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American actor and director, Forest Whitaker, was among the previous Academy Award winners who were invited to give away the award for Best Actor at the Oscars 2024. Cillian Murphy accepted the Oscar in this category for his role as the titular character in the movie, Oppenheimer.
Whitaker took home the Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role back in 2006 for his role in The Last King of Scotland. His depiction of the ruthless and charismatic Ugandan tyrant Idi Amin received great acclaim.
That same year, practically swept the board with the Golden Globe, SAG, BAFTA, and Oscar for Best Actor.
Previous Academy Award winner, Forest Whitaker, was accompanied by four others while presenting the award at the Oscars 2024
Forest Whitaker has been well-known for his intense character studies in films like Bird and Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, as well as for his recurrent part on the critically acclaimed television series, The Shield, as former LAPD Lieutenant Jon Kavanaugh.
In 2006, he won the Academy Award for Best Actor in the Lead Role in The Last King of Scotland. It was a historical drama about the dictatorship of the cruel President Idi Amin of Uganda, narrated from the viewpoint of a fictional Scottish physician named Nicholas Garrigan. His performance brought him huge success and great accolades.
Whitaker was among those invited to announce and present the Best Actor Award at the Oscars 2024. The other four people on stage with him were all prior Academy Award winners in the same category.
Forest Whitaker was accompanied by Nicolas Cage, Matthew McConaughey, Brendan Fraiser, and Ben Kingsley, all previous Academy Award winners who came on stage to present the award for Best Actor at the Oscars 2024. A thrilled Cillian Murphy collected his first-ever Oscar for his role in Oppenheimer.
About Forest Whitaker: Actor and UNESCO envoy for peace
Forest Whitaker, one of the presenters for Oscars 2024, has starred in big-budget films like Black Panther (2018), Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), and Panic Room (2002). His first movie as a director was the 1993 television film, Strapped. His other directorial ventures include Waiting to Exhale, Hope Floats, and First Daughter, and music videos for Whitney Houston, Low Key, Cheryl Pepsii Riley, and Jagged Edge.
His many honors include two Screen Actors Guild Awards, a British Academy Film Award, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award.
For his Oscar-winning role in The Last King of Scotland, Whitaker reportedly took up accordion playing, put on 50 pounds, and did extensive research for the role of the dictator, even visiting Idi Amin's friends, relatives, generals, and victims. He also studied Swahili and became fluent in the East African dialect. He read books and watched news and documentary videos of Amin.
Whitaker is well-known not only for his acting profession, but also for his advocacy and charitable efforts. He became a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador in 2011, was promoted to the position of Special Envoy for Peace and Reconciliation, and now heads the nonprofit organization Whitaker Peace and Development Initiative (WPDI), an outreach initiative.
Watch the star-studded Oscars 2024 on ABC and Hulu Live TV.
