text: forest whitaker forest steven whitaker iii ( born july 15 , 1961 ) is an american actor , director , and producer . he has earned a reputation for intensive character study work for films such as bird , platoon , ghost dog : the way of the samurai and lee daniels ' the butler , for his work in independent films and for his recurring role as lapd internal affairs lieutenant jon kavanaugh on the emmy award - winning television series the shield . he is set to portray saw in the star wars spin - off film , rogue one : a star wars story . whitaker won the academy award , british academy film award , golden globe award , national board of review award , screen actors guild award , and various critics groups awards for his performance as ugandan dictator idi amin in the 2006 film the last king of scotland . early life whitaker was born july 15 , 1961 , in longview , texas . his family moved to carson , california when he was four . his father , forest steven jr . , was an insurance salesman . forest 's mother , laura francis ( née smith ) , was a special education teacher who put herself through college and earned two master 's degrees while raising her children . whitaker has two younger brothers , kenn and damon , and an older sister , deborah . his first role as an actor was the lead in dylan thomas ' play , under milk wood . whitaker then attended 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 . whitaker also pursued a degree in the core of conflict : studies in peace and reconciliation at new york university 's gallatin school of individualized study . career film work whitaker has a long history of working with well - regarded film directors and fellow actors , as well as working in direct - to - video films alongside novice actors such as lil wayne , maggie grace and 50 cent . in his first onscreen performance of note , he had a supporting role playing a high school football player in the 1982 film version of cameron crowe 's coming - of - age teen - retrospective , fast times at ridgemont high . he co - starred and interacted alongside judge reinhold , phoebe cates , sean penn and robert romanus . 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 his first lead role starring as musician charlie " bird " 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 " , a captive british soldier in his 1992 film , the crying game where whitaker used an english accent . 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 , - 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 . whitaker later expressed his regret for participating in the film . 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 featuring amin , and spent time in uganda meeting with amin 's friends , relatives , generals , and victims ; he also learned swahili and mastered amin 's east african accent . his performance earned him the academy award for best actor , 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 the british academy film award , golden globe award , national board of review award , screen actors guild award , and accolades from the broadcast film critics association , london film critics ’ circle award , los angeles film critics association , national society of film critics , and new york film critics circle 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 . in 2013 , after languishing in several limited releases and independent features such as freelancers and pawn , whitaker has enjoyed a bit of career resurgence , having played the lead role in lee daniels ' the butler , which has become one of his greatest critical and commercial successes to date . whitaker also starred in the film black nativity , alongside jennifer hudson , angela bassett , and jacob latimore . he also co - starred with arnold schwarzenegger in 2013 's the last stand , playing an fbi agent chasing an escaped drug cartel leader . whitaker has been confirmed as a castmember in the upcoming star wars anthology film rogue one . television work after completing several films in the early 1980s , whitaker gained additional roles in multiple television shows . on the series , diff 'rent strokes , 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 " . he appeared in the first and second parts of north and south in 1985 and 1986 . throughout the 1990s , whitaker mainly had roles in television films which aired on hbo , 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 his previous character work , whitaker stated 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 sues , then takes out his anger on dr. luka kovač , who he blames for the strokes . whitaker received a primetime emmy award nomination for his performance in the series . also in 2006 , whitaker appeared in t.i. ' s music video " live in the sky " alongside jamie foxx . whitaker was cast in the criminal minds spin - off , criminal minds : suspect behavior , that was subsequently cancelled by cbs on may 17 , 2011 . theatre whitaker made his broadway debut in 2016 in a revival of eugene o 'neill 's play hughie at the booth theatre , directed by michael grandage . 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 , , for hbo in 1993 . in 1995 , he directed his first theatrical 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 while also serving as executive producer ; he had previously co - starred with holmes in phone booth in 2002 . 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 . whitaker and his partner nina yang bongiovi produced the film fruitvale station , which won the grand jury prize and the audience award for u.s. dramatic film at the 2013 sundance film festival , as well as repentance ( 2014 ) and dope ( 2015 ) . juntobox films whitaker plays an active role as co - chair of juntobox films since his initial involvement as co - chair with the collaborative film studio starting in march 2012 . juntobox was developed as a social - media platform for filmmakers and fans to share ideas to create films and then collaborate to make them . since whitaker joined as co - chair , five projects have been greenlit for production . 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 . on april 16 , 2007 , whitaker was the recipient of the star on the hollywood walk of fame for his contributions to the motion pictures industry at hollywood boulevard . he received the honorary degree of doctor of humane letters from xavier university of louisiana in 2009 at the 82nd commencement ceremony . he received the honorary degree of doctor of humane letters from california state university , dominguez hills on may 16 , 2015 . personal life in 1996 , whitaker married actress keisha nash , whom he met on the set of blown away . the have four children : two daughters together ( sonnet and true ) , and his son ( sergio hyatt ) and her daughter ( autumn ) from previous relationships . on inside the actors studio , whitaker said that a genetic test indicated he was of igbo descent through his patrilineal line , and of akan descent through his matrilineal line . whitaker studies yoga and has a black belt in . he also trains in the filipino martial art of kali , under dan inosanto . inosanto is best known for having been a student of the late bruce lee and has trained actors such as denzel washington and brandon lee . whitaker 's left eye ptosis has been called " intriguing " by some critics and " gives him a lazy , 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 . activism charity work whitaker , who is a vegetarian , recorded a public service announcement 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 . politics in politics , whitaker supported and spoke on behalf of senator barack obama in his 2008 presidential campaign . on april 6 , 2009 , he was given a chieftaincy title in imo state , nigeria . whitaker , who was named a chief among the igbo community of , was given the title of , which means a brother in a foreign land . whitaker was inducted as a unesco goodwill ambassador for peace and reconciliation , in a ceremony at unesco headquarters on june 21 , 2011 . as goodwill ambassador , whitaker works with unesco to support and develop initiatives that empower youths and keep them from entering or remaining in cycles of violence . at the induction ceremony , u.s. ambassador to unesco david killion described whitaker as a " perfect choice as a goodwill ambassador ... he has exemplified compassion in every area of his life , with humility and grace . he does this because it 's the right thing to do . " in 2010 , whitaker received the artist citizen of the world award ( france ) . in may 2011 , whitaker co - founded the international institute for peace ( iip ) at rutgers university in newark , new jersey . launched during the international newark peace education summit , iip ’ s mission is to develop programs and strategic partnerships to address cutting - edge issues such as increasing citizen security through community - building ; the role of women and spiritual and religious leaders in peace - building ; the impact of climate change ; and the reduction of poverty . iip operates under the auspices of unesco as a category 2 center . filmography film television