Cast & creator
Forest Whitaker
Best known for The Daily Show, American Dad!, Criminal Minds
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.
Also known as: Forest Steven Whitaker III, Forest Steven Whitaker, פורסט ויטאקר
160
film credits
49
television credits
172
1952–2027 · acting roles
6.4
average across scored titles
Signature credits
Known for
Across film & television
Filmography (209)
Showing 209 of 209 credits
The Daily Show
Self
1996
American Dad!
Turlington (voice)
2005
Criminal Minds
Sam Cooper
2005
Saturday Night Live
Self - Host
1975
The View
Self
1997
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
Self
2005
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Self - Guest
2003
The Jennifer Hudson Show
Self
2022
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
Self
1988
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
1992
ER
Curtis Ames
1994
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
Self
2003
Hill Street Blues
1981
American Idol
Self
2002
Empire
Eddie Barker
2015
The Shield
Jon Kavanaugh
2002
Cagney & Lacey
Night Manager
1982
Andor
Saw Gerrera
2022
Star Wars Rebels
Saw Gerrera (voice)
2014
Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter
Self
2015
Steve
Self
2017
Godfather of Harlem
Ellsworth 'Bumpy' Johnson
2019Godfather of Harlem
Executive Producer
2019
Black Panther
Zuri
2018
The Twilight Zone
Self - Host
2002
Amazing Stories
Jerry
1985
The Oscars
Self - Presenter
1953The Oscars
Self
1953
Today
Self
1952
Arrival
Colonel Weber
2016
Taken 3
Inspector Frank Dotzler
2014
North and South
Cuffey
1985
Live from E!
Self
2002
Extrapolations
Auggie Bolo
2023Where Are They Now?
Self
1999
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Saw Gerrera
2016
Southpaw
Titus 'Tick' Wills
2015
Platoon
Big Harold
1986
The Early Show
Self
1999
The Last Stand
Agent John Bannister
2013
Bloodsport
Rawlins
1988
Panic Room
Burnham
2002
Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior
Sam Cooper
2011
Street Kings
Captain Jack Wander
2008
Species
Dan Smithson, Empath
1995
The King of Kings
Peter (voice)
2025
Roots
Fiddler
2016
Vantage Point
Howard Lewis
2008
Hollywood Black
Self
2024Hollywood Black
Executive Producer
2024
Phone Booth
Captain Ramey
2003
Havoc
Lawrence Beaumont
2025
Everyone's Hero
Lonnie Brewster (voice)
2006
The Hire
The Employer
2001
The Color of Money
Amos
1986
Big George Foreman
Doc Broadus
2023
The Emperor of Ocean Park
Judge Oliver Garland
2024
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Charles Jefferson
1982
The Last King of Scotland
Idi Amin
2006
The Experiment
Barris
2010
The Great Debaters
Dr. James Farmer Sr.
2007
The Butler
Cecil Gaines
2013
Repo Men
Jake
2010
Good Morning, Vietnam
Edward Garlick
1987
Phenomenon
Nate Pope
1996
Fruitvale Station
Producer
2013
City of Lies
Jack Jackson
2018
Sorry to Bother You
First Equisapien / Demarius
2018Sorry to Bother You
Producer
2018
Where the Wild Things Are
Ira (voice)
2009
Out of the Furnace
Chief Wesley Barnes
2013
A Rage in Harlem
Jackson
1991A Rage in Harlem
Co-Producer
1991
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
Ghost Dog
1999
Clint Eastwood: A Cinematic Legacy
Self
2021
Blown Away
Anthony Franklin
1994
Monte Carlo
Executive Producer
2011
First Daughter
Narrator (voice)
2004First Daughter
Director
2004First Daughter
Executive Producer
2004
How It Ends
Tom
2018
Hope Floats
Director
1998Hope Floats
Executive Music Producer
1998
Mr. Holland's Opus
Bobby Tidd as an adult (uncredited)
1995
Battlefield Earth
Ker
2000
The Crying Game
Jody
1992
Waiting to Exhale
Director
1995
Fancy Dance
Executive Producer
2024
Dope
The Narrator (voice)
2015Dope
Producer
2015
Vision Quest
Balldozer
1985
Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey
Jeronicus Jangle
2020
The Air I Breathe
Happiness
2007
Body Snatchers
Major Collins
1993
Prêt-à-Porter
Cy Bianco
1994
By Whatever Means Necessary: The Times of Godfather of Harlem
Self
2020By Whatever Means Necessary: The Times of Godfather of Harlem
Executive Producer
2020
Catch.44
Ronny
2011
Respect
C. L. Franklin
2021
Passing
Producer
2021
Powder Blue
Charlie
2009Powder Blue
Producer
2009
Stakeout
Det. Jack Pismo
1987
Pawn
Will
2013
Winged Creatures
Charlie Archenault
2009
Even Money
Clyde Snow
2007
Smoke
Cyrus Cole
1995
Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend
Self (archive footage)
2022
My Own Love Song
Joey
2010
Diary of a Hitman
Dekker
1991
Consenting Adults
David Duttonville
1992
Witness Protection
Steven Beck
1999
Diff'rent Strokes
1978
Andor: A Disney+ Day Special Look
Saw Gerrera (archive footage) (uncredited)
2022
The Forgiven
Desmond Tutu
2018
Zulu
Ali Sokhela
2013
Johnny Handsome
Dr. Steven Fisher
1989
A Dark Truth
Francisco Francis
2012
Bring Me the Horizon: L.I.V.E. in São Paulo
Self (archive footage)
2026
Chadwick Boseman: A Tribute for a King
Self
2020
Article 99
Dr. Sid Handleman
1992
The Marsh
Geoffrey Hunt
2006
A Little Trip to Heaven
Abe Holt
2005
Hurricane Season
Al Collins
2010
Freelancers
Dennis Larue
2012
Body Count
Crane
1998Brick City
Executive Producer
2009
The Fourth Angel
Agent Jules Bernard
2001
Mary
Ted Younger
2005
The Enemy Within
Col. MacKenzie Casey
1994
Cannes Festival
Self - Guest
2022
Feast of All Saints
Daguerreotypist Picard
2001
Our Family Wedding
Brad Boyd
2010
Inside the Actors Studio
Self
1994
My Generation
Self - Narrator (voice)
2024
Light It Up
Officer Dante Jackson
1999
Bird
Charlie 'Bird' Parker
1988
Jiminy Glick in Lalawood
Forest Whitaker
2005
Chasing Papi
Producer
2003
Hands of a Stranger
Sergeant Delaney
1987
Finding Steve McQueen
Howard Lambert
2019
Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault
Mr. Rucker
1996
Roxanne Roxanne
Producer
2017
Four Dogs Playing Poker
Mr. Ellington
2000
Up Against It
2027
A Man's Story
Self
2011
2Everything2Terrible2: Tokyo Drift
(archive footage)
2010
Downtown
Dennis Curren
1990
Two Men in Town
William Garnett
2014
Songs My Brothers Taught Me
Producer
2015
Repentance
Angel
2014Rise of the Empress
Executive Producer
The Stories: The Making of 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'
Self
2017
Bank Robber
Officer Battle
1993
Serving Life
Narrator (voice)
2011Serving Life
Executive Producer
2011
Door to Door
Co-Executive Producer
2002
Devil's Pie: D'Angelo
Producer
2019
American Gun
Carter
2005American Gun
Executive Producer
2005
Tag: The Assassination Game
Gowdy's Bodyguard
1982
Jason's Lyric
Maddog
1994
To Live and Die and Live
Producer
2025
Star Wars: Go Rogue
Saw Gerrera (voice)
2016
Nations United: Urgent Solutions for Urgent Times
Self
2020
A Tour of the Inferno: Revisiting 'Platoon'
Self
2001
Clint Eastwood: Out of the Shadows
Self
2000
Lucky Lu
Executive Producer
2026
Black Nativity
Reverend Cornell Cobbs
2013
Before the Music Dies
Self - Narrator (voice)
2006
Green Dragon
Addie
2001Green Dragon
Executive Producer
2001
A Kid from Coney Island
Executive Producer
2019
Crips and Bloods: Made in America
Narrator
2009Ghost Dog: The Odyssey: The Journey Into the Life of a Samurai
2001
Food Chains
2014
The Follow
The Employer
2001
Criminal Justice
Jessie Williams
1990
Burden
Reverend Kennedy
2018
Lullaby for Pi
George
2010
Prophets of Change
Narrator
2022
Strapped
Director
1993
Clint Eastwood: The Man from Malpaso
Self
1994
Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life
Lion
2010
Last Light
Fred Whitmore
1993Making of Phone Booth
Self
2003
Odyssey in Rome
2005
Making a Scene | 11 Performances
2013
Ripple Effect
Philip
2007Ripple Effect
Executive Producer
2007
The Paperboy
Narrator
2000
Triumph: The Untold Story of Perry Wallace
Narrator (voice)
2018
A Little Off Mark
Thanks
1986
Mysteries of the Unseen World
Narrator
2013Rosetta
Producer
Shooting 'Panic Room'
Self
2004
For the Sake of Peace
Producer
2022
Lush Life
Buddy Chester
1993
Xenolinguistics: Understanding 'Arrival'
Self
2017
Deacons for Defense
Marcus Clay
2005
Transplant
Producer
2024
Kassim the Dream
Producer
2009
Seaweed Stories
Self - Narrator (voice)
2024The Grand Baby
1983The Misbehavers
Self
2004
Rising from Ashes
Narrator
2013Rising from Ashes
Executive Producer
2013I Am You
Narrator (voice)
2016Sewing Hope
Narrator (voice)