Forest Whitaker

Forest Whitaker
July 15, 1961
Longview, Texas, USA

A double Cancer who will dig twice as deep to find the essence of his characters.

'As an actor, I've always wanted to do characters that would help me find my connection with others and connect all of us together. You always want the energy of the character, the spirit of the person, to enter you. I've been doing this for 26 years and some of the things I've done are always with me. Maybe it's a word; maybe it's a gesture; maybe the sound; maybe it's a new understanding about something. I look at it like a past life because I keep going over and over what I have done.'

Forest Whitaker's Tarot Reading

Texas-born Forest Steven Whitaker began his film career in the comedy Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982). His next film was Vision Quest (1985). He performed in episodes of TV shows Diff'rent Strokes and Cagney and Lacey as well as TV Civil War movie North and South (1985). His big career-breaking role, however, was in The Color of Money (1986) with Paul Newman. After that, he appeared in Platoon (1986), Stakeout (1987) and Good Morning, Vietnam (1987). In 1988 he played jazz icon Charlie 'Bird' Parker in Clint Eastwood's Bird. He won Best Actor at the Cannes Film Festival and a Golden Globe nomination for the role. Another notable role was in The Crying Game (1992). He made his directorial debut with Waiting to Exhale (1995). Forest then appeared in Robert Altman's Pret-a-Porter in 1994, and Jim Jarmusch's Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai in 1999. He co-starred with Katie Holmes and Michael Keaton in the romantic comedy First Daughter in 2004.

Forest was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his portrayal of Idi Amin, the 'notorious Ugandan dictator whose charismatic personality cannot mask the savage brutality of his actions' in The Last King of Scotland (2006). This was his first Academy Award nomination.

To prepare for the role, Forest traveled to Africa and spent over three months in Uganda. As he tells it, 'I did a massive amount to prepare for this. First of all, I started learning Swahili, learning the accent, and then I had to study all the recordings as well as all the books, tapes and documentaries. When I went to Uganda I met with his brother, sister, his ministers, his generals and even the Ugandan king. I did more research for this role than any other character I've probably ever played.

'It was an experience that changed my life and my thoughts. I went there with the purpose of understanding what it was like to be Ugandan. I wanted to understand the food, the life, the way they deal with children and wives and with authority figures. I sat with Idi Amin's brother underneath a big mango tree and he told me stories about what Idi was like and how he used to come to town and pull together soccer or rugby games. It all helped me with figuring out the way he behaved and the way he thought, so that 24 hours a day, even in my dreams, I was totally consumed by the character of Idi Amin. It wasn't until the movie was over that I decided I could let go of the character, so the first thing I did was take a shower because I figured I could wash him off by scrubbing myself. I was in a room by myself, so I started yelling to get his voice out of me and get my own voice back.'

With Sun in Cancer, maintaining a connection with his roots and keeping family bonds strong is very important to Forest. He has two brothers, Kenn and Damon Whitaker who are both actors. He tends to cling to whatever is dear to him, be it a person, place or thing.

He is sympathetic to the emotional needs of other people. He is loyal and sentimental. He likes to be needed and is very concerned about the people he loves. He has a strong need for a sense of belonging, and he centers much of his life around his home. Kindness impresses him more than any sort of honor the world can bestow.

He is primarily emotional and his views are often dominated by his feelings. He takes things very personally, and he sometimes builds an emotional wall to protect himself from rejection.

Forest functions in an instinctive manner and likes to plunge himself into creative activities. He also has a great love of music. Although he initially went to college on a football scholarship, he soon transferred to the University of Southern California (USC) to focus on music. He trained as an operatic tenor, thanks to two more scholarships. A final scholarship sent him to Berkeley where he studied acting.

Sun conjunct Venus/Pluto gives him an intrinsic creative and artistic ability and an unusual sense of form. He also has a deep need for affection and can be quite intense.

Mercury in Cancer tells us he is highly interested in personal issues and his thinking is based more on feelings than reason or logic. Intellectual abilities and accomplishments without heart or soul mean little to him. He is an empathic, sensitive listener who is deeply interested in a person's feelings and inner life.

Mercury sextile Pluto means his mind is characterized by a penetrating depth and thoroughness. He ferrets out the facts and especially enjoys a problem if there is an element of mystery to it. Generally, he doesn't shy away from the truth, no matter how unpleasant.

Venus in Gemini promises that in love, he is more interested in a person's sense of humor and intelligence than in their physique. He likes a partner who is mentally alive and who keeps him guessing a little bit. He becomes restless and bored with someone who never asks questions, never changes or surprises him. Talking, sharing ideas, going places together and learning new things together is very important to his happiness. He and wife Keisha have two daughters, Sonnet and True. He has a son, Ocean, from a previous relationship and Keisha has a daughter, Autumn, from a previous relationship.

He needs lots of social stimulation, is something of a flirt, and likes to have many friends of both sexes. A possessive, jealous partner would be very stifling for him. Venus square Pluto means he experiences powerful, compelling emotional and sexual magnetism, and he may feel that he has little choice or control over his desires. He has an intense need for love and may be emotionally greedy. His love life is passionate and often tumultuous.

Mars in Virgo makes Forest a perfectionist who has high standards for his own work. He often feels that if he wants something done right he must do it himself. Doing a task well is very important to him, and he may labor over small details that others wouldn't bother with. He strives for accuracy and efficiency, and can become irritable when things are not done 'right.'

He can become so much of a perfectionist and so self-critical that he may not even attempt certain projects, feeling that his efforts won't be good enough. He is usually modest and realistic in assessing what he can accomplish. If anything, he underestimates himself. He conserves his energy and paces himself so that he does not waste his efforts.

Mars conjunct Pluto guarantees that when he wants something, he goes after it with zeal and is sometimes so driven by his desire that he loses all objectivity. He gets so deeply involved in whatever he is pursuing that he becomes one-sided, even fanatical. Strong-willed and stubborn, he insists on having his way, no matter the cost. He is fascinated with power. He often tries to overpower anything or anyone he perceives as an obstacle, if not physically, then by the force of his will. He can be ruthless and impersonal when it comes to achieving his ambitions and goals in life. He has enormous energy and is capable of extraordinary effort and great achievement. Forest currently runs his own multi-media company, Spirit Dance Entertainment, which does film, TV and music production.

Jupiter in Aquarius shows that his strength lies in his ability to be innovative. He has an expansive view of the world, one that includes all of humanity and not just his own small, personal circle. Jupiter quincunx Pluto warns that he is apt to have very strong convictions and beliefs, and some might say he borders on being fanatical.

Jupiter opposition Mercury/Pluto ensures that he is diplomatic and has the ability to persuade others to his point of view. His viewpoints are profound. He really understands what he has learned, making him a good teacher. He is likely to have great success and public recognition.

When asked about his best work, Forest answered, 'If I were to mark three, I'd mark Bird, because I grew immensely as an artist -- I learned a lot. And also it was when people started to take me more seriously. I'd also mark Ghost Dog, because I started to understand something about myself in silence, how I'm capable of communicating certain things without doing much. And then I'd probably mark The Last King of Scotland, which marries the internal and the external in a strong way and brings together all of the things I've learned about my work into one character.'

Saturn in Capricorn gives him a capacity for self-denial in the pursuit of a long-range goal. He is capable of hard work and persistent labor, but he may lack joyfulness and the ability to play. He often feels burdened by life's responsibilities, and may envy those who seem to attract what they want in life without a great deal of effort.

With Jupiter conjunct Saturn, his aspirations and dreams are always tempered by practical considerations. He pursues his aims in a systematic manner and he is willing to take his time, advancing slowly and steadily on his way to his goal.

N. Node conjunct Uranus suggests he needs to become more freethinking, more avant-garde, promoting changes in science, music or social relationships. He needs to be willing to be different and perhaps considered eccentric or odd.

'I think there's an awakening inside of me, and I honestly believe that the best work of my life is about to happen. I'm finding a balance in myself as an artist from the external and the internal, and so as a result the characters I play are going to be quite different. So what's going to happen is it's going to lift up the characters I play, we're going to start to see it and I think it's going to change the face of my career.'

Bio information from www.IMDb.com

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