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Forest Whitaker

Birth name: Forest Steven Whitaker

Birth date: 15.07.1961

African American actor Forest Whitaker has packaged a king-size talent into his hulking, hefty 6' 2", 250 lb frame. The Texas-born teddy bear with the soft tones and chubby baby face would seemingly be a longshot for film stardom as he was also afflicted with a "lazy eye" condition called strabismus, but sheer perseverance and a powerhouse versatility ultimately won out and instead he took advantage of his unique look to create some of Hollywood's most intriguing characters over the years. The athletically-inclined Whitaker initially found his way into college via a football scholarship. Later, however, he transferred to USC where he set his concentration on music and earned two more scholarships training as an operatic tenor. This, in turn, led to another scholarship at Berkeley with a renewed focus on acting and the performing stage. Whitaker made his film debut at the age of 21 in the raucous comedy Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) wherein he played, quite naturally, a footballer. He went on to play another student pigskin player in his second film Vision Quest (1985). Gaining experience on TV as well with featured spots on such varied shows as "Diff'rent Strokes" and "Cagney & Lacey," not to mention the TV-movie Civil War epic "North and South" (1985) (mini) and its sequel, the movie that truly put him on the map, however, was The Color of Money (1986). His one big scene as a naive-looking pool player who out-hustles Paul Newman's Fast Eddie Felson was pure electric. This led to more visible roles in the "A" class films Platoon (1986), Stakeout (1987) and Good Morning, Vietnam (1987), which culminated in his breakout lead portrayal of the tortured jazz icon Charlie "Bird" Parker in Clint Eastwood's passion project Bird (1988), for which Whitaker won the Cannes Film Festival award for "best actor" and a Golden Globe nomination. While his "gentle giant" characters typically display innocence, indecision and timidity along with a strong huggability factor, he has certainly not shied away from the edgier, darker corners of life as his various hitmen and other menacing streetwise types can attest. Although in only the first section of the film, he was memorable as the IRA-captured British soldier whose bizarre relationship with a mysterious femme fatale serves as the catalyst for the critically-lauded drama The Crying Game (1992). Always a willing participant to push the envelope, he's gone on to enhance a number of lesser films. Among those was his plastic surgeon in Johnny Handsome (1989), gay clothing designer in Robert Altman's Prêt-à-Porter (1994), alien hunter in Species (1995), absentee father confronted by his estranged son in Smoke (1995), and Mafia hitman who models himself after the samurai warrior in Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999), among many others. As would be expected, he's also had his share of epic-sized bombs, notoriously the L. Ron Hubbard sci-fi disaster Battlefield Earth: A Saga of the Year 3000 (2000). On the TV front, he was the consulting producer and host of a revamped Rod Serling's cult series classic "The Twilight Zone" (2002), which lasted a disappointing one season. In the early 90s Whitaker widened his horizons to include producing/directing and has since developed respect name behind the camera. He started things off co-producing the violent gangster film A Rage in Harlem (1991), in which he co-starred with Gregory Hines and Robin Givens, then made his successful directorial debut with the soulful Waiting to Exhale (1995) showcasing a legion of distaff black stars. He also directed co-star Whitney Houston's music video of the movie's theme song ("Shoop Shoop"). Most recently he scored with audiences helming the fluffy romantic comedy First Daughter (2004) with Katie Holmes and Michael Keaton. He is married to actress Keisha Whitaker and has two children with her, in addition to another child from a previous relationship. His younger brothers Kenn Whitaker and Damon Whitaker are both actors as well. Whitaker's multimedia company, Spirit Dance Entertainment, includes film, television and music production.Whitaker works closely with a number of charitable organizations. He has also given back to his community, serving as an Honorary Board Member for Penny Lane, an organization that provides assistance to abused teenagers, while committing himself to both 4-D All-Stars, a motivational mentor program for teenagers, and The Watts Cinema Project.

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Filmography

# Patriots (2008) .... Al Collins # Repossession Mambo (2009) .... Jake # Where the Wild Things Are (2009) .... Wild Thing # Winged Creatures (2008) .... Charlie Archenault # Powder Blue (2008) .... Charlie # Street Kings (2008) # Vantage Point (2008) .... Howard Lewis # The Great Debaters (2007) .... Dr. James Farmer Sr. # "American Dad!" .... Turlington (1 episode, 2007) - Meter Made (2007) TV episode (voice) .... Turlington # "The Shield" .... Lt. Jon Kavanaugh (13 episodes, 2006-2007) - Back to One (2007) TV episode .... Lt. Jon Kavanaugh - On the Jones (2007) TV episode .... Lt. Jon Kavanaugh - Postpartum (2006) TV episode .... Lt. Jon Kavanaugh - Of Mice and Lem (2006) TV episode .... Lt. Jon Kavanaugh - Smoked (2006) TV episode .... Lt. Jon Kavanaugh (8 more) # Ripple Effect (2007) .... Philip # The Air I Breathe (2007) .... Happiness # "ER" .... Curtis Ames (6 episodes, 2006-2007) - Murmurs of the Heart (2007) TV episode .... Curtis Ames - A House Divided (2007) TV episode .... Curtis Ames - Tell Me No Secrets... (2006) TV episode .... Curtis Ames - Jigsaw (2006) TV episode .... Curtis Ames - Heart of the Matter (2006) TV episode .... Curtis Ames (1 more) # Everyone's Hero (2006) (voice) .... Lonnie Brewster # The Last King of Scotland (2006) .... Idi Amin # The Marsh (2006) .... Geoffry Hunt # Even Money (2006/I) .... Clyde Snow # American Gun (2005) .... Carter # A Little Trip to Heaven (2005) .... Abe Holt # Mary (2005/I) .... Ted Younger # First Daughter (2004) (voice) .... Narrator # "The Twilight Zone" .... Host (18 episodes, 2002-2003) - Burned (2003) TV episode .... Host - Sunrise (2003) TV episode .... Host - Developing (2003) TV episode .... Host - Eye of the Beholder (2003) TV episode .... Host - The Collection (2003) TV episode .... Host (13 more) # Deacons for Defense (2003) (TV) .... Marcus Clay # Phone Booth (2002) .... Captain Ed Ramey # Panic Room (2002) .... Burnham # Feast of All Saints (2001) (TV) .... Daguerreotypist Picard ... aka Anne Rice's The Feast of All Saints (USA: complete title) # The Fourth Angel (2001) .... Agent Jules Bernard ... aka Vengeance secrète (Canada: French title) # The Follow (2001) (uncredited) .... The Employer ... aka The Hire: The Follow (USA: series title) # Green Dragon (2001) .... Addie # Four Dogs Playing Poker (2000) .... Mr. Ellington ... aka 4 Dogs Playing Poker (USA: video box title) # Battlefield Earth: A Saga of the Year 3000 (2000) .... Ker ... aka Battlefield Earth (USA: short title) # Witness Protection (1999) (TV) .... Steven Beck # Light It Up (1999) .... Officer Dante Jackson # Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999) .... Ghost Dog ... aka Ghost Dog (Australia) ... aka Ghost Dog - Der Weg des Samurai (Germany) ... aka Ghost Dog, la voie du samouraï (France) # Body Count (1998) .... Crane # Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault (1996) (TV) .... Mr. Rucker ... aka Rebound # Phenomenon (1996) .... Nate Pope # Species (1995) .... Dan Smithson, Empath # Smoke (1995) .... Cyrus Cole ... aka Smoke - Raucher unter sich (Germany) # Prêt-à-Porter (1994) .... Cy Bianco ... aka Prêt-à-Porter: Ready to Wear (Canada: English title) ... aka Ready to Wear # Jason's Lyric (1994) .... Maddog # Blown Away (1994) .... Anthony Franklin # The Enemy Within (1994) (TV) .... Colonel MacKenzie 'Mac' Casey # Bank Robber (1993) .... Officer Battle # Lush Life (1993) (TV) .... Buddy Chester # Last Light (1993) (TV) .... Fred Whitmore # Body Snatchers (1993) .... Major Collins # Consenting Adults (1992) .... David Duttonville # The Crying Game (1992) .... Jody # Article 99 (1992) .... Dr. Sid Handleman # Diary of a Hitman (1991) .... Dekker # A Rage in Harlem (1991) .... Jackson # Criminal Justice (1990) (TV) .... Jessie Williams # Downtown (1990) .... Dennis Curren # Johnny Handsome (1989) .... Dr. Steven Fisher # Bird (1988) .... Charlie 'Bird' Parker # Bloodsport (1988) .... Rawlins # Good Morning, Vietnam (1987) .... Edward Garlick # Stakeout (1987) .... Det. Jack Pismo # Hands of a Stranger (1987) (TV) .... Sergeant Delaney # Platoon (1986) .... Big Harold # The Color of Money (1986) .... Amos # "North and South, Book II" (1986) (mini) TV mini-series .... Cuffey # "Amazing Stories" .... Jerry (1 episode, 1986) ... aka Steven Spielberg's Amazing Stories (USA: complete title) - Gather Ye Acorns (1986) TV episode .... Jerry # "North and South" (1985) (mini) TV mini-series .... Cuffey # "Diff'rent Strokes" .... Herman (1 episode, 1985) - Bully for Arnold (1985) TV episode .... Herman # "The Fall Guy" (1 episode, 1985) - Spring Break (1985) TV episode # Vision Quest (1985) .... Balldozer ... aka Crazy for You (Philippines: English title) # The Grand Baby (1985) (TV) # "Hill Street Blues" .... Floyd Green (1 episode, 1984) - Blues for Mr. Green (1984) TV episode .... Floyd Green # "Trapper John, M.D." .... Lewis Jordan (1 episode, 1984) - School Nurse (1984) TV episode .... Lewis Jordan # "Cagney & Lacey" .... Night Manager (1 episode, 1983) - The Grandest Jewel Thief of Them All (1983) TV episode .... Night Manager # Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) .... Charles Jefferson ... aka Fast Times at Ridgemont High (International: English title: informal short title) (UK: video title) ... aka Fast Times (Australia: poster title) # Tag: The Assassination Game (1982) .... Gowdy's Bodyguard ... aka Everybody Gets It in the End (USA) ... aka Kiss Me, Kill Me ... aka T.A.G.: The Assassination Game # "Making the Grade" (1 episode, 1982) - Episode #1.2 (1982) TV episode