Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman is an American actor, director, and narrator. Noted for his distinctive deep voice, Freeman is known for his various roles in a wide variety of film genres. Throughout his career spanning over five decades, he has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a Golden Globe Award. Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Freeman was raised in Mississippi where he began acting in school plays. He studied theatre arts in Los Angeles and appeared in stage productions in his early career. He rose to fame in the 1970s for his role in the children's television series The Electric Company. Freeman then appeared in the Shakespearean plays Coriolanus and Julius Caesar, the former of which earned him an Obie Award. His breakout role was in Street Smart (1987), playing a hustler, which earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. He achieved further stardom in Glory, the biographical drama Lean on Me, and comedy-drama Driving Miss Daisy (all 1989), the latter of which garnered him his first Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. In 1992, Freeman starred alongside Clint Eastwood in the western revenge film Unforgiven; this would be the first of several collaborations with Eastwood. In 1994, he starred in the prison drama The Shawshank Redemption for which he received another Academy Award nomination. Freeman also starred in David Fincher's crime thriller Se7en (1995), and Steven Spielberg's historical drama Amistad (1997). Freeman won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Clint Eastwood's 2004 sports drama Million Dollar Baby. In 2009, he received his fifth Oscar nomination for playing former South African President Nelson Mandela in Eastwood's Invictus. Freeman is also known for his performance as Lucius Fox in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Trilogy (2005–2012). In addition to acting, Freeman has directed the drama Bopha! (1993). He also founded film production company Revelations Entertainment with business partner Lori McCreary. He is the recipient of the Kennedy Center Honor, the AFI Life Achievement Award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, and the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award. For his performances in theatrical productions, he has won three Obie Awards, one of the most prestigious honors for recognizing excellence in theatre.
Known For
Credits
- 2025 · Now You See Me: Now You Don't as Thaddeus Bradley
- 2025 · Number One on the Call Sheet as Self
- 2022 · The Minute You Wake Up Dead as Sheriff Thurmond Fowler
- 2022 · Sidney as Self
- 2019 · The Poison Rose as Doc
- 2014 · Island of Lemurs: Madagascar as Narrator (voice)
- 2013 · Eastwood Directs: The Untold Story as Self
- 2011 · Dolphin Tale as Dr. McCarthy
- 2010 · The Eastwood Factor as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2009 · The Maiden Heist as Charles Peterson
- 2008 · A Raisin in the Sun as Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
- 2006 · The Electric Company's Greatest Hits & Bits as Self
- 2003 · Levity as Miles Evans
- 2001 · Shawshank: The Redeeming Feature as Self
- 1997 · The Long Way Home as Narrator (voice)
- 1996 · Cosmic Voyage as Narrator (voice)
- 1996 · Blacklist: Hollywood on Trial as Edward G. Robinson
- 1990 · Night of 100 Stars III as Self
- 1990 · The Earth Day Special as Walter Samson
- 1988 · Clean and Sober as Craig
- 1988 · Clinton and Nadine as Dorsey Pratt
- 1987 · Street Smart as Leo "Fast Black" Smalls, Jr.
- 1985 · That Was Then... This Is Now as Charlie Woods
- 1985 · Marie: A True Story as Charles Traughber
- 1981 · Death of a Prophet as Malcolm X
- 1979 · Hollow Image as Sweet Talk
- 1973 · Blade as Chris
- 1971 · Who Says I Can't Ride a Rainbow! as Afro
- 1968 · Where Were You When the Lights Went Out? as Grand Central Commuter (uncredited)
- 1968 · Where Were You When the Lights Went Out? as Grand Central Commuter
- 1965 · The Pawnbroker as Man on Street (Uncredited)
- 1952 · Today as Self
- 1951 · Hallmark Hall of Fame as Clarence
- 1951 · Hallmark Hall of Fame as Luther
- Future · Hate to See You Go as Sonny Bell
- 2024 · SBALKANU as (narrator)
- 2024 · My Dead Friend Zoe as Dr. Cole
- 2023 · A Good Person as Daniel
- 2022 · Clint Eastwood: The Last Legend as Self (archive footage)
- 2022 · Betty White: A Celebration as Self
- 2022 · Power of Chi as Narrator (voice)
- 2021 · History's Greatest Escapes with Morgan Freeman as Self - Host
- 2021 · Clint Eastwood: A Cinematic Legacy as Self
- 2020 · The Disney Family Singalong - Volume II as Self
- 2020 · Into Nature's Wild as Narrator (voice)
- 2019 · Brian Banks as Jerome Johnson (uncredited)
- 2018 · America's Musical Journey as Narrator (voice)
- 2017 · The Words That Built America as Self - Reader: Declaration of Independence
- 2016 · The Story of God with Morgan Freeman as Self - Host
- 2014 · Wish Wizard as Maxwell Omni
- 2012 · B.B. King: The Life of Riley as Narrator (voice)
- 2012 · Betty White's 90th Birthday: A Tribute to America's Golden Girl as Self
- 2011 · Curiosity as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2011 · Born to Be Wild as Narrator (voice)
- 2010 · The 16th Man as Narrator (voice)
- 2004 · America Beyond the Color Line as Self
- 2002 · Eastwood & Co.: Making 'Unforgiven' as Self
- 1997 · Amistad as Theodore Joadson
- 1992 · Eastwood & Co.: Making 'Unforgiven' as Self
- 1992 · Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories as Narrator (Voice)
- 1991 · The True Story of Glory Continues as Narrator (voice)
- 1991 · Robin Hood: The Myth, the Man, the Movie as Self
- 1990 · Follow the Drinking Gourd as Narrator (voice)
- 1986 · Resting Place as Luther Johnson
- 1985 · The Atlanta Child Murders as Ben Shelter
- 1984 · Harry & Son as Siemanowski
- 1974 · Out to Lunch as Self / Croupier
- 1966 · A Man Called Adam as Party Guest (uncredited)
- Future · Sniff as Joe Mulwray
- 2021 · Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It as Self
- 2020 · Meeting the Beatles in India as Narrator (voice)
- 2017 · Laddie: The Man Behind the Movies as Self
- 2017 · The Story of Us with Morgan Freeman as Self - Host
- 2017 · March of the Penguins 2: The Next Step as Narrator (English voice)
- 2015 · JFK & LBJ: A Time for Greatness as Narrator (voice)
- 2014 · 5 Flights Up as Alex Carver
- 2013 · Tales from the Warner Bros. Lot as Self
- 2013 · The Editor and The Dragon: Horace Carter Fights the Klan as Narrator (voice)
- 2012 · Le frontiere dell'Astronomia - EP-7 Vite aliene nel cosmo as Narratore
- 2011 · Clint Eastwood's West as Self
- 2011 · Breaking the Taboo as Narrator (voice)
- 2010 · The President's Photographer: Fifty Years Inside the Oval Office as Narrator (voice)
- 2009 · The People Speak as Self
- 2009 · Prom Night in Mississippi as Narrator (voice)
- 2008 · Where the Water Meets the Sky as
- 2007 · All About Us as Self
- 2006 · 10 Items or Less as 'Him'
- 2005 · Nos Bastidores de Hollywood as Self
- 2005 · Slavery and the Making of America as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2004 · Survivors of the Shoah: Visual History Foundation as
- 2003 · Guilty by Association as Lt. Redding
- 1997 · The Making of Se7en as Self
- 1996 · Inside the White House as Narrator (voice)
- 1994 · Inside the Actors Studio as Self
- 1981 · Eyewitness as Lieutenant Black
- 1978 · Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry as Uncle Hammer
- 1974 · Spidey Super Stories as Easy Reader
- 1974 · Spidey Super Stories as Count Dracula
- 1974 · Spidey Super Stories as Police officer
- 1974 · Spidey Super Stories as Umpire
- Future · CLINT as Narrator (voice)
- Future · The Promised Land as Narrator (voice)
- Future · The Blues Live On! The Delta Blues Museum as Narrator (voice)
- 2025 · Clint Eastwood : la légende as Self
- 2024 · Gunner as Kendrick Ryker
- 2024 · How to Rob a Bank as Azeem (archive footage)
- 2024 · Odysseus Returns as Narrator
- 2023 · Life on Our Planet as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2023 · 57 Seconds as Anton Burrell
- 2023 · 761st Tank Battalion: The Original Black Panthers as Self
- 2023 · Lioness as Secretary of State Edwin Mullins
- 2023 · 100 Years of Warner Bros. as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2023 · The Muppets Mayhem as Morgan Freeman
- 2023 · The Ritual Killer as Dr. Mackles
- 2022 · Our Universe as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2022 · The Jennifer Hudson Show as Self
- 2022 · Paradise Highway as Gerick
- 2021 · Oscar Micheaux: The Superhero of Black Filmmaking as Self
- 2021 · Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard as Senior
- 2021 · Solos as Narrator (voice)
- 2021 · Solos as Stuart
- 2021 · Vanquish as Damon
- 2021 · Coming 2 America as Morgan Freeman
- 2021 · Morgan Freeman: Breaking Barriers as Self
- 2020 · The Comeback Trail as Reggie Fontaine
- 2019 · Angel Has Fallen as Alan Trumbull
- 2019 · Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? as Morgan Freeman (voice)
- 2019 · Panama Canal in 3D a Land Divided a World United as Self
- 2018 · The Nutcracker and the Four Realms as Drosselmeyer
- 2018 · Die Clint Eastwood Story as Self
- 2017 · Just Getting Started as Duke
- 2017 · John G. Avildsen: King of the Underdogs as Self
- 2017 · Going in Style as Willie Davis
- 2016 · Ben-Hur as Sheik Ilderim
- 2016 · The C Word as Narrator (voice)
- 2016 · Now You See Me 2 as Thaddeus Bradley
- 2016 · London Has Fallen as Alan Trumbull
- 2015 · Momentum as Senator
- 2015 · The Late Show with Stephen Colbert as Self
- 2015 · Ted 2 as Patrick Meighan
- 2015 · Last Knights as Bartok
- 2014 · Madam Secretary as Chief Justice Frawley
- 2014 · Madam Secretary as Chief Justice Wilbourne (uncredited)
- 2014 · Dolphin Tale 2 as Dr. Cameron McCarthy
- 2014 · Lucy as Professor Norman
- 2014 · Transcendence as Joseph Tagger
- 2014 · Late Night with Seth Meyers as Self
- 2014 · The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon as Self
- 2014 · The Lego Movie as Vitruvius (voice)
- 2014 · We the People as Narrator (voice)
- 2013 · JFK: A President Betrayed as Narrator (voice)
- 2013 · Last Vegas as Archibald 'Archie' Clayton
- 2013 · Now You See Me as Thaddeus Bradley
- 2013 · Oblivion as Beech
- 2013 · Olympus Has Fallen as Alan Trumbull
- 2012 · Ending the Knight as Self
- 2012 · The Dark Knight Rises as Fox
- 2012 · The Magic of Belle Isle as Monte Wildhorn
- 2012 · Echoes 'Cross the Tracks as Self
- 2011 · Conan the Barbarian as Narrator (voice)
- 2010 · RED as Joe Matheson
- 2010 · Through the Wormhole as Self - Host
- 2010 · For Love of Liberty: The Story of America's Black Patriots as Self (voice)
- 2009 · Invictus as Nelson Mandela
- 2009 · 30 for 30 as
- 2009 · The Jay Leno Show as Self
- 2009 · Live from Studio Five as Self
- 2009 · Thick as Thieves as Keith Ripley
- 2008 · The Dark Knight as Lucius Fox
- 2008 · Wanted as Sloan
- 2007 · The Bucket List as Carter Chambers
- 2007 · Feast of Love as Harry Stevenson
- 2007 · Gone Baby Gone as Jack Doyle
- 2007 · AFI: 100 Years... 100 Movies... 10th Anniversary Edition as Self
- 2007 · Evan Almighty as God
- 2007 · The Graham Norton Show as Self
- 2007 · The Graham Norton Show as Self - Guest
- 2006 · Boffo! Tinseltown's Bombs and Blockbusters as Self
- 2006 · The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays as Jaques (segment "As You Like It")
- 2006 · The Contract as Frank Carden
- 2006 · Lucky Number Slevin as The Boss
- 2005 · The Reichen Show as Self - Guest
- 2005 · Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon as Neil Armstrong (voice)
- 2005 · An Unfinished Life as Mitch Bradley
- 2005 · Shelter from the Storm: A Concert for the Gulf Coast as Self
- 2005 · Edison as Ashford
- 2005 · James Lipton Takes on Three as Self
- 2005 · Born to Fight as Self
- 2005 · War of the Worlds as Narrator (voice)
- 2005 · Batman Begins as Lucius Fox
- 2005 · Unleashed as Sam
- 2005 · Blues Divas as Self
- 2005 · The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson as Self
- 2004 · Million Dollar Baby as Eddie Scrap-Iron Dupris
- 2004 · Genius. A Night for Ray Charles as Self
- 2004 · The Hunting of the President as Narrator (voice)
- 2004 · The Big Bounce as Walter Crewes
- 2003 · The Ellen DeGeneres Show as Self
- 2003 · Declaration of Independence as Self
- 2003 · Bruce Almighty as God
- 2003 · Dreamcatcher as Col. Abraham Curtis
- 2003 · Jimmy Kimmel Live! as Self
- 2002 · All on Accounta Pullin' a Trigger as Self
- 2002 · Partners of the Heart as Narrator (voice)
- 2002 · The Sum of All Fears as DCI William Cabot
- 2002 · High Crimes as Charlie Grimes
- 2001 · Along Came a Spider as Alex Cross
- 2000 · Clint Eastwood: Out of the Shadows as Narrator (voice)
- 2000 · Nurse Betty as Charlie
- 2000 · Under Suspicion as Captain Victor Benezet
- 1999 · Stephen King: Shining in the Dark as Self
- 1998 · Deep Impact as President Tom Beck
- 1998 · Hard Rain as Jim
- 1998 · Parkinson as Self
- 1998 · Scandalize My Name: Stories from the Blacklist as Self
- 1997 · Kiss the Girls as Det. Alex Cross
- 1997 · The View as Self
- 1997 · The Chris Rock Show as
- 1996 · Chain Reaction as Paul Shannon
- 1996 · The Daily Show as Self
- 1996 · Moll Flanders as Hibble
- 1995 · Se7en as Somerset
- 1995 · Outbreak as General Billy Ford
- 1994 · The Shawshank Redemption as Ellis Boyd 'Red' Redding
- 1993 · Late Night with Conan O'Brien as Self - Guest
- 1992 · Unforgiven as Ned Logan
- 1992 · HBO First Look as
- 1992 · The Tonight Show with Jay Leno as
- 1992 · The Power of One as Geel Piet
- 1991 · Pebble Mill as Self
- 1991 · Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves as Azeem
- 1991 · The Massachusetts 54th Colored Infantry as Narrator (voice)
- 1990 · The Bonfire of the Vanities as Judge Leonard White
- 1990 · The Civil War as Frederick Douglass
- 1990 · Rabbit Ears - The Savior is Born as Narrator (voice)
- 1989 · Glory as Sgt. Maj. John Rawlins
- 1989 · Driving Miss Daisy as Hoke Colburn
- 1989 · Johnny Handsome as Lt. A.Z. Drones
- 1989 · Lean On Me as Principal Joe Clark
- 1988 · American Experience as Narrator (voice)
- 1988 · LIVE with Kelly and Mark as
- 1987 · Fight for Life as Dr. Sherard
- 1986 · American Masters as Narrator (voice)
- 1985 · The Execution of Raymond Graham as Warden Pratt
- 1985 · The Gospel at Colonus as Messenger
- 1985 · The Twilight Zone as Tony (segment "Dealer's Choice")
- 1984 · Teachers as Lewis
- 1984 · Goldene Kamera as Self
- 1981 · The Marva Collins Story as Clarence Collins
- 1980 · Brubaker as Walter
- 1980 · Attica as Hap Richards
- 1979 · CBS News Sunday Morning as Self
- 1978 · The Kennedy Center Honors as Self
- 1978 · Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry as Uncle Hammer
- 1975 · Saturday Night Live as Self - Cameo (uncredited)
- 1974 · Energy Crisis as Self
- 1973 · The American Film Institute Salute to ... as Self
- 1971 · The Electric Company as Count Dracula
- 1971 · The Electric Company as Mad Scientist
- 1971 · The Electric Company as Easy Reader
- 1971 · Great Performances as Messenger
- 1970 · Caught in the Middle as
- 1968 · 60 Minutes as Self
- 1956 · Tony Awards as Self - Performer
- 1953 · The Oscars as Self - Presenter
- 1953 · The Oscars as Self
- 1944 · Golden Globe Awards as Self - Presenter
- 1944 · Golden Globe Awards as Self - Nominee
- 1944 · Golden Globe Awards as Self
- 1944 · Golden Globe Awards as Self - Cecil B. DeMille Award Recipient
- Future · The Little Bedroom as