June Carter Cash
Musical Monikers
Madonna
Justin Bieber
My Ghost Story
I Survived
Babe Ruth
Johnny Cash
Georgia O'Keefe
I Survived
Quick Facts
- NAME: Forest Whitaker
- OCCUPATION: Film Actor, Filmmaker
- BIRTH DATE: July 15, 1961 (Age: 51)
- EDUCATION: California State Polytechnic University, University of Southern California
- PLACE OF BIRTH: Longview, Texas
- Full Name: Forest Steven Whitaker
- AKA: Forest Whitaker
- ZODIAC SIGN: Cancer
Best Known For
Actor, producer and director Forest Whitaker won an Academy Award for his portrayal of dictator Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland. He’s also known for films like Bird, Ghost Dog and The Butler.
Videos see all videos
Forest Whitaker - Inspired by Martin Luther King
Actor Forest Whitaker recounts the importance of Martin Luther King’s legacy and his personal feelings about the civil rights activist.
Quiz
Think you know about Biography?
Answer questions and see how you rank against other players.
Play NowForest Steven Whitaker. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 07:25, May 23, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/forest-whitaker-212046.
Forest Steven Whitaker. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/forest-whitaker-212046 [Accessed 23 May 2013].
"Forest Steven Whitaker." 2013. The Biography Channel website. May 23 2013, 07:25 http://www.biography.com/people/forest-whitaker-212046.
"Forest Steven Whitaker," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/forest-whitaker-212046 [accessed May 23, 2013].
"Forest Steven Whitaker," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/forest-whitaker-212046 (accessed May 23, 2013).
Forest Steven Whitaker [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 May 23] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/forest-whitaker-212046.
Forest Steven Whitaker, http://www.biography.com/people/forest-whitaker-212046 (last visited May 23, 2013).
Forest Steven Whitaker. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/forest-whitaker-212046. Accessed May 23, 2013.
Synopsis
Born on July 15, 1961 in Longview, Texas, Forest Whitaker was a college football player who turned to studying opera and drama. His first big-screen feature was Fast Times at Ridgemont High and he has subsequently created a prolific acting career, with roles in films like Platoon, Bird, Ready to Wear and Ghost Dog. Whitaker, who’s also a producer and director,
Contents
Quotes
"...the advice I remember the most was from my mom. She said, 'Believe in something, no matter what.' She told me that, when I had a purpose, I should follow it."
"When I follow and go through a character, I’m searching for those things that connect me to him, me, personally. I think that when I look at the world, I’m looking also for those connections. I’m looking at connectivity of how we can exist together in a humane and a positive way on this planet, and how we can uplift each other."
won an Oscar for portraying Idi Amin in 2006’s The Last King of Scotland.
Background and Early Films
Forest Steven Whitaker was born on July 15, 1961 in Longview, Texas, with his family later moving to Southern California. Whitaker was a star quarterback in high school and won a scholarship to play at California State Polytechnic University. After being sidelined with an injury, he transferred to the University of Southern California to study opera and drama.
Whitaker made his feature film debut in 1982's seminal teen comedy Fast Times at Ridgemont High, with Nicolas Cage and Sean Penn. The versatile actor appeared in several acclaimed films throughout the ‘80s, including Platoon (1986), Good Morning, Vietnam (1987) and The Color of Money (1986). In 1988, his turn as musician Charlie Parker in Clint Eastwood’s dark biopic Bird won him the Best Actor award at the Cannes Film Festival. More and more on-screen projects continued for Whitaker throughout the ‘90s and early ‘00s with films like Robert Altman’s Ready to Wear (1994), Jim Jarmusch’s Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (2000) and David Fincher’s Panic Room (2002), co-starring Jodi Foster.
Directing 'Waiting to Exhale'
Whitaker soon expanded to producing and directing, having particular success in television with such projects as 1993's gritty urban film Strapped for HBO and 2002's Emmy-winning Door to Door starring William H. Macy. He also directed for the big screen; his films include 1995's Waiting to Exhale, an adaptation of the Terry McMillan novel that starred Whitney Houston and Angela Bassett, and 2004's First Daughter, a romantic comedy starring Katie Holmes. Whitaker has directed a number of music videos as well, including Houston’s “Exhale (Shoop Shoop).”
Winning the Oscar
In 2006, Whitaker made several notable television appearances, including the role of a troubled internal affairs cop on FX's award-winning The Shield and a riveting turn as a stroke patient on ER. That year, he won critical acclaim for his powerful performance as dictator Idi Amin in the film The Last King of Scotland (2006). The role earned him numerous accolades, including the Best Actor Academy Award.
Whitaker’s filmography expanded throughout the decade, with the thespian providing thoughtful commentary on some of his work in interviews. In 2007 he starred in The Great Debaters, a film directed by Denzel Washington that focused on a trailblazing African-American college team. Additional movie projects for the year included The Air I Breathe, Even Money and Ripple Effect, and more featured roles followed in ensemble dramas like Vantage Point (2008) and Fragments (2009), the children’s book adaptation Where the Wild Things Are (2009), the sci-fi thriller Repo Men (2010) and the comedy Our Family Wedding (2010).
profile name: Forest Whitaker profile occupation:
Your Connections
Sign in with Facebook to see how you and your friends are connected to famous icons.
Profile Connections
Included In These Groups
-
African-American Biopics
View groupWho can forget Angela Bassett as Tina Turner or Jamie Foxx as Ray Charles? Do you remember who played Billie Holiday? Or who Beyoncé performed as in the film Cadillac Records? More recent African-American biopics include the Lifetime original movie Betty & Coretta (2013), starring Angela Bassett as Coretta Scott King and Mary J. Blige as Betty Shabazz, and The Butler (2013), starring Forest Whitaker and based on the life of Eugene Allen.
View our photos of African-American biopics to compare these famous figures to the actors and actresses who have portrayed them.
African-American Biopics 39 people in this group
-
Best Actor Oscar Winners
View groupExplore our collection of Best Actor Oscar winners, including Daniel Day-Lewis, Adrien Brody, Colin Firth, Forest Whitaker, Tom Hanks and Sean Penn. View full biographies, photos and videos, only at Biography.com.
Best Actor Oscar Winners 64 people in this group
-
Oscar-Winning Portrayals
View groupTruth is often more fascinating than fiction. Since the beginning of movies, actors have been portraying figures from history and bringing them to life on screen. Mastering the well-known mannerisms and characteristics of real world figures can be more challenging than portraying a fictional character. Enormous amounts of research and drastic physical transformations are not uncommon for actors wanting to properly inhabit their role on film. Whether playing a scheming Queen, a country singer, a temperamental boxer, or a pioneering writer, those performers who can accurately play the part often find Oscar gold as their reward. Here are the Academy Award-winning actors, and the larger-than-life people they portrayed.
Oscar-Winning Portrayals 70 people in this group
presented by Oscar-Winning Portrayals
