ER.-Early life:Edwards was born in Santa Barbara, California, the son of Erika...
and Penelope Ann Miller
Penelope Ann Miller
Penelope Ann Miller , sometimes credited as Penelope Miller, is an American actress...
. Neil Jordan
Neil Jordan
Neil Patrick Jordan is an Irish filmmaker and novelist. He won an Academy Award for The Crying Game.- Early life :...
cast him in the pivotal role of "Jody" in his 1992 film, The Crying Game
The Crying Game
The Crying Game is a 1992 psychological thriller drama film written and directed by Neil Jordan. The film explores themes of race, gender, nationality, and sexuality against the backdrop of the Irish Troubles...
. Todd McCarthy, of Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
, described Whitaker's performance as "big-hearted," "hugely emotional," and "simply terrific." In 1994, he was a member of the cast that won the first ever National Board of Review Award for Best Acting by an Ensemble for Robert Altman's
Robert Altman
Robert Bernard Altman was an American film director and screenwriter known for making films that are highly naturalistic, but with a stylized perspective. In 2006, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recognized his body of work with an Academy Honorary Award.His films MASH , McCabe and...
film, Prêt-à-Porter
Prêt-à-Porter (film)
Prêt-à-Porter is a 1994 American satirical black comedy film co-written, directed, and produced by Robert Altman and shot during the Paris, France, Fashion Week with a host of international stars, models and designers...
. He gave a "characteristically emotional performance" in Wayne Wang
Wayne Wang
Wayne Wang is a Chinese American film director.-Biography:Wang was born and raised in Hong Kong, and named after his father's favorite movie star, John Wayne...
and Paul Auster
Paul Auster
Paul Benjamin Auster is an American author known for works blending absurdism, existentialism, crime fiction and the search for identity and personal meaning in works such as The New York Trilogy , Moon Palace , The Music of Chance , The Book of Illusions and The Brooklyn Follies...
's 1995 film, Smoke
Smoke (film)
Smoke is an American independent film released in 1995. It was produced by Hisami Kuroiwa, Harvey Weinstein and Bob Weinstein and directed by Wayne Wang and Paul Auster...
.
Bushido
, meaning "Way of the Warrior-Knight", is a Japanese word which is used to describe a uniquely Japanese code of conduct and a way of the samurai life, loosely analogous to the concept of chivalry. It originates from the samurai moral code and stresses frugality, loyalty, martial arts mastery, and...
-following, mob
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
hit man in Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai is a 1999 American crime action film written and directed by Jim Jarmusch. Forest Whitaker stars as the title character, the mysterious "Ghost Dog", a hitman in the employ of the Mafia, who follows the ancient code of the samurai as outlined in the book of Yamamoto...
, a 1999 film written and directed by Jim Jarmusch
Jim Jarmusch
James R. "Jim" Jarmusch is an American independent film director, screenwriter, actor, producer, editor and composer. Jarmusch has been a major proponent of independent cinema, particularly during the 1980s and 1990s.-Early life:...
. Many consider this to have been a "definitive role" for Whitaker. In a manner similar to his preparation for Bird, he again immersed himself in his character's world—he studied Eastern philosophy and meditated for long hours "to hone his inner spiritual hitman." Jarmusch has told interviewers that he developed the title character with Whitaker in mind; the New York Times review of the film observed that "[I]t's hard to think of another actor who could play a cold-blooded killer with such warmth and humanity."
Whitaker next appeared in what has been called one of the "worst films ever made," the 2000 production of Battlefield Earth
Battlefield Earth (film)
Battlefield Earth is a 2000 American science fiction film adapted from L. Ron Hubbard's novel of the same name. It was directed by Roger Christian, and stars John Travolta, Forest Whitaker, and Barry Pepper...
, based on the novel of the same name by L. Ron Hubbard
L. Ron Hubbard
Lafayette Ronald Hubbard , better known as L. Ron Hubbard , was an American pulp fiction author and religious leader who founded the Church of Scientology...
. The film was widely criticized as a notorious commercial and critical disaster. However, Whitaker's performance was lauded by the film's director, Roger Christian
Roger Christian (filmmaker)
-External links:*...
, who commented that, "Everybody's going to be very surprised" by Whitaker, who "found this huge voice and laugh." Battlefield Earth "won" seven Razzie Awards
Golden Raspberry Awards
A Golden Raspberry Award, or Razzie for short, is an award presented in recognition of the worst in movies. Founded by American copywriter and publicist John J.B. Wilson in 1981, the annual Razzie Awards ceremony in Los Angeles precedes the corresponding Academy Awards ceremony by one day...
; Whitaker was nominated for Worst Supporting Actor, but lost to his co-star, Barry Pepper
Barry Pepper
Barry Robert Pepper is a Canadian actor. He is best known for playing roles like Sergeant Michael Strank in the Clint Eastwood film, Flags of Our Fathers, Private Daniel Jackson in Saving Private Ryan, Roger Maris in 61*, Ned Pepper in True Grit and for his recent role as Robert F...
.
In 2001, Whitaker had a small, uncredited role in the Wong Kar-wai
Wong Kar-wai
Wong Kar-wai BBS is a Hong Kong Second Wave filmmaker, internationally renowned as an auteur for his visually unique, highly stylized, emotionally resonant work, including Days of Being Wild , Ashes of Time , Chungking Express , Fallen Angels , Happy Together and 2046...
-directed The Follow, one of five short films produced by BMW
BMW
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. BMW produces motorcycles under BMW Motorrad and Husqvarna brands...
that year to promote its cars. He co-starred in Joel Schumacher's
Joel Schumacher
Joel T. Schumacher is an American film director, screenwriter and producer.-Early life:Schumacher was born in New York City, the son of Marian and Francis Schumacher. His mother was a Swedish Jew, and his father was a Baptist from Knoxville, Tennessee, who died when Joel was four years old...
2002 thriller, Phone Booth
Phone Booth (film)
Phone Booth is a 2002 American suspense-thriller film about a man who is held hostage in a telephone booth by a sniper. It stars Colin Farrell, Kiefer Sutherland, Forest Whitaker, Katie Holmes, and Radha Mitchell. The film was directed by Joel Schumacher, with music composed by Harry Gregson-Williams...
, with Kiefer Sutherland
Kiefer Sutherland
Kiefer Sutherland is an English-born Canadian actor, producer and director, best known for his portrayal of Jack Bauer on the Fox thriller drama series 24 for which he has won an Emmy Award , a Golden Globe award , two Screen Actors Guild Awards and two Satellite...
and Colin Farrell
Colin Farrell
Colin James Farrell is an Irish actor, who has appeared in such film as Tigerland, Miami Vice, Minority Report, Phone Booth, The Recruit, Alexander and S.W.A.T....
. That year, he also co-starred with Jodie Foster
Jodie Foster
Alicia Christian "Jodie" Foster is an American actress, film director, producer as well as a former child actress....
in Panic Room. His performance as the film's "bad guy" was described as "a subtle chemistry of aggression and empathy."
Idi Amin
Idi Amin Dada was a military leader and President of Uganda from 1971 to 1979. Amin joined the British colonial regiment, the King's African Rifles in 1946. Eventually he held the rank of Major General in the post-colonial Ugandan Army and became its Commander before seizing power in the military...
in the film, The Last King of Scotland
The Last King of Scotland (film)
The Last King of Scotland is a 2006 British drama film based on Giles Foden's novel of the same name, adapted by screenwriters Peter Morgan and Jeremy Brock, and directed by Kevin Macdonald...
earned him positive reviews by critics as well as multiple awards and honors. To portray the dictator, Whitaker gained 50 pounds, learned to play the accordion
Accordion
The accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
, and immersed himself in research. He read books about Amin, watched news and documentary footage, and spent time in Uganda meeting with Amin's friends, relatives, generals, and victims; he also learned Swahili
Swahili language
Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...
and mastered Amin's East Africa
East Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
n accent. His performance earned him the 2007 Academy Award for Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
in a Leading Role, making him the fourth African-American actor in history to do so, joining the ranks of Sidney Poitier
Sidney Poitier
Sir Sidney Poitier, KBE is a Bahamian American actor, film director, author, and diplomat.In 1963, Poitier became the first black person to win an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Lilies of the Field...
, Denzel Washington
Denzel Washington
Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. is an American actor, screenwriter, director, and film producer. He first rose to prominence when he joined the cast of the medical drama, St. Elsewhere, playing Dr...
, and Jamie Foxx
Jamie Foxx
Eric Marlon Bishop , professionally known as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, singer-songwriter, stand-up comedian, and talk radio host. As an actor, his work in the film Ray earned him the Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Best Actor as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a...
. For that same role, he was also recognized with a Golden Globe
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
, Screen Actors Guild Award, BAFTA Award, and accolades from the New York Film Critics Circle, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association
Los Angeles Film Critics Association
The Los Angeles Film Critics Association was founded in 1975. Its main purpose is to present yearly awards to members of the film industry who have excelled in their fields. These awards are presented each January...
, the National Board of Review, and the Broadcast Film Critics Association
Broadcast Film Critics Association
The Broadcast Film Critics Association is the largest film critics organization in the United States and Canada , representing approximately 250 television, radio and online critics....
among others.
In 2007, Whitaker played Dr. James Farmer Sr. in The Great Debaters
The Great Debaters
The Great Debaters is a 2007 American biopic period drama film directed by and starring two-time Academy Award winner Denzel Washington and produced by Oprah Winfrey and her production company, Harpo Productions...
, for which he received an Image Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor. In 2008, Whitaker appeared in three films, first as a business man known only as Happiness, who likes butterflies, in the film The Air I Breathe
The Air I Breathe
The Air I Breathe is the 2008 directorial film debut of Korean-American filmmaker Jieho Lee, who co-wrote the script with Bob DeRosa. It stars Kevin Bacon, Julie Delpy, Brendan Fraser, Andy Garcia, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Emile Hirsch, and Forest Whitaker...
. He also portrayed a rogue police captain in Street Kings, and a heroic tourist in Vantage Point
Vantage Point (film)
Vantage Point is a 2008 American political action thriller film directed by Pete Travis. It was adapted from a screenplay written by Barry L. Levy. The story focuses on an assassination attempt on the President of the United States as seen from a different set of vantage points through the eyes of...
.
Television work
After completing several films in the early 1980s, Whitaker gained additional roles in multiple television shows. On the series, Diff'rent StrokesDiff'rent Strokes
Diff'rent Strokes is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from November 3, 1978 to May 4, 1985, and on ABC from September 27, 1985 to March 7, 1986...
, he played a bully in the 1985 episode "Bully for Arnold". That same year, Whitaker also played the part of a comic book salesman in the Amazing Stories
Amazing Stories (TV series)
Amazing Stories is a fantasy, horror, and science fiction television anthology series created by Steven Spielberg. It ran on NBC from 1985 to 1987, and was somewhat erratically screened in Britain by BBC1 and BBC2 - billed in the Radio Times as "Steven Spielberg's Amazing Stories" - with episodes...
episode "Gather Ye Acorns". Throughout the 1990s, Whitaker mainly had roles in television films, including Criminal Justice, The Enemy Within, and Witness Protection
Witness Protection (film)
Witness Protection is a 1999 American television movie directed by Richard Pearce. The teleplay by Daniel Therriault is based on a New York Times Magazine article entitled The Invisible Family by Robert Sabbag...
.
From 2002 to 2003, Whitaker was the host and narrator of 44 new episodes of the Rod Serling
Rod Serling
Rodman Edward "Rod" Serling was an American screenwriter, novelist, television producer, and narrator best known for his live television dramas of the 1950s and his science fiction anthology TV series, The Twilight Zone. Serling was active in politics, both on and off the screen and helped form...
classic, The Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone is an American television anthology series created by Rod Serling. Each episode is a mixture of self-contained drama, psychological thriller, fantasy, science fiction, suspense, or horror, often concluding with a macabre or unexpected twist...
, which lasted one season on UPN
UPN
United Paramount Network was a television network that was broadcast in over 200 markets in the United States from 1995 to 2006. UPN was originally owned by Viacom/Paramount and Chris-Craft Industries, the former of which, through the Paramount Television Group, produced most of the network's...
. After working in several film roles, he returned to television in 2006 when he joined the cast of FX's police serial The Shield
The Shield
The Shield is an American television drama series starring Michael Chiklis which premiered on March 12, 2002 on FX in the United States and concluded on November 25, 2008 after seven seasons...
, as Lieutenant Jon Kavanaugh
Jon Kavanaugh
Lieutenant Jon Kavanaugh is a fictional Lieutenant in the Los Angeles Police Department on the FX television show The Shield. He was portrayed by method actor Forest Whitaker.-Kavanaugh's career before the investigation:...
, who was determined to prove that the lead character, Vic Mackey
Vic Mackey
Detective Victor Samuel "Vic" Mackey, portrayed by Michael Chiklis, was the antihero and main protagonist of the FX crime drama series The Shield. Mackey was a corrupt and brutal Detective in the Los Angeles Police Department; he stole from drug dealers, routinely beat suspects and committed murder...
, is a dirty cop. As opposed to with his previous character work, Whitaker states that he merely had to draw on his childhood years growing up in South Central Los Angeles for the role. He received rave reviews for his performance—Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
called it a "crackling-good guest stint"—and he reprised the role in the show's 2007 season.
In the fall of 2006, Whitaker started a multi-episode story arc on ER
ER (TV series)
ER is an American medical drama television series created by novelist Michael Crichton that aired on NBC from September 19, 1994 to April 2, 2009. It was produced by Constant c Productions and Amblin Entertainment, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
as Curtis Ames, a man who comes into the ER with a cough, but quickly faces the long-term consequences of a paralyzing stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
; he then takes out his anger on Doctors Luka Kovač
Luka Kovac
Dr. Luka Kovač is a fictional character on the television series ER portrayed by Goran Visnjic. Visnjic's character was added to the cast at the beginning of Season 6 following the mid-season 5 departure of leading character Dr. Doug Ross, played by George Clooney.Luka Kovač is an emergency room...
and Abby Lockhart
Abby Lockhart
Dr. Abby Lockhart is a fictional medical doctor on the television series ER. She is portrayed by Maura Tierney...
. Whitaker received a 2007 Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
nomination for his performance on the series. Also in 2006, Whitaker appeared in T.I.
T.I.
Clifford Joseph Harris, Jr. , better known by his stage name T.I., is an American rap artist, film and music producer, actor and author. He is also the founder and co-chief executive officer of Grand Hustle Records....
's music video "Live in the Sky" alongside Jamie Foxx
Jamie Foxx
Eric Marlon Bishop , professionally known as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, singer-songwriter, stand-up comedian, and talk radio host. As an actor, his work in the film Ray earned him the Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Best Actor as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a...
.
Whitaker has recently been cast in the Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds is an American police procedural drama that premiered September 22, 2005, on CBS. The series follows a team of profilers from the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit based in Quantico, Virginia. The BAU is part of the FBI National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime...
spin-off, Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior
Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior
Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior was an American police procedural drama on CBS. The show debuted in 2011 as a spin-off from the successful Criminal Minds, which premiered in 2005. This edition's profiling team also works for the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Behavioral Analysis Unit in...
.
Producing and directing
Whitaker branched out into producing and directing in the 1990s. He co-produced and co-starred in A Rage in Harlem in 1991. He made his directorial debut with a grim film about inner-city gun violence, StrappedStrapped
Strapped is a 1993 television crime-thriller/drama, produced by HBO Films for HBO. It starred, William James Stiggers Jr., Chi Ali and was the debut film of Bokeem Woodbine and rapper Fredro Starr...
, for HBO in 1993. In 1995, he directed his first feature
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
, Waiting to Exhale
Waiting to Exhale
Waiting to Exhale is a 1995 romance film starring Whitney Houston and Angela Bassett, directed by Forest Whitaker. The movie was adapted from the 1992 novel of the same name by Terry McMillan. Loretta Devine, Lela Rochon, Dennis Haysbert, Michael Beach, Gregory Hines, Donald Faison and Mykelti...
, which was based on the Terry McMillan
Terry McMillan
Terry McMillan is an American author. Her interest in books comes from working at a library when she was sixteen. She received her BA in journalism in 1986 at University of California, Berkeley. Her work is characterized by strong female protagonists.Her first book, Mama, was published in 1987...
novel of the same name. Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
observed that the tone of the film resembled Whitaker's own acting style: "measured, serene, confident." Whitaker also directed co-star Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...
's music video of the movie's theme song, "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)
Exhale (Shoop Shoop)
"Exhale " is a song by American recording artist Whitney Houston, featured on the soundtrack for the film Waiting to Exhale. It was released as the lead single from the soundtrack on November 7, 1995, by Arista Records. The song was written and produced by Babyface...
".
Whitaker continued his directing career with the 1998 romantic comedy, Hope Floats
Hope Floats
Hope Floats is a 1998 American romantic drama film directed by Forest Whitaker, and starring Sandra Bullock, Harry Connick, Jr. and Gena Rowlands....
, starring Sandra Bullock
Sandra Bullock
Sandra Annette Bullock is an Academy Award winning American actress and producer who rose to fame in the 1990s after roles in successful films such as Demolition Man, Speed, The Net, A Time to Kill, and While You Were Sleeping. She continued with films such as Miss Congeniality, The Lake House,...
and Harry Connick, Jr.
Harry Connick, Jr.
Joseph Harry Fowler Connick, Jr. is an American singer, big-band leader/conductor, pianist, actor, and composer. He has sold over 25 million albums worldwide. Connick is ranked among the top 60 best-selling male artists in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America, with...
He directed Katie Holmes
Katie Holmes
Katherine Noelle "Katie" Holmes is an American actress who first achieved fame for her role as Joey Potter on The WB television teen drama Dawson's Creek from 1998 to 2003. Her movie roles have included the blockbuster Batman Begins along with art house films such as The Ice Storm and thrillers...
in the romantic comedy
Romantic comedy film
Romantic comedy films are films with light-hearted, humorous plotlines, centered on romantic ideals such as that true love is able to surmount most obstacles. One dictionary definition is "a funny movie, play, or television program about a love story that ends happily"...
, First Daughter
First Daughter (2004 film)
First Daughter is a 2004 American romantic comedy released by 20th Century Fox. It stars Katie Holmes as Samantha MacKenzie, daughter of the President of the United States, who enrolls at a college and develops a relationship with another student at the college played by Marc Blucas...
in 2004; he had co-starred with Holmes in Phone Booth
Phone Booth (film)
Phone Booth is a 2002 American suspense-thriller film about a man who is held hostage in a telephone booth by a sniper. It stars Colin Farrell, Kiefer Sutherland, Forest Whitaker, Katie Holmes, and Radha Mitchell. The film was directed by Joel Schumacher, with music composed by Harry Gregson-Williams...
in 2002. Whitaker served as an executive producer on First Daughter. He had previously gained experience as the executive producer of several made-for-television movies
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
, most notably the 2002 Emmy-award winning Door to Door
Door to Door (film)
Door to Door was a 2002 TV movie about Bill Porter , a door-to-door salesman with cerebral palsy. The film was produced for the TNT cable network and was nominated for twelve Emmy Awards, winning six...
, starring William H. Macy
William H. Macy
William Hall Macy, Jr. is an American actor and writer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as Jerry Lundegaard in Fargo. He is also a teacher and director in theater, film and television. His film career has been built mostly on his appearances in small, independent films, though...
. He produced these projects through his production company, Spirit Dance Entertainment, which he shut down in 2005 to concentrate on his acting career.
Honors
In addition to the numerous awards Whitaker won for his performance in The Last King of Scotland, he has also received several other honors. In September 2006, the 10th Annual Hollywood Film Festival presented him with its "Hollywood Actor of the Year Award," calling him "one of Hollywood's most accomplished actors." He was honored at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2007, where he received the American Riviera Award.Previously, in 2005, the Deauville (France) Festival of American Film paid tribute to him. Whitaker was the recipient of the 2,335th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
on April 16, 2007. He received an Honorary Degree from Xavier University of Louisiana
Xavier University of Louisiana
Xavier University of Louisiana , located in New Orleans, Louisiana, in the United States, is a private, coeducational, liberal arts college with the distinction of being the only historically black Roman Catholic institution of higher education...
in 2009 at the 82nd Commencement Ceremony. He has also produced Monte Carlo. He produced many years ago for the new film with Selena Gomez
Selena Gomez
Selena Marie Gomez is an American actress and singer best known for portraying Alex Russo in the Emmy Award-winning Disney Channel television series Wizards of Waverly Place...
.
Personal life
Family
In 1996, Whitaker married actress Keisha Nash, whom he met on the set of Blown AwayBlown Away (1994 film)
Blown Away is a 1994 action film starring Jeff Bridges and Tommy Lee Jones. It was directed by Stephen Hopkins.-Plot:Ryan Gaerity , an Irish terrorist, escapes from his cell in a castle prison in Northern Ireland....
. The Whitakers have four children: two daughters together (Sonnet and True), his son (Ocean) from a previous relationship, and her daughter (Autumn) from a previous relationship. On Inside the Actors Studio
Inside the Actors Studio
Inside the Actors Studio is a series on the Bravo cable television channel, hosted by James Lipton. It is produced and directed by Jeff Wurtz; the executive producer is James Lipton. The program, which premiered in 1994, is distributed internationally by CABLEready and is broadcast in 125 countries...
, Whitaker said that a genetic test indicated he was of Igbo descent on his father's side, and Akan
Akan people
The Akan people are an ethnic group found predominately in Ghana and The Ivory Coast. Akans are the majority in both of these countries and overall have a population of over 20 million people.The Akan speak Kwa languages-Origin and ethnogenesis:...
descent on his mother's side.
Martial arts
Whitaker studies yoga and has a black belt in kenpōKenpo
is the name of several Japanese martial arts. The word kenpō is a Japanese translation of the Chinese word "quánfǎ. This term is often informally transliterated as "kempo", as a result of applying Traditional Hepburn romanization, but failing to use a macron to indicate the long vowel...
. He also trains in the Filipino martial art of Kali, under Dan Inosanto
Dan Inosanto
Daniel Arca Inosanto is a Filipino-American martial arts instructor from California who is best known as a student of the late Bruce Lee and authority on Jeet Kune Do Concepts.-Martial arts:...
.
Ptosis
Whitaker's left eye ptosisPtosis (eyelid)
Ptosis is a drooping of the upper or lower eyelid. The drooping may be worse after being awake longer, when the individual's muscles are tired. This condition is sometimes called "lazy eye", but that term normally refers to amblyopia...
has been called "intriguing" by some critics and "gives him a sleepy, contemplative look." Whitaker has explained that the condition is hereditary and that he has considered having surgery to correct it, not for cosmetic reasons but because it affects his vision.
Charity work
Whitaker, who is a vegetarian, recorded a public service announcementPublic service announcement
A public service announcement or public service ad is a type of advertisement featured on television, radio, print or other media...
with his daughter, True, promoting vegetarianism on behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals is an American animal rights organization based in Norfolk, Virginia, and led by Ingrid Newkirk, its international president. A non-profit corporation with 300 employees and two million members and supporters, it claims to be the largest animal rights...
. He is also a supporter and public advocate for Hope North, a boarding school and vocational training center in northern Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
for escaped child soldiers, orphans, and other young victims of the country's civil war.
Politics
In politics, Whitaker supported and spoke on behalf of Senator Barack ObamaBarack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
in his 2008 presidential campaign. On April 6, 2009, Whitaker was given a chieftancy title in Imo State
Imo State
Imo State is one of the 36 states of Nigeria and lies to the south of Nigeria with Owerri as its capital and largest city.-History:Imo State came into existence in 1976 along with other new states created under the leadership of the late military ruler of Nigeria, Murtala Muhammad, having been...
, Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
. Whitaker, who was named a chief among the Igbo
Igbo people
Igbo people, also referred to as the Ibo, Ebo, Eboans or Heebo are an ethnic group living chiefly in southeastern Nigeria. They speak Igbo, which includes various Igboid languages and dialects; today, a majority of them speak English alongside Igbo as a result of British colonialism...
community of Nkwerre
Nkwerre
Nkwerre is a Local Government Area of Imo State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Nkwerre.It has an area of 38 km² and a population of 80,152 at the 2006 census.The postal code of the area is 471....
, was given the title Nwannedinamba of Nkwerre, which means A Brother in a Foreign Land.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Tag: The Assassination Game Tag: The Assassination Game TAG: The Assassination Game is a 1982 film directed by Nick Castle and starring Linda Hamilton in one of her first roles. It is based on the game Assassin... |
Gowdy's Bodyguard | |
| 1982 | Fast Times at Ridgemont High Fast Times at Ridgemont High Fast Times at Ridgemont High is a 1982 American coming-of-age teen comedy film written by Cameron Crowe and adapted from his 1981 book of the same name... |
Charles Jefferson | |
| 1985 | Vision Quest Vision Quest Vision Quest is a 1985 coming of age drama film starring Matthew Modine, Linda Fiorentino, and Ronny Cox. It is based on Terry Davis' novel of the same name. In some countries, it was released as Crazy for You to market on Madonna's emerging fame and the popularity of the song... |
Balldozer | |
| 1985 | North and South North and South (TV miniseries) North and South is the title of three American television miniseries broadcast on the ABC network in 1985, 1986, and 1994. Set before, during, and immediately after the American Civil War, they are based on the 1980s trilogy of novels North and South by John Jakes. The 1985 first installment, North... |
Cuffey | |
| 1986 | Amos | ||
| 1986 | North and South, Book II North and South (TV miniseries) North and South is the title of three American television miniseries broadcast on the ABC network in 1985, 1986, and 1994. Set before, during, and immediately after the American Civil War, they are based on the 1980s trilogy of novels North and South by John Jakes. The 1985 first installment, North... |
Cuffey | |
| 1986 | Platoon Platoon (film) Platoon is a 1986 American war film written and directed by Oliver Stone and stars Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe and Charlie Sheen. It is the first of Stone's Vietnam War trilogy, followed by 1989's Born on the Fourth of July and 1993's Heaven & Earth.... |
Big Harold | |
| 1987 | Stakeout | Jack Pismo | |
| 1987 | Good Morning, Vietnam Good Morning, Vietnam Good Morning, Vietnam is a 1987 American comedy-drama film set in Saigon during the Vietnam War, based on the career of Adrian Cronauer, a disc jockey on Armed Forces Radio Service , who proves hugely popular with the troops serving in South Vietnam, but infuriates his superiors with what they call... |
Edward Garlick | |
| 1988 | Bird Bird (1988 film) Bird is a 1988 American biographical film, produced and directed by Clint Eastwood of a screenplay written by Joel Oliansky. The film is a tribute to the life and music of jazz saxophonist Charlie "Bird" Parker... |
Charlie 'Bird' Parker Charlie Parker Charles Parker, Jr. , famously called Bird or Yardbird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer.... |
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama The Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture - Drama was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as a separate category in 1951... |
| 1988 | Bloodsport Bloodsport (film) Bloodsport is a 1988 American martial arts film directed by Newt Arnold and starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, Donald Gibb and Leah Ayres. The film is based on the claimed adventures of Frank Dux, and was followed by three sequels Bloodsport II: The Next Kumite , Bloodsport III and Bloodsport 4: The... |
Rawlins | |
| 1989 | Johnny Handsome Johnny Handsome Johnny Handsome is an 1989 American crime-drama film directed by Walter Hill and starring Mickey Rourke, Ellen Barkin and Morgan Freeman. The film was written by Ken Friedman, from the novel by John Godey. The music for the film was written, produced and performed by Ry Cooder, and Jim Keltner... |
Dr. Steven Fisher | |
| 1990 | Downtown Downtown (film) Downtown is a 1990 American police action comedy film directed by Richard Benjamin. This would be the second pairing of Anthony Edwards and Forest Whitaker both of whom played roles in Fast Times at Ridgemont High. -Plot:... |
Dennis Curren | |
| 1991 | Diary of a Hitman Diary of a Hitman Diary of a Hitman is a 1991 drama/thriller directed by Roy London and written by Kenneth Pressman, based on his play Insider's Price. The film stars Forest Whitaker, Sherilyn Fenn, James Belushi, Sharon Stone and Lois Chiles.... |
Dekker | |
| 1991 | Jackson | ||
| 1992 | Article 99 Article 99 Article 99 is a 1992 American dramatic film written by Ron Cutler and directed by Howard Deutch. It was produced by Orion Pictures and starred Kiefer Sutherland, Ray Liotta, Forest Whitaker, John C. McGinley, Rutanya Alda and Lea Thompson... |
Dr. Sid Handleman | |
| 1992 | Jody | ||
| 1992 | Consenting Adults | David Duttonville | |
| 1993 | Bank Robber Bank Robber (film) -Plot:Billy , is a well dressed bank robber who decides to do one last heist so he can sail off to a tropical island with his girlfriend, Selina . On his last robbery, he forgets to destroy a surveillance camera... |
Officer Battle | |
| 1993 | Body Snatchers Body Snatchers (1993 film) Body Snatchers is a 1993 American science fiction horror film and loosely based on the 1955 novel The Body Snatchers by Jack Finney. The film was directed by Abel Ferrara, starring Gabrielle Anwar, Billy Wirth, Terry Kinney, Meg Tilly, R... |
Major Collins | |
| 1994 | Blown Away Blown Away (1994 film) Blown Away is a 1994 action film starring Jeff Bridges and Tommy Lee Jones. It was directed by Stephen Hopkins.-Plot:Ryan Gaerity , an Irish terrorist, escapes from his cell in a castle prison in Northern Ireland.... |
Anthony Franklin | |
| 1994 | Prêt-à-Porter Prêt-à-Porter (film) Prêt-à-Porter is a 1994 American satirical black comedy film co-written, directed, and produced by Robert Altman and shot during the Paris, France, Fashion Week with a host of international stars, models and designers... |
Cy Bianco | NBR Award for Best Cast National Board of Review Award for Best Cast The National Board of Review Award for Best Acting by an Ensemble is an annual film award given by the National Board of Review.-1990s:... |
| 1994 | Jason's Lyric Jason's Lyric Jason's Lyric is a 1994 romantic drama film, written by Bobby Smith, Jr., and directed by Doug McHenry. The film marks the directorial debut of McHenry, who co-produced the film with George Jackson... |
Maddog | |
| 1995 | Species Species (film) Species is a 1995 science fiction horror film directed by Roger Donaldson, and starring Ben Kingsley, Michael Madsen, Alfred Molina, Forest Whitaker, Marg Helgenberger, and Natasha Henstridge... |
Dan Smithson, Empath | |
| 1995 | Smoke Smoke (film) Smoke is an American independent film released in 1995. It was produced by Hisami Kuroiwa, Harvey Weinstein and Bob Weinstein and directed by Wayne Wang and Paul Auster... |
Cyrus Cole | |
| 1996 | Phenomenon Phenomenon (film) Phenomenon is a 1996 romantic fantasy-drama film written by Gerald Di Pego, directed by Jon Turteltaub, and starring John Travolta, Kyra Sedgwick, Forest Whitaker, and Robert Duvall.... |
Nate Pope | |
| 1998 | Body Count Body Count Body Count is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1990. The group is fronted by rapper and actor Ice-T, who founded the group out of his interest in heavy metal music, taking on the role of vocalist and writing the lyrics for most of the group's songs. Lead guitarist... |
Crane | |
| 1999 | Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai is a 1999 American crime action film written and directed by Jim Jarmusch. Forest Whitaker stars as the title character, the mysterious "Ghost Dog", a hitman in the employ of the Mafia, who follows the ancient code of the samurai as outlined in the book of Yamamoto... |
Ghost Dog | |
| 1999 | Light It Up Light It Up (film) Light It Up is a 1999 American drama film starring an ensemble cast that consists of R&B singer/actor Usher Raymond , Rosario Dawson, Forest Whitaker, and Vanessa L. Williams. The film was written and directed by Craig Bolotin, and produced by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds and his wife Tracy Edmonds... |
Officer Dante Jackson | |
| 2000 | Battlefield Earth Battlefield Earth (film) Battlefield Earth is a 2000 American science fiction film adapted from L. Ron Hubbard's novel of the same name. It was directed by Roger Christian, and stars John Travolta, Forest Whitaker, and Barry Pepper... |
Ker | Nominated - Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actor |
| 2000 | Four Dogs Playing Poker Four Dogs Playing Poker (film) Four Dogs Playing Poker is a 2000 crime thriller directed by Paul Rachman starring Stacy Edwards, Balthazar Getty, Olivia Williams, Daniel London, Tim Curry and Forest Whitaker.-Plot:... |
Mr. Ellington | |
| 2001 | Agent Jules Bernard | ||
| 2001 | The Employer | uncredited | |
| 2001 | Green Dragon Green Dragon (film) Green Dragon is a 2001 American film directed by Timothy Linh Bui and starring Patrick Swayze, Forest Whitaker and Duong Don.-Plot:The film follows the experience of Vietnamese refugees in the United States immediately following the Fall of Saigon at the end of the Vietnam War. Tai Tran has been... |
Addie | |
| 2002 | Panic Room | Burnham | Nominated - Black Reel Award for Best Supporting Actor Black Reel Award: Best Supporting Actor Here are the winners & nominees for the Black Reel Award for Best Supporting Actor.*Djimon Hounsou & Jamie Foxx hold the record for most wins, with two each.... |
| 2002 | Phone Booth Phone Booth (film) Phone Booth is a 2002 American suspense-thriller film about a man who is held hostage in a telephone booth by a sniper. It stars Colin Farrell, Kiefer Sutherland, Forest Whitaker, Katie Holmes, and Radha Mitchell. The film was directed by Joel Schumacher, with music composed by Harry Gregson-Williams... |
Captain Ed Ramey | Theatrical release was delayed due to the Beltway sniper attacks Beltway sniper attacks The Washington sniper attacks took place during three weeks in October 2002 in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. Ten people were killed and three others critically injured in various locations throughout the Washington Metropolitan Area and along Interstate 95 in Virginia... in October 2002. |
| 2004 | First Daughter First Daughter (2004 film) First Daughter is a 2004 American romantic comedy released by 20th Century Fox. It stars Katie Holmes as Samantha MacKenzie, daughter of the President of the United States, who enrolls at a college and develops a relationship with another student at the college played by Marc Blucas... |
Narrator | also directed |
| 2005 | Abe Holt | ||
| 2005 | American Gun American Gun American Gun is a 2005 film produced by Participant Productions, IFC Films, IFC First Take, and Spirit Dance Entertainment. It was written in 2001 by Steven Bagatourian and Aric Avelino and directed by Avelino as his directorial debut.... |
Carter | Nominated—Independent Spirit Award for Best Lead Male |
| 2005 | Mary Mary (2005 film) Mary is a 2005 drama thriller film, written and directed by American director Abel Ferrara. The film stars Juliette Binoche, Forest Whitaker, Marion Cotillard, Matthew Modine and Heather Graham.... |
Ted Younger | |
| 2006 | Even Money Even Money (film) Even Money is a 2006 American crime film.The story concerns three strangers who are addicted to gambling and how their lives come to be intertwined. They are a novelist who struggles to write her follow-up book, a former stage magician and an older brother of a college basketball star... |
Clyde Snow | |
| 2006 | The Marsh The Marsh (film) The Marsh is a 2006 Film directed by Jordan Barker and written by Michael Stokes. The horror film's tagline is:You can bury the past, but sometimes the past won't stay buried...- Plot :... |
Geoffrey Hunt | |
| 2006 | Everyone's Hero Everyone's Hero The soundtrack, released on the Columbia Records/Sony Music Soundtrax labels, features tracks by the star of the film Raven-Symoné, Grammy-winners Wyclef Jean, Brooks & Dunn, Mary Chapin Carpenter, and various other artists.... |
Lonnie Brewster | voice only |
| 2006 | Idi Amin Idi Amin Idi Amin Dada was a military leader and President of Uganda from 1971 to 1979. Amin joined the British colonial regiment, the King's African Rifles in 1946. Eventually he held the rank of Major General in the post-colonial Ugandan Army and became its Commander before seizing power in the military... |
Academy Award for Best Actor Academy Award for Best Actor Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry... BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role Best Actor in a Leading Role is a British Academy Film award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding leading performance in a film.-Superlatives:... BET Award for Best Actor BET Awards The BET Awards were established in 2001 by the Black Entertainment Television network to celebrate African Americans and other minorities in music, acting, sports, and other fields of entertainment over the past year. The awards are presented annually and broadcast live on BET... Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor The Critics' Choice Award for Best Actor is one of the awards given to people working in the motion picture industry by the Broadcast Film Critics Association.-List of winners and nominees:*1995: Kevin Bacon - Murder in the First as Henri Young... Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama The Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture - Drama was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as a separate category in 1951... Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor The Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor is an award given by the Kansas City Film Critics Circle to honor the best achievements in acting.-1960s:-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:*... Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor The Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor is an award given by the Las Vegas Film Critics Society to honor the best actor of the year.-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor The London Film Critics Circle Award for Actor of the Year in an annual award given by the London Film Critics Circle.-2000s:-2010s:... Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor The Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor is one of the annual awards given by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:... NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding African-American Actors in a Motion Picture:# of Performances that have won or been nominated for an Academy Award :*1. Louis Gossett Jr.- An Officer and a Gentleman... National Board of Review Award for Best Actor National Board of Review Award for Best Actor An incomplete list of the winners of the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures Award for Best Actor :-1940s:-1950s:-1960s:-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actor National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actor The National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actor is an annual award given by the National Society of Film Critics to honor the best leading actor of the year.-1960s:-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor The New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor is one of the awards given by the New York Film Critics Circle to honor the finest achievements in filmmaking.... Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor The Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor is an annual film award given by the Online Film Critics Society to honor the best lead actor of the year.-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor The Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is an award given by the Phoenix Film Critics Society to honor the finest achievements in filmmaking.-2000s:-2010s:... Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association for Best Actor Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association The Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association is a group of film critics based out of Washington, D.C., United States that was founded in 2003. WAFCA is composed of 34 DC-based film critics from television, radio, print and the internet... Nominated — British Independent Film Award for Best Actor British Independent Film Awards The Moët British Independent Film Awards is an annual award ceremony celebrating achievement in independently funded British film and cinema. Nominations and jury are announced at the beginning of November with the award ceremony taking place in late November or early December.-History:The British... |
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| 2007 | Happiness | ||
| 2007 | Ripple Effect | Philip | |
| 2007 | James L. Farmer, Sr. James L. Farmer, Sr. James Leonard Farmer, Sr. was an American author, theologian, educator, and the first African-American Texan to earn a doctorate. Farmer served as a deacon in the Methodist Episcopal Church and as a professor at several historically black colleges and universities in the U.S... |
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| 2008 | Vantage Point Vantage Point (film) Vantage Point is a 2008 American political action thriller film directed by Pete Travis. It was adapted from a screenplay written by Barry L. Levy. The story focuses on an assassination attempt on the President of the United States as seen from a different set of vantage points through the eyes of... |
Howard Lewis | |
| 2008 | Street Kings | Capt. Jack Wander | |
| 2008 | Dragon Hunters Dragon Hunters (film) Dragon Hunters is a 2008 French computer-animated fantasy film, directed by creator Arthur Qwak and Guillaume Ivernel. It stars the voices of Vincent Lindon, Patrick Timsit and Marie Drion. The film was produced by Futurikon, and co-produced by LuxAnimation, Mac Guff Ligne and Trixter... |
Lian Chu | Voice — English version |
| 2009 | Powder Blue Powder Blue (film) Powder Blue is a 2009 drama film with an ensemble cast featuring several interconnected story arcs. It was written and directed by Timothy Linh Bui based on the 1997 novel Ponto de Partida by brazilian medium Chico Xavier, and features Patrick Swayze's last film appearance before his September 2009... |
Charlie | |
| 2009 | Winged Creatures Winged Creatures (film) Fragments is a 2008 film adaptation of Roy Freirich's novel Winged Creatures. It stars Kate Beckinsale, Dakota Fanning, Josh Hutcherson, Guy Pearce, Forest Whitaker, Jennifer Hudson, Jackie Earle Haley, Jeanne Tripplehorn and Embeth Davidtz... |
Charlie Archenault | |
| 2009 | Where the Wild Things Are Where the Wild Things Are (film) Where the Wild Things Are is a 2009 American fantasy drama film directed by Spike Jonze and adapted from Maurice Sendak's 1963 children's book Where the Wild Things Are. It combines live action, performers in costumes, animatronics, and computer-generated imagery... |
Ira | (voice only) |
| 2009 | Lullaby for Pi | George | |
| 2009 | Hurricane Season Hurricane Season (film) Hurricane Season is a sports drama film directed by Tim Story and starring Forest Whitaker, Taraji P. Henson, Lil Wayne, and Bow Wow. The screenplay was written by Robert Eisele and the film was produced by Raymond Brothers and Scott Glassgold... |
Al Collins | |
| 2010 | Repo Men | Jake Freivald | |
| 2010 | My Own Love Song My Own Love Song My Own Love Song is a 2010 road movie directed and written by Olivier Dahan and starring Renée Zellweger, Forest Whitaker, Madeline Zima and Nick Nolte... |
Joey | |
| 2010 | Barris | ||
| 2010 | Our Family Wedding Our Family Wedding Our Family Wedding is a romantic comedy film starring Forest Whitaker, America Ferrera, Carlos Mencia, Lance Gross, Shannyn Sossamon and Regina King... |
Bradford Boyd | |
| 2011 | Catch .44 Catch .44 Catch .44 is an upcoming action drama starring Bruce Willis, Forest Whitaker, Malin Akerman and Nikki Reed. The film is written and directed by Aaron Harvey.- Cast :* Bruce Willis as Mel* Malin Åkerman as Tes* Deborah Ann Woll as Dawn... |
Ronny | post-production |
| 2012 | Freelancers Freelancers (film) Freelancers is an upcoming crime-drama film directed by Jessy Terrero, and stars Robert DeNiro, 50 Cent, Dana Delany and Forest Whitaker. Filming will take place in New Orleans, Louisiana.-Plot:... |
TBA | pre-production |
| 2013 | The Last Stand The Last Stand (2013 film) The Last Stand is an upcoming 2013 American action film directed by Kim Ji-woon and Arnold Schwarzenegger's first starring role since 2003. This is the first American production for Kim Ji-woon and cinematographer Kim Ji-yong.-Cast:... |
TBA | filming |
| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 1993 | Strapped Strapped Strapped is a 1993 television crime-thriller/drama, produced by HBO Films for HBO. It starred, William James Stiggers Jr., Chi Ali and was the debut film of Bokeem Woodbine and rapper Fredro Starr... |
| 1995 | Waiting to Exhale Waiting to Exhale Waiting to Exhale is a 1995 romance film starring Whitney Houston and Angela Bassett, directed by Forest Whitaker. The movie was adapted from the 1992 novel of the same name by Terry McMillan. Loretta Devine, Lela Rochon, Dennis Haysbert, Michael Beach, Gregory Hines, Donald Faison and Mykelti... |
| 1998 | Hope Floats Hope Floats Hope Floats is a 1998 American romantic drama film directed by Forest Whitaker, and starring Sandra Bullock, Harry Connick, Jr. and Gena Rowlands.... |
| 2004 | First Daughter First Daughter (2004 film) First Daughter is a 2004 American romantic comedy released by 20th Century Fox. It stars Katie Holmes as Samantha MacKenzie, daughter of the President of the United States, who enrolls at a college and develops a relationship with another student at the college played by Marc Blucas... |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Making The Grade Making the Grade (TV series) Making the Grade was a short-lived American sitcom which aired on CBS from April 5 until May 10, 1982. It starred James Naughton, Graham Jarvis, Alley Mills, Steven Peterman, and boasted the first TV series roles for Philip Charles MacKenzie and George Wendt. It was set at Franklin High School in St... |
Episode "Marriage David Style" | |
| 1983 | Cagney & Lacey Cagney & Lacey Cagney & Lacey is an American television series that originally aired on the CBS television network for seven seasons from October 8, 1981 to May 16, 1988... |
Night Manager | Episode "The Grandest Jewel Thief of Them All" |
| 1984 | Trapper John, M.D. Trapper John, M.D. Trapper John, M.D. is an American television medical drama and spin-off of the film MASH, concerning a lovable surgeon who became a mentor and father figure in San Francisco, California. The show ran on CBS from September 23, 1979, to September 4, 1986.... |
Lewis Jordan | Episode "School Nurse" |
| 1984 | Hill Street Blues Hill Street Blues Hill Street Blues is an American serial police drama that was first aired on NBC in 1981 and ran for 146 episodes on primetime into 1987. Chronicling the lives of the staff of a single police precinct in an unnamed American city, the show received critical acclaim and its production innovations ... |
Floyd Green | Episode "Blues for Mr. Green" |
| 1985 | Diff'rent Strokes Diff'rent Strokes Diff'rent Strokes is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from November 3, 1978 to May 4, 1985, and on ABC from September 27, 1985 to March 7, 1986... |
Herman | Episode "Bully for Arnold" |
| 1985 | Television movie | ||
| 1985 | Friend | Episode "Spring Break" | |
| 1986 | Amazing Stories Amazing Stories Amazing Stories was an American science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback's Experimenter Publishing. It was the first magazine devoted solely to science fiction... |
Jerry | Episode "Gather Ye Acorns" |
| 1987 | Hands of a Stranger | Sergeant Delaney | Television movie |
| 1990 | Criminal Justice | Jessie Williams | Television movie |
| 1993 | Lush Life | Buddy Chester | Television movie |
| 1993 | Last Light Last Light (film) Last Light is a 1993 film starring Forest Whitaker, Kiefer Sutherland, and Danny Trejo.-Plot:The film is about awaiting execution. Denver Bayliss gains an unlikely friend and confidant in Fred Whitmore , a former cop who is now a prison guard. Whitmore's life is a mess, however: he shuts out his... |
Fred Whitmore | Television movie |
| 1994 | Colonel MacKenzie 'Mac' Casey | Television movie | |
| 1996 | Rebound: The Legend of Earl "The Goat" Manigault Rebound: The Legend of Earl "The Goat" Manigault Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault is a 1996 HBO television film about Earl Manigault, an American street basketball legendary player famous under his nickname of "The Goat."... |
Mr. Rucker | Television movie |
| 1999 | Witness Protection Witness Protection (film) Witness Protection is a 1999 American television movie directed by Richard Pearce. The teleplay by Daniel Therriault is based on a New York Times Magazine article entitled The Invisible Family by Robert Sabbag... |
Steven Beck | Television movie |
| 2001 | Feast of All Saints | Daguerreotypist Picard | Television movie |
| 2003 | Deacons for Defense | Marcus Clay | Television movie |
| 2002– 2003 |
Host / Narrator | 44 episodes | |
| 2006– 2007 |
ER ER (TV series) ER is an American medical drama television series created by novelist Michael Crichton that aired on NBC from September 19, 1994 to April 2, 2009. It was produced by Constant c Productions and Amblin Entertainment, in association with Warner Bros. Television... |
Curtis Ames | 6 episodes |
| 2006– 2007 |
The Shield The Shield The Shield is an American television drama series starring Michael Chiklis which premiered on March 12, 2002 on FX in the United States and concluded on November 25, 2008 after seven seasons... |
Lieutenant Jon Kavanaugh | (Seasons 5 and 6) |
| 2007– 2009 |
American Dad! American Dad! American Dad! is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane and owned by Underdog Productions and Fuzzy Door Productions. It is produced in association with 20th Century Fox Television... |
Turlington | 3 episodes |
| 2010 | Criminal Minds Criminal Minds Criminal Minds is an American police procedural drama that premiered September 22, 2005, on CBS. The series follows a team of profilers from the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit based in Quantico, Virginia. The BAU is part of the FBI National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime... |
Sam Cooper | Episode "The Fight" |
| 2011 | Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior was an American police procedural drama on CBS. The show debuted in 2011 as a spin-off from the successful Criminal Minds, which premiered in 2005. This edition's profiling team also works for the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Behavioral Analysis Unit in... |
Sam Cooper | Spin-off |