An impressive supporting player who manages to be versatile despite his imposing looks, Whitaker attended college on a football scholarship, which helped him land his first recognizable role as an angry linebacker in 1982's
Fast Times at Ridgemont High. Myriad supporting parts followed, often in A-list movies (dramas
Platoon and
The Color of Money, and the comedy
Good Morning, Vietnam), but as an in-demand character actor he was forced to sign on to low-rent fare, too (
Bloodsport). In 1988, director Clint Eastwood gave Whitaker one of his first leading roles: The actor earned a much-deserved Golden Globe nod playing troubled jazz saxophonist Charlie Parker in the biopic
Bird. During the '90s Whitaker branched out into directing (
Waiting to Exhale) and producing while he kept up his jam-packed acting schedule. In 2006, he had a banner year playing two charismatic villains: an underhanded Internal Affairs agent on the series
The Shield (for which he should have been nominated for an Emmy) and his incredible Oscar, Golden Globe and SAG Award-winning turn as Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in
The Last King of Scotland on the big screen.
Forest Whitaker Fast Facts:
- Grew up in Southern California and was an All-League defensive tackle on his high-school football team; received a college football scholarship.
- Also earned a music scholarship at USC, where he studied voice (he's a tenor), and an acting scholarship at the Berkeley, CA, branch of the Drama Studio London.
- Won the Best Actor award at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival for his performance as Charlie Parker in Bird; Whitaker's younger brother Damon played Parker as a child.
- Directed music videos for Cheryl Pepsii Riley, Low Key, Whitney Houston and Jagged Edge, among others.
- Was host/narrator of UPN's 2002-03 revival of The Twilight Zone.
- Forest Whitaker Relationships:
- Autumn - Stepdaughter
- Damon Whitaker - Brother
- Forest Whitaker Jr. - Father
- Keisha Nash - Wife
- Kenn Whitaker - Brother
- Laura Whitaker - Mother
- Ocean Alexander Whitaker - Son
- Sonnet Noel Whitaker - Daughter
- True Isabella Summer Whitaker - Daughter
- Forest Whitaker Awards:
- 2003 Emmy: Outstanding Made for Television Movie - Winner
- 2006 Oscar: Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role - Winner
- 2007 Emmy: Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series - Nominee
- 1989 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama - Nominee
- 2007 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama - Winner
- College:
- Attended California Polytechnic Institute, Pomona, CA; attended University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
