Morgan Freeman is an American actor, film director, aviator and narrator. He is noted for his reserved demeanor and authoritative speaking voice. Freeman has received Academy Award nominations for his performances in Street Smart,
Driving Miss Daisy Driving Miss Daisy is a 1989 American comedy-drama film adapted from the Alfred Uhry play of the same name. The film was directed by Bruce Beresford, with Morgan Freeman reprising his role as Hoke Colburn and Jessica Tandy playing Miss Daisy...
,
The Shawshank RedemptionThe Shawshank Redemption is a 1994 American drama film written and directed by Frank Darabont and starring Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman....
and
InvictusInvictus is a 2009 biographical sports drama film directed by Clint Eastwood starring Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon.The story is based on the John Carlin book Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Changed a Nation about the events in South Africa before and during the 1995 Rugby World...
and won in 2005 for
Million Dollar BabyMillion Dollar Baby is a 2004 American sports drama film directed, co-produced, and scored by Clint Eastwood and starring Eastwood, Hilary Swank, and Morgan Freeman...
. He has also won a
Golden Globe AwardThe Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
and a Screen Actors Guild Award.
Freeman has appeared in many other
box officeA box office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through an unblocked hole through a wall or window, or at a wicket....
hits, including
UnforgivenUnforgiven is a 1992 American Western film produced and directed by Clint Eastwood with a screenplay written by David Webb Peoples. The film tells the story of William Munny, an aging outlaw and killer who takes on one more job years after he had hung up his guns and turned to farming...
, Glory,
SevenSeven is a 1995 American thriller film, which also contains horror and neo-noir elements, directed by David Fincher and written by Andrew Kevin Walker. It was distributed by New Line Cinema and stars Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow, R...
,
Deep ImpactDeep Impact is a 1998 science-fiction disaster-drama film released by Paramount Pictures and DreamWorks in the United States on May 8, 1998. The film was directed by Mimi Leder and stars Robert Duvall, Elijah Wood, Téa Leoni, and Morgan Freeman...
,
The Sum of All FearsThe Sum of All Fears is a 2002 American action film/political thriller directed by Phil Alden Robinson and based on the novel The Sum of All Fears by Tom Clancy...
,
Bruce AlmightyBruce Almighty is a 2003 American comedy film directed by Tom Shadyac and written by Steve Koren, Mark O'Keefe and Steve Oedekerk. It stars Jim Carrey as Bruce Nolan, a down-on-his-luck TV reporter who complains to God that He isn't doing His job correctly, and is then offered the chance to try...
,
Batman BeginsBatman Begins is a 2005 American superhero action film based on the fictional DC Comics character Batman, directed by Christopher Nolan. It stars Christian Bale as Batman, along with Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes, Cillian Murphy, Morgan Freeman, Ken Watanabe, Tom Wilkinson,...
,
March of the PenguinsMarch of the Penguins is a 2005 French nature documentary film. It was directed and co-written by Luc Jacquet, and co-produced by Bonne Pioche and the National Geographic Society. The film depicts the yearly journey of the emperor penguins of Antarctica...
,
The Bucket ListThe Bucket List is a 2007 comedy-drama film directed by Rob Reiner, written by Justin Zackham, and starring Academy Award-winners Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman...
,
Evan AlmightyEvan Almighty is a 2007 American religious comedy film and the stand-alone sequel to Bruce Almighty . The film was directed by Tom Shadyac, written by Steve Oedekerk, and starring Steve Carell as the title character. Morgan Freeman also reprised his role as God from the original film. Production of...
, Wanted,
The Dark KnightThe Dark Knight is a 2008 superhero film directed, produced and co-written by Christopher Nolan. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, the film is part of Nolan's Batman film series and a sequel to 2005's Batman Begins...
, and
REDRED is a 2010 American action comedy film loosely inspired by the three-issue comic book series of the same name created by Warren Ellis and Cully Hamner, and published by the DC Comics imprint Homage...
.
Early life
Morgan Freeman was born in
Memphis, TennesseeMemphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, the son of Mayme Edna (
néeA married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Revere), a teacher, and Morgan Porterfield Freeman, a
barberA barber is someone whose occupation is to cut any type of hair, and to shave or trim the beards of men. The place of work of a barber is generally called a barbershop....
who died in 1961 from
cirrhosisCirrhosis is a consequence of chronic liver disease characterized by replacement of liver tissue by fibrosis, scar tissue and regenerative nodules , leading to loss of liver function...
. He has three older siblings. Freeman was sent as an infant to his paternal grandmother in
Charleston, MississippiCharleston is a city in North Central Mississippi and one of the county seats of Tallahatchie County. The population was 2,198 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Charleston is located at ....
. His family moved frequently during his childhood, living in
Greenwood, MississippiGreenwood is a city in and the county seat of Leflore County, Mississippi, United States, located at the eastern edge of the Mississippi Delta approximately 96 miles north of Jackson, Mississippi, and 130 miles south of Memphis, Tennessee. The population was 15,205 at the 2010 census. It is the...
;
Gary, IndianaGary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The city is in the southeastern portion of the Chicago metropolitan area and is 25 miles from downtown Chicago. The population is 80,294 at the 2010 census, making it the seventh-largest city in the state. It borders Lake Michigan and is known...
; and finally
Chicago, IllinoisChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. Freeman made his acting debut at age 9, playing the lead role in a school play. He then attended Broad Street High School, currently Threadgill Elementary School, in Mississippi. At age 12, he won a statewide drama competition, and while still at Broad Street High School, he performed in a radio show based in
Nashville, TennesseeNashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
. In 1955, he graduated from Broad Street, but turned down a partial drama scholarship from
Jackson State UniversityJackson State University is a historically black university founded in 1877 in Natchez, MS by the American Baptist Home Mission Society of New York. The Society moved the school to Jackson in 1882, renaming it Jackson College, and developed its present campus in 1902. It became a state supported...
, opting instead to work as a mechanic in the
United States Air ForceThe United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
.
Freeman moved to
Los AngelesLos Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
in the early 1960s and worked as a transcript clerk at Los Angeles Community College. During this period, he also lived in
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, working as a dancer at the 1964 World's Fair, and in
San FranciscoSan Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, where he was a member of the Opera Ring music group. Freeman acted in a touring company version of
The Royal Hunt of the SunThe Royal Hunt of the Sun is a 1964 play by Peter Shaffer that portrays the destruction of the Inca empire by conquistador Francisco Pizarro.-Premiere:...
, and also appeared as an extra in the 1965 film
The PawnbrokerThe Pawnbroker is a 1964 drama film, starring Rod Steiger, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Brock Peters and Jaime Sánchez and directed by Sidney Lumet. It was adapted by Morton S. Fine and David Friedkin from the novel of the same name by Edward Lewis Wallant....
. He made his
off-BroadwayOff-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
debut in 1967, opposite
Viveca LindforsElsa Viveca Torstensdotter Lindfors , better known under her professional name of Viveca Lindfors, was a Swedish stage and film actress.-Life and career:...
in The Nigger Lovers (about the civil rights era "
Freedom RideFreedom Riders were civil rights activists who rode interstate buses into the segregated southern United States to test the United States Supreme Court decisions Boynton v. Virginia and Morgan v. Virginia...
rs"), before debuting on
BroadwayBroadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
in 1968's all-black version of
Hello, Dolly!Hello, Dolly! is a musical with lyrics and music by Jerry Herman and a book by Michael Stewart, based on Thornton Wilder's 1938 farce The Merchant of Yonkers, which Wilder revised and retitled The Matchmaker in 1955....
, which also starred
Pearl BaileyPearl Mae Bailey was an American actress and singer. After appearing in vaudeville, she made her Broadway debut in St. Louis Woman in 1946. She won a Tony Award for the title role in the all-black production of Hello, Dolly! in 1968...
and
Cab CallowayCabell "Cab" Calloway III was an American jazz singer and bandleader. He was strongly associated with the Cotton Club in Harlem, New York City where he was a regular performer....
.
Acting career
Although his first credited film appearance was in 1971's Who Says I Can't Ride a Rainbow?, Freeman first became known in the American media through roles on the soap opera
Another WorldAnother World is an American television soap opera that ran on NBC from May 4, 1964 to June 25, 1999. It ran for a total of 35 years. It was created by Irna Phillips along with William J...
and the
PBSThe Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
kids' show
The Electric CompanyThe Electric Company is an educational American children's television series that was produced by the Children's Television Workshop for PBS in the United States. PBS broadcast 780 episodes over the course of its six seasons from October 25, 1971 to April 15, 1977...
, (notably as Easy Reader and Vincent the Vegetable Vampire) which he later said he should have left earlier than he did.
Beginning in the mid-1980s, Freeman began playing prominent supporting roles in many feature films, earning him a reputation for depicting wise, fatherly characters. As he gained fame, he went on to bigger roles in films such as the chauffeur Hoke in
Driving Miss Daisy Driving Miss Daisy is a 1989 American comedy-drama film adapted from the Alfred Uhry play of the same name. The film was directed by Bruce Beresford, with Morgan Freeman reprising his role as Hoke Colburn and Jessica Tandy playing Miss Daisy...
, and Sergeant Major Rawlins in Glory (both in 1989). In 1994 he portrayed Red, the redeemed convict in the acclaimed
The Shawshank RedemptionThe Shawshank Redemption is a 1994 American drama film written and directed by Frank Darabont and starring Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman....
. In the same year he was a member of the jury at the
44th Berlin International Film FestivalThe 44th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from February 10 to 21, 1994.-Jury:* Jeremy Thomas * Chinghiz Aitmatov* María Luisa Bemberg* Hsu Feng* Morgan Freeman* Francis Girod* Corinna Harfouch* Carlo Lizzani...
.
He also starred in films such as
Robin Hood: Prince of ThievesRobin Hood: Prince of Thieves is a 1991 American adventure film directed by Kevin Reynolds. Kevin Costner heads the cast list as Robin Hood...
,
UnforgivenUnforgiven is a 1992 American Western film produced and directed by Clint Eastwood with a screenplay written by David Webb Peoples. The film tells the story of William Munny, an aging outlaw and killer who takes on one more job years after he had hung up his guns and turned to farming...
,
SevenSeven is a 1995 American thriller film, which also contains horror and neo-noir elements, directed by David Fincher and written by Andrew Kevin Walker. It was distributed by New Line Cinema and stars Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow, R...
, and
Deep ImpactDeep Impact is a 1998 science-fiction disaster-drama film released by Paramount Pictures and DreamWorks in the United States on May 8, 1998. The film was directed by Mimi Leder and stars Robert Duvall, Elijah Wood, Téa Leoni, and Morgan Freeman...
. In 1997, Freeman, together with
Lori McCrearyLori McCreary is an American motion picture producer and computer scientist. She is co-founder and CEO of the production company Revelations Entertainment, which she co-founded with actor Morgan Freeman....
, founded the film production company
Revelations EntertainmentRevelations Entertainment is an independent movie production company founded by actor Morgan Freeman and Lori McCreary in 1996. In 2006, Revelations became the first film production company in history to distribute a film online while the movie was still playing in theaters...
, and the two co-head its sister online film distribution company
ClickStarClickStar was a broadband movie distribution company founded by actor Morgan Freeman and film producer Lori McCreary of Revelations Entertainment. ClickStar launched on December 15, 2006 under the leadership of interim CEO James J. Ackerman and Chairman/Co-Founder Lori McCreary. The company is no...
. Freeman also hosts the channel Our Space on ClickStar, with specially crafted film clips in which he shares his love for the sciences, especially space exploration and aeronautics.
After three previous nominations—a supporting actor nomination for
Street SmartStreet Smart is a film directed by Jerry Schatzberg and starring Christopher Reeve, Morgan Freeman and Kathy Baker.-Plot:Magazine reporter Jonathan Fisher , in danger of losing his job, promises to write a hard-hitting story on prostitution...
, and leading actor nominations for Driving Miss Daisy, and The Shawshank Redemption—he won the
Academy Award for Best Supporting ActorPerformance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
for his performance in
Million Dollar BabyMillion Dollar Baby is a 2004 American sports drama film directed, co-produced, and scored by Clint Eastwood and starring Eastwood, Hilary Swank, and Morgan Freeman...
at the
77th Academy AwardsThe 77th Academy Awards honored the best films of 2004 and were held on February 27, 2005, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California. They were hosted by comedian Chris Rock.The nominees were announced on January 25, 2005...
. Freeman is recognized for his distinctive voice, making him a frequent choice for narration. In 2005 alone, he provided narration for two films,
War of the WorldsWar of the Worlds is a 2005 American science fiction film adaptation of H. G. Wells' novel of the same name, directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Josh Friedman and David Koepp. It is one of three film adaptations of War of the Worlds released that year, alongside The Asylum's version and...
and the Academy Award-winning documentary film
March of the PenguinsMarch of the Penguins is a 2005 French nature documentary film. It was directed and co-written by Luc Jacquet, and co-produced by Bonne Pioche and the National Geographic Society. The film depicts the yearly journey of the emperor penguins of Antarctica...
.
Freeman appeared as
GodIn Christianity, God is the eternal being that created and preserves the universe. God is believed by most Christians to be immanent , while others believe the plan of redemption show he will be immanent later...
in the hit film
Bruce AlmightyBruce Almighty is a 2003 American comedy film directed by Tom Shadyac and written by Steve Koren, Mark O'Keefe and Steve Oedekerk. It stars Jim Carrey as Bruce Nolan, a down-on-his-luck TV reporter who complains to God that He isn't doing His job correctly, and is then offered the chance to try...
and its sequel,
Evan AlmightyEvan Almighty is a 2007 American religious comedy film and the stand-alone sequel to Bruce Almighty . The film was directed by Tom Shadyac, written by Steve Oedekerk, and starring Steve Carell as the title character. Morgan Freeman also reprised his role as God from the original film. Production of...
, as well as
Lucius FoxLucius Fox is a fictional character appearing in Batman comic books by DC Comics. He was created by Len Wein and John Calnan, and first appeared in Batman #307 . As a supporting character, he acts as Bruce Wayne's business manager who supposedly unknowingly runs the business interests that supply...
in the critical and commercial success
Batman BeginsBatman Begins is a 2005 American superhero action film based on the fictional DC Comics character Batman, directed by Christopher Nolan. It stars Christian Bale as Batman, along with Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes, Cillian Murphy, Morgan Freeman, Ken Watanabe, Tom Wilkinson,...
and its 2008 sequel,
The Dark KnightThe Dark Knight is a 2008 superhero film directed, produced and co-written by Christopher Nolan. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, the film is part of Nolan's Batman film series and a sequel to 2005's Batman Begins...
. He starred in
Rob ReinerRobert "Rob" Reiner is an American actor, director, producer, writer, and political activist.As an actor, Reiner first came to national prominence as Archie and Edith Bunker's son-in-law, Michael "Meathead" Stivic, on All in the Family. That role earned him two Emmy Awards during the 1970s...
's 2007 film
The Bucket ListThe Bucket List is a 2007 comedy-drama film directed by Rob Reiner, written by Justin Zackham, and starring Academy Award-winners Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman...
, opposite
Jack NicholsonJohn Joseph "Jack" Nicholson is an American actor, film director, producer and writer. He is renowned for his often dark portrayals of neurotic characters. Nicholson has been nominated for an Academy Award twelve times, and has won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice: for One Flew Over the...
. He teamed with
Christopher WalkenChristopher Walken is an American stage and screen actor. He has appeared in more than 100 movies and television shows, including Joe Dirt, Annie Hall, The Deer Hunter, The Prophecy trilogy, The Dogs of War, Sleepy Hollow, Brainstorm, The Dead Zone, A View to a Kill, At Close Range, King of New...
and
William H. MacyWilliam Hall Macy, Jr. is an American actor and writer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as Jerry Lundegaard in Fargo. He is also a teacher and director in theater, film and television. His film career has been built mostly on his appearances in small, independent films, though...
for the comedy The Maiden Heist, which was released direct to video due to financial problems of the distribution company. In 2008, Freeman returned to Broadway to co-star with
Frances McDormandFrances Louise McDormand is an American film and stage actress. She has starred in a number of films, including her Academy Award-winning performance as Marge Gunderson in Fargo, in 1996...
and
Peter GallagherPeter Killian Gallagher is an American actor, musician and writer. Since 1980, Gallagher has played many roles in numerous Hollywood films. He starred as Sandy Cohen in the television drama series The O.C. from 2003 to 2007...
for a limited engagement of
Clifford OdetsClifford Odets was an American playwright, screenwriter, socialist, and social protester.-Early life:Odets was born in Philadelphia to Romanian- and Russian-Jewish immigrant parents, Louis Odets and Esther Geisinger, and raised in Philadelphia and the Bronx, New York. He dropped out of high...
's play, The Country Girl, directed by
Mike NicholsMike Nichols is a German-born American television, stage and film director, writer, producer and comedian. He began his career in the 1950s as one half of the comedy duo Nichols and May, along with Elaine May. In 1968 he won the Academy Award for Best Director for the film The Graduate...
.
He had wanted to do a film based on
Nelson MandelaNelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
for some time. At first he tried to get Mandela's autobiography,
Long Walk to FreedomLong Walk to Freedom is an autobiographical work written by Nelson Mandela, and published in 1995 by Little Brown & Co. The book profiles his early life, coming of age, education and 27 years in prison. Mandela was once regarded as a terrorist but he is now regarded as uncontroversial...
, adapted into a finished script, but it could never be finalized. In 2007 he purchased the film rights to a pre-published 2008 book by John Carlin, Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game that Made a Nation.
Clint EastwoodClinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
directed the Nelson Mandela bio-pic titled
InvictusInvictus is a 2009 biographical sports drama film directed by Clint Eastwood starring Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon.The story is based on the John Carlin book Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Changed a Nation about the events in South Africa before and during the 1995 Rugby World...
, starring Freeman as Mandela and
Matt DamonMatthew Paige "Matt" Damon is an American actor, screenwriter, and philanthropist whose career was launched following the success of the film Good Will Hunting , from a screenplay he co-wrote with friend Ben Affleck...
as rugby team captain
Francois PienaarJacobus Francois Pienaar is a South African former rugby union player. He played flanker for South Africa from 1993 until 1996, winning 29 international caps, all of them as captain. He is best known for leading South Africa to victory in the 1995 Rugby World Cup...
. In October 2010, Freeman co-starred alongside
Bruce WillisWalter Bruce Willis , better known as Bruce Willis, is an American actor, producer, and musician. His career began in television in the 1980s and has continued both in television and film since, including comedic, dramatic, and action roles...
in
RedRED is a 2010 American action comedy film loosely inspired by the three-issue comic book series of the same name created by Warren Ellis and Cully Hamner, and published by the DC Comics imprint Homage...
.
Freeman's latest project is the
Danny DeVitoDaniel Michael DeVito, Jr. , better known as Danny DeVito, is an American actor, comedian, director and producer. He first gained prominence for his portrayal of Louie De Palma on the ABC and NBC television series Taxi , for which he won a Golden Globe and an Emmy.DeVito and his wife, Rhea Perlman,...
directed film Charlotte Doyle which will also feature Irish actor
Pierce BrosnanPierce Brendan Brosnan, OBE is an Irish actor, film producer and environmentalist. After leaving school at 16, Brosnan began training in commercial illustration, but trained at the Drama Centre in London for three years...
and is due to start filming in Ireland in early 2012.
Other work
In July 2009 Freeman was one of the presenters at the 46664 concert (celebrating
Nelson MandelaNelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
's birthday) at
Radio City Music HallRadio City Music Hall is an entertainment venue located in New York City's Rockefeller Center. Its nickname is the Showplace of the Nation, and it was for a time the leading tourist destination in the city...
in New York City.
Freeman was the first American to record a par on Legend Golf & Safari Resort's
Extreme 19thThe Extreme 19th is the highest and longest par three golf hole in the world, located at the Legend Golf & Safari Resort in the Entabeni Safari Conservatory, Limpopo Province, South Africa. The hole was conceived by Graham Cooke of the UK, and designed by David Riddle.The tee, located at the top...
hole.
At age 65, Freeman earned a private pilot's license. He owns or has owned at least three private aircraft, including a
Cessna Citation 501The Cessna Citation is a marketing name used by Cessna for its line of business jets. Rather than one particular model of aircraft, the name applies to several "families" of turbofan-powered aircraft that have been produced over the years...
jet and a
Cessna 414 twin-engine prop. In 2007 he purchased an Emivest SJ30
long-range private jet, and took delivery in December 2009.
He is certified to fly all of them.
Effective January 4, 2010, Freeman replaced
Walter CronkiteWalter Leland Cronkite, Jr. was an American broadcast journalist, best known as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years . During the heyday of CBS News in the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll...
as the voiceover introduction to the
CBS Evening NewsCBS Evening News is the flagship nightly television news program of the American television network CBS. The network has broadcast this program since 1948, and has used the CBS Evening News title since 1963....
featuring
Katie CouricKatherine Anne "Katie" Couric is an American journalist and author. She serves as Special Correspondent for ABC News, contributing to ABC World News, Nightline, 20/20, Good Morning America, This Week and primetime news specials...
as news anchor. CBS cited the need for consistency in introductions for regular news broadcasts and special reports as the basis for the change.
As of 2010, Freeman is the host and narrator of the
Discovery ChannelDiscovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
television show
Through the WormholeThrough the Wormhole with Morgan Freeman is an American science documentary television series narrated by American actor Morgan Freeman. It began airing on Science in the United States on June 9, 2010.- Development :...
.
Personal life
Family
Freeman was married to Jeanette Adair Bradshaw from October 22, 1967 until 1979. He married Myrna Colley-Lee on June 16, 1984. The couple separated in December 2007. Freeman's attorney and business partner, Bill Luckett, announced in August 2008 that Freeman and his wife are in the process of divorce. On 15 September 2010, their divorce was finalized in Mississippi.
He has two sons from previous relationships before he married Bradshaw. He
adoptedAdoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
his first wife's daughter, and the couple also had his fourth child.
In 2008, the TV series
African American Lives 2African American Lives is a PBS television miniseries hosted by historian Henry Louis Gates, Jr., focusing on African American genealogical research...
revealed that Freeman's great-great-grandparents were slaves who migrated from North Carolina to Mississippi.
Freeman has publicly declared his lack of religion.
Properties
Freeman lives in
Charleston, MississippiCharleston is a city in North Central Mississippi and one of the county seats of Tallahatchie County. The population was 2,198 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Charleston is located at ....
, and New York City. He co-owns and operates Madidi, a fine dining restaurant, and
Ground ZeroGround Zero is a blues club in Clarksdale, Mississippi that is co-owned by Morgan Freeman, attorney Bill Luckett, and Memphis entertainment executive Howard Stovall. It got its name from the fact that Clarksdale has been historically referred to as "Ground Zero" for the blues. It opened in May...
, a
bluesBlues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
club, both located in
Clarksdale, MississippiClarksdale is a city in Coahoma County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 20,645 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Coahoma County....
. He officially opened his second Ground Zero in
Memphis, TennesseeMemphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
on April 24, 2008.
Car accident
Freeman was injured in an automobile accident near
Ruleville, MississippiRuleville is a small city in the fertile Mississippi Delta region in Sunflower County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 3,234 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Ruleville is located at ....
, on the night of August 3, 2008. The vehicle in which he was traveling, a 1997
Nissan MaximaThe first car to wear the Maxima name was introduced in 1981. It was essentially a Japanese-market Bluebird 910 with a longer nose. The car was offered as the 810 Deluxe or 810 Maxima that first year, and all 810s became Maximas for 1982...
, left the highway and flipped over several times. He and a female passenger, Demaris Meyer, were rescued from the vehicle using the "
Jaws of LifeHydraulic rescue tools are used by emergency rescue personnel to assist vehicle extrication of crash victims, as well as other rescues from small spaces. These tools include cutters, spreaders, door busters and rams...
". Freeman was taken via medical helicopter to The Regional Medical Center (The Med) hospital in Memphis. Police ruled out alcohol as a factor in the crash. Freeman was coherent following the crash, as he joked to a photographer about taking his picture at the scene. He broke his shoulder, arm and elbow in the crash and had surgery on August 5, 2008. Doctors operated for four hours to repair nerve damage in his shoulder and arm. On
CNNCable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
's
Piers Morgan TonightPiers Morgan Tonight is a talk show on CNN, hosted by Piers Morgan. The show premiered on January 17, 2011 and filled the former Larry King Live timeslot. The theme music is written by Anthony James, composer and CEO of British company Music Candy, and his writing partner Yiorgos Bellapaisiotis,...
he stated that he is left handed but currently cannot move the fingers of his left hand. He wears a compression glove to protect against blood pooling due to non-movement. His publicist announced he was expected to make a full recovery. Meyer, his passenger, has sued him for negligence, claiming that he was drinking the night of the accident. She has denied reports that they were romantically involved.
Charitable work
In 2004 Freeman and others formed the Grenada Relief Fund to aid people affected by
Hurricane IvanHurricane Ivan was a large, long-lived, Cape Verde-type hurricane that caused widespread damage in the Caribbean and United States. The cyclone was the ninth named storm, the sixth hurricane and the fourth major hurricane of the active 2004 Atlantic hurricane season...
on the island of
GrenadaGrenada is an island country and Commonwealth Realm consisting of the island of Grenada and six smaller islands at the southern end of the Grenadines in the southeastern Caribbean Sea...
. The Grenada Relief Fund has since become PLANIT NOW, an organization that seeks to provide preparedness resources for people living in hurricane and severe-storm afflicted areas.
Freeman has worked on narrating small clips for global organizations, such as One Earth, whose goals include raising awareness of environmental issues. He has narrated the clip "Why Are We Here", which can be viewed on One Earth's website.
Freeman has donated money to the
MississippiMississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
Horse Park in
Starkville, Mississippi-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 21,869 people, 9,462 households, and 4,721 families residing in the city. The population density was 851.4 people per square mile . There were 10,191 housing units at an average density of 396.7 per square mile...
. The Horse park is part of
Mississippi State UniversityThe Mississippi State University of Agriculture and Applied Science commonly known as Mississippi State University is a land-grant university located in Oktibbeha County, Mississippi, United States, partially in the town of Starkville and partially in an unincorporated area...
. Freeman has several horses that he takes there.
Comments on race
Freeman has publicly criticized the celebration of
Black History MonthBlack History Month is an observance of the history of the African diaspora in a number of countries outside of Africa. Since 1976, it is observed annually in the United States and Canada in February, while in the United Kingdom it is observed in October...
and does not participate in any related events, saying, "I don't want a black history month. Black history is American history." He says the only way to end racism is to stop talking about it, and he notes that there is no "white history month". Freeman once said on an interview with
60 Minutes60 Minutes is an American television news magazine, which has run on CBS since 1968. The program was created by producer Don Hewitt who set it apart by using a unique style of reporter-centered investigation....
Mike WallaceMyron Leon "Mike" Wallace is an American journalist, former game show host, actor and media personality. During his 60+ year career, he has interviewed a wide range of prominent newsmakers....
: "I am going to stop calling you a white man and I'm going to ask you to stop calling me a black man." Freeman supported the defeated proposal to change the
Mississippi state flagThe Flag of the State of Mississippi was adopted by the U.S. state of Mississippi in 1894. It is the only United States state flag that incorporates the Battle Flag of the Confederacy.-Pledge to the Mississippi State Flag :The pledge to the state flag is:...
, which contains the
ConfederateThe Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
battle flag.
Freeman joined President
Bill ClintonWilliam Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
, USA Bid Committee Chairman
Sunil GulatiSunil Gulati is the current president of the United States Soccer Federation and special advisor to The Kraft Group and the Kraft family...
, and USMNT midfielder
Landon DonovanLandon Timothy Donovan is an American soccer player for the Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer in the United States. He usually plays as a withdrawn forward, and can also be used as an attacking midfielder on either wing....
on Wednesday, December 1, 2010 in
ZurichZurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
for the USA bid committee's final presentation to FIFA for the
2022 FIFA World CupThe 2022 FIFA World Cup will be the 22nd FIFA World Cup, an international association football tournament that is scheduled to take place in 2022 in Qatar. The competition is scheduled to take place in June and July, although proposals have been made for a winter season. The tournament will involve...
.
Politics
Freeman endorsed
Barack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
's candidacy for the
2008 presidential electionThe United States presidential election of 2008 was the 56th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on November 4, 2008. Democrat Barack Obama, then the junior United States Senator from Illinois, defeated Republican John McCain, the senior U.S. Senator from Arizona. Obama received 365...
, although he stated that he would not join Obama's campaign. He narrates for The Hall of Presidents with Barack Obama, who has been added to the exhibit. The Hall of Presidents re-opened on July 4, 2009 at
Walt Disney World ResortWalt Disney World Resort , is the world's most-visited entertaimental resort. Located in Lake Buena Vista, Florida ; approximately southwest of Orlando, Florida, United States, the resort covers an area of and includes four theme parks, two water parks, 23 on-site themed resort hotels Walt...
in
Orlando, FloridaOrlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
.
Freeman sparked an outcry in September 2011 when, on
CNNCable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
's
Piers Morgan TonightPiers Morgan Tonight is a talk show on CNN, hosted by Piers Morgan. The show premiered on January 17, 2011 and filled the former Larry King Live timeslot. The theme music is written by Anthony James, composer and CEO of British company Music Candy, and his writing partner Yiorgos Bellapaisiotis,...
, he accused the
Tea Party movementThe Tea Party movement is an American populist political movement that is generally recognized as conservative and libertarian, and has sponsored protests and supported political candidates since 2009...
of
racismRacism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
. He said that the Tea Party's "stated policy, publicly stated, is to do whatever it takes to see to it that Obama only serves one term. What's, what does that, what underlines that? Screw the country. We're going to do whatever we do to get this black man, we can, we're going to do whatever we can to get this black man outta here." Piers Morgan responded, "But is that necessarily a racist thing?...Wouldn't they say that about any Democrat?" Freeman replied, "It is a racist thing...[The rise of the Tea Party] shows the weak, dark underside of America. We’re supposed to be better than that. We really are. That’s why all those people were in tears when Obama was elected president. ‘Ah look at what we are–this is America.’ Then it just sort of started turning because these people surfaced–like stirring up muddy water." Freeman was criticized for the comments; black Republican presidential candidate
Herman CainHerman Cain is a candidate for the 2012 U.S. Republican Party presidential nomination.Cain has a background as a business executive, syndicated columnist, and radio host from Georgia. He served as chairman and CEO of Godfather's Pizza from 1986 to 1996...
said the comments were short-sighted and said most who have criticized the Tea Party have never been to a Tea Party, and actor
Adam BaldwinAdam Baldwin is an American actor, known for his roles as Animal Mother in Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket, Ricky Linderman in My Bodyguard, Knowle Rohrer in The X-Files, and Marcus Hamilton in Joss Whedon's Angel...
said, "It's the content of Obama's character [and] policies, not the color of his skin, that's at issue."
Honors
On October 28, 2006, Freeman was honored at the first Mississippi's Best Awards in
Jackson, MississippiJackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...
, with the Lifetime Achievement Award for his works on and off the big screen. He received an
honorary degreeAn honorary degree or a degree honoris causa is an academic degree for which a university has waived the usual requirements, such as matriculation, residence, study, and the passing of examinations...
of Doctor of Arts and Letters from
Delta State UniversityDelta State University, also known as DSU, is a regional public university located in Cleveland, Mississippi, United States, in the heart of the Mississippi Delta...
during the school's commencement exercises on May 13, 2006.
In 2008, Freeman's family history was profiled on the
PBSThe Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
series African American Lives 2. A
DNADeoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
test showed that he is descended from the Songhai and Tuareg peoples of
NigerNiger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...
.
Filmography
Film
| Year |
Title |
Role |
Notes |
| 1964 |
|
Man on Street |
uncredited |
| 1966 |
|
Unknown |
uncredited |
| 1968 |
Where Were You When the Lights Went Out? Where Were You When the Lights Went Out? is a 1968 American comedy film with Doris Day, directed by Hy Averback. Although it is set in New York City during the major blackout of November 9, 1965, in which 25 million people scattered throughout seven northeastern states and Ontario, Canada lost...
|
Grand Central Commuter |
uncredited |
| 1980 |
BrubakerBrubaker is an American 1980 film about a prison in distress and the Warden Henry Brubaker who attempts to reform the system....
|
Walter |
|
| 1981 |
Eyewitness |
Lieutenant Black |
|
| 1984 |
Teachers# "Teacher, Teacher" - 38 Special# "Cheap Sunglasses" - ZZ Top# "Foolin' Around" - Freddie Mercury# "I Can't Stop the Fire" - Eric Martin# "Edge of a Dream" - Joe Cocker# " Teacher" - Ian Hunter# "One Foot Back in Your Door" - Roman Holliday...
|
Al Lewis |
|
| 1984 |
Harry & Son Harry & Son is a 1984 American drama film directed by Paul Newman, who also stars. The screenplay by Newman and Ronald Buck focuses on the relationship between a blue-collar worker and his son, who fails at various odd jobs while aspiring to be a writer. Much of the film was shot in Lake Worth, FL...
|
Siemanowski |
|
| 1985 |
Marie Marie is a 1985 film starring Sissy Spacek as the real-life Marie Ragghianti, former head of the Tennessee Board of Pardons and Paroles, who was removed from office in 1977 after refusing to release prisoners who had bribed aides to then-Governor Ray Blanton...
|
Charles Traughber |
|
| 1985 |
That Was Then... This Is Now That Was Then... This Is Now is a 1985 drama film based on the novel of the same name by S. E. Hinton. The film was directed by Christopher Cain, distributed by Paramount Pictures, and stars Emilio Estevez, who also wrote the screenplay, and Craig Sheffer....
|
Charlie Woods |
|
| 1987 |
Street Smart |
Fast Black |
Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting ActorThe Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor is one of the annual awards given by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.This award has been awarded since 1977.-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:...
National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting ActorThe National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor is an annual film award given by the National Society of Film Critics.The awards was given for the first time in 1968 .-1960s:-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:...
New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting ActorThe New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor is an award given by the New York Film Critics Circle, honoring the finest achievements in filmmaking.This awards is given since 1969.- 1960s :- 1970s :- 1980s :- 1990s :- 2000s :...
Nominated—Academy Award for Best Supporting ActorPerformance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture |
| 1988 |
Clean and Sober Clean and Sober is a 1988 American drama film directed by Glenn Gordon Caron starring Michael Keaton as a real estate agent and his trouble with substance abuse. This film was a dramatic departure from comedies for Keaton. The cast also includes Kathy Baker, M...
|
Craig |
|
| 1989 |
Glory |
Sgt. Maj. John Rawlins |
Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor The Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor is an annual award given by the Chicago Film Critics Association.-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:...
|
| 1989 |
Driving Miss Daisy Driving Miss Daisy is a 1989 American comedy-drama film adapted from the Alfred Uhry play of the same name. The film was directed by Bruce Beresford, with Morgan Freeman reprising his role as Hoke Colburn and Jessica Tandy playing Miss Daisy...
|
Hoke Colburn |
40th Berlin International Film Festival The 40th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from February 9 to 20, 1990.-Jury:* Michael Ballhaus * Margaret Ménégoz * Vadim Abdrashitov* Suzana Amaral* Steven Bach* Roberto Benigni* Lívia Gyarmathy...
– Silver Bear for Best Joint Performance (shared with Jessica TandyJessie Alice "Jessica" Tandy was an English-American stage and film actress.She first appeared on the London stage in 1926 at the age of 16, playing, among others, Katherine opposite Laurence Olivier's Henry V, and Cordelia opposite John Gielgud's King Lear. She also worked in British films...
)
Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActorThe Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor is an award given by the Kansas City Film Critics Circle to honor the best achievements in acting.-1960s:-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:*...
National Board of Review Award for Best ActorAn incomplete list of the winners of the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures Award for Best Actor :-1940s:-1950s:-1960s:-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:...
Nominated—Academy Award for Best ActorPerformance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
|
| 1989 |
Lean on Me Lean on Me is a 1989 dramatized biographical written by Michael Schiffer, directed by John G. Avildsen and starring Morgan Freeman. Lean on Me is loosely based on the story of Joe Louis Clark, a real life inner city high school principal in Paterson, New Jersey, whose school is at risk of being...
|
Principal Joe Clark Joe Louis Clark is the former principal of Eastside High School in Paterson, one of New Jersey's toughest inner city schools. He is also the subject of the 1989 film Lean on Me, starring Morgan Freeman. Clark gained public attention in the 1980s for his unconventional and controversial...
|
|
| 1989 |
Johnny HandsomeJohnny Handsome is an 1989 American crime-drama film directed by Walter Hill and starring Mickey Rourke, Ellen Barkin and Morgan Freeman. The film was written by Ken Friedman, from the novel by John Godey. The music for the film was written, produced and performed by Ry Cooder, and Jim Keltner...
|
Lt. A.Z. Drones |
|
| 1990 |
|
Judge Leonard White |
|
| 1990 |
|
Voice of Frederick Douglass |
|
| 1991 |
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves is a 1991 American adventure film directed by Kevin Reynolds. Kevin Costner heads the cast list as Robin Hood...
|
Azeem |
Nominated—MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo This is a following list of the MTV Movie Award winners and nominees for Best On-Screen Duo. It was later changed to Best On-Screen Team in 2001. This award was last given out in 2006.-References:...
(shared with Kevin CostnerKevin Michael Costner is an American actor, singer, musician, producer, director, and businessman. He has been nominated for three BAFTA Awards, won two Academy Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards. Costner's roles include Lt. John J...
) |
| 1992 |
Unforgiven Unforgiven is a 1992 American Western film produced and directed by Clint Eastwood with a screenplay written by David Webb Peoples. The film tells the story of William Munny, an aging outlaw and killer who takes on one more job years after he had hung up his guns and turned to farming...
|
Ned Logan |
|
| 1992 |
|
Geel Piet |
|
| 1993 |
Bopha!Bopha! is a 1993 drama film directed by Morgan Freeman and starring Danny Glover. It was adapted from a 1986 play by Percy Mtwa and was Freeman's directorial debut.-Story:...
|
|
director only, his directorial debut |
| 1994 |
|
Ellis Boyd "Red" Redding, Narrator |
Chlotrudis Award for Best Actor The Chlotrudis Award for Best Actor is an award given by the Chlotrudis Society for Independent Film to the actor or actors whose winning performance is voted by participating members. The Chlotrudis Awards is an annual ceremony where the best of the previous year's independent and international...
(tied with Wallace ShawnWallace Michael Shawn , sometimes credited as Wally Shawn, is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, author, voice artist, and intellectual. His best-known film roles include Wally Shawn in My Dinner with Andre , Vizzini in The Princess Bride , and debate teacher Mr...
for Vanya on 42nd StreetVanya on 42nd Street is a 1994 film by Louis Malle and Andre Gregory. The film is an intimate, interpretive performance of the play Uncle Vanya by Anton Chekhov based on the English translation by David Mamet...
)
Nominated—Academy Award for Best ActorPerformance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting ActorThe Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor is an annual award given by the Chicago Film Critics Association.-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:...
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama
Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role |
| 1995 |
OutbreakOutbreak is a 1995 American disaster film starring Dustin Hoffman, Rene Russo, Morgan Freeman, and Kevin Spacey. The film was directed by Wolfgang Petersen. In addition, Outbreak features Cuba Gooding, Jr., Donald Sutherland, and Patrick Dempsey....
|
Brig. Gen. Billy Ford |
|
| 1995 |
Se7en Seven is a 1995 American thriller film, which also contains horror and neo-noir elements, directed by David Fincher and written by Andrew Kevin Walker. It was distributed by New Line Cinema and stars Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow, R...
|
Detective Lt. William Somerset |
Empire Award for Best Actor An Empire Award is an accolade bestowed by Empire, Britain's biggest selling film magazine, to recognize excellence of professionals in the locale and global film industry. The awards are voted for by readers of the magazine and in an annual ceremony, the Empire Awards, the winners are presented...
London Film Critics Circle Award for Actor of the Year
Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best ActorThe Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor is an annual award given by the Chicago Film Critics Association.-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:...
Nominated—MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen DuoThis is a following list of the MTV Movie Award winners and nominees for Best On-Screen Duo. It was later changed to Best On-Screen Team in 2001. This award was last given out in 2006.-References:...
(shared with Brad PittWilliam Bradley "Brad" Pitt is an American actor and film producer. Pitt has received two Academy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one...
)
Nominated—Saturn Award for Best ActorThe Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed, who felt that films within those genres...
|
| 1996 |
Chain Reaction Chain Reaction is a 1996 American film starring Keanu Reeves, Morgan Freeman, Rachel Weisz, Brian Cox, Kevin Dunn and Fred Ward. It presents a fictional account of the invention of bubble fusion using sonoluminescence and the attempts by the United States Government to prevent the spreading of this...
|
Paul Shannon |
|
| 1996 |
Moll Flanders Moll Flanders is a 1996 film starring Robin Wright and Morgan Freeman. The film was directed by Pen Densham. The original music score was composed by Mark Mancina...
|
Hibble |
|
| 1996 |
Cosmic Voyage Cosmic Voyage is a 1996 short documentary produced in the IMAX format, directed by Bayley Silleck, produced by Jeffrey Marvin, and narrated by Morgan Freeman. The film was presented by the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum,...
|
Narrator |
|
| 1997 |
AmistadAmistad is a 1997 historical drama film directed by Steven Spielberg based on the true story of a mutiny in 1839 by newly captured African slaves that took place aboard the ship La Amistad off the coast of Cuba, the subsequent voyage to the Northeastern United States and the legal battle that...
|
Theodore Joadson |
|
| 1997 |
Kiss The Girls Kiss the Girls is a 1997 American thriller film directed by Gary Fleder and starring Morgan Freeman, Cary Elwes and Ashley Judd. The screenplay by David Klass is based on the best-selling novel Kiss the Girls by James Patterson.-Plot:Washington, D.C...
|
Dr. Alex Cross Alex Cross is a fictional character, the protagonist in a series of books by novelist James Patterson.-Character overview:Cross is a Black detective and psychologist living and working in the Southeast quadrant of Washington, D.C...
|
|
| 1997 |
|
Narrator A narrator is, within any story , the fictional or non-fictional, personal or impersonal entity who tells the story to the audience. When the narrator is also a character within the story, he or she is sometimes known as the viewpoint character. The narrator is one of three entities responsible for...
|
|
| 1998 |
Deep Impact Deep Impact is a 1998 science-fiction disaster-drama film released by Paramount Pictures and DreamWorks in the United States on May 8, 1998. The film was directed by Mimi Leder and stars Robert Duvall, Elijah Wood, Téa Leoni, and Morgan Freeman...
|
President Tom Beck |
|
| 1998 |
Hard Rain Hard Rain is a 1998 American/British action thriller disaster movie, produced by Mark Gordon, written by Graham Yost and directed by former cinematographer turned director Mikael Salomon...
|
Jim |
|
| 2000 |
Nurse Betty Nurse Betty is a 2000 American comedy film directed by Neil LaBute starring Renée Zellweger as a sweet Kansas waitress who undergoes a nervous breakdown after witnessing her husband's murder, and starts obsessively pursuing her favorite soap actor....
|
Charlie Quinn |
Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy |
| 2000 |
Under Suspicion Under Suspicion is a 2000 American film directed by Stephen Hopkins. It stars Gene Hackman, Morgan Freeman, Monica Bellucci and Thomas Jane. The film is based on the 1981 French film Garde à vue and the 1970s British novel Brainwash, written by John Wainwright...
|
Victor Benezet |
|
| 2001 |
Along Came a Spider Along Came a Spider is a 2001 American mystery film directed by Lee Tamahori. The screenplay by Marc Moss was adapted from the 1993 novel of the same title by James Patterson, but many of the key plot elements of the book were eliminated...
|
Dr. Alex Cross Alex Cross is a fictional character, the protagonist in a series of books by novelist James Patterson.-Character overview:Cross is a Black detective and psychologist living and working in the Southeast quadrant of Washington, D.C...
|
|
| 2002 |
|
DCI William Cabot |
|
| 2002 |
High Crimes High Crimes is a 2002 American thriller film directed by Carl Franklin. The screenplay by Yuri Zeltser and Grace Cary Bickley is based on a novel by Joseph Finder.-Plot:...
|
Charlie Grimes |
|
| 2003 |
Bruce Almighty Bruce Almighty is a 2003 American comedy film directed by Tom Shadyac and written by Steve Koren, Mark O'Keefe and Steve Oedekerk. It stars Jim Carrey as Bruce Nolan, a down-on-his-luck TV reporter who complains to God that He isn't doing His job correctly, and is then offered the chance to try...
|
GodGod is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
|
|
| 2003 |
Dreamcatcher Dreamcatcher is a 2003 film adaptation of Stephen King's novel of the same name. It was directed by Lawrence Kasdan, and co-written by Kasdan and screenwriter William Goldman...
|
Col. Abraham Curtis |
|
| 2003 |
Levity Levity is a 2003 drama movie, directed by Ed Solomon. Its theatrical release was on April 4. The score for this film was composed by Mark Oliver Everett of the band Eels. Levity was filmed in Montreal, Canada.- Plot :...
|
Pastor Miles Evans |
|
| 2003 |
Drug War |
Lt. Redding |
|
| 2004 |
Million Dollar BabyMillion Dollar Baby is a 2004 American sports drama film directed, co-produced, and scored by Clint Eastwood and starring Eastwood, Hilary Swank, and Morgan Freeman...
|
Eddie "Scrap Iron" Dupris |
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
Italian Online Movie Award for Best Supporting ActorItalian Online Movie Awards is the name of the movie award assigned every year by a group of Italian movielovers to the best films of the season ....
NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion PictureThe NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture:Performers that earned or won Academy Award nominations:*1. Denzel Washington- Glory*2. Djimon Hounsou- In America*3. Morgan Freeman- Million Dollar Baby...
Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
Vancouver Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting ActorThe winners of the Vancouver Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor are listed below.- 2000s :- 2010s :...
Nominated—Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor
Nominated - Black Reel Award for Best Supporting ActorHere are the winners & nominees for the Black Reel Award for Best Supporting Actor.*Djimon Hounsou & Jamie Foxx hold the record for most wins, with two each....
Nominated—Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting ActorThe Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor is an award given by the Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association to honor the best achievements in filmmaking.-2000s:-2010s:-References:...
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture
Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture |
| 2004 |
|
Narrator |
limited release |
| 2004 |
|
Walter Crewes |
|
| 2005 |
|
Mitch Bradley |
|
| 2005 |
War of the WorldsWar of the Worlds is a 2005 American science fiction film adaptation of H. G. Wells' novel of the same name, directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Josh Friedman and David Koepp. It is one of three film adaptations of War of the Worlds released that year, alongside The Asylum's version and...
|
Narrator |
|
| 2005 |
March of the Penguins March of the Penguins is a 2005 French nature documentary film. It was directed and co-written by Luc Jacquet, and co-produced by Bonne Pioche and the National Geographic Society. The film depicts the yearly journey of the emperor penguins of Antarctica...
|
Narrator |
|
| 2005 |
Batman BeginsBatman Begins is a 2005 American superhero action film based on the fictional DC Comics character Batman, directed by Christopher Nolan. It stars Christian Bale as Batman, along with Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes, Cillian Murphy, Morgan Freeman, Ken Watanabe, Tom Wilkinson,...
|
Lucius FoxLucius Fox is a fictional character appearing in Batman comic books by DC Comics. He was created by Len Wein and John Calnan, and first appeared in Batman #307 . As a supporting character, he acts as Bruce Wayne's business manager who supposedly unknowingly runs the business interests that supply...
|
|
| 2005 |
Unleashed Unleashed , is a 2005 American-British-French martial arts action thriller film directed by Louis Leterrier and written by Luc Besson. Film stars Jet Li, Bob Hoskins, Morgan Freeman and Kerry Condon...
|
Sam |
|
| 2006 |
Edison Force |
Ashford |
|
| 2006 |
|
Frank Carden |
|
| 2006 |
Lucky Number Slevin Lucky Number Slevin, renamed for the German/USA DVDs as Lucky # Slevin , is a 2006 crime thriller film written by Jason Smilovic, directed by Paul McGuigan and starring Josh Hartnett, Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, Ben Kingsley, Stanley Tucci, and Lucy Liu...
|
The Boss |
|
| 2006 |
10 Items or Less10 Items or Less is a 2006 American comedy-drama written and directed by Brad Silberling and starring Morgan Freeman and Paz Vega. Shot in fifteen days, 10 Items or Less made its release as a digital download – the first such release via the Internet – while it was still in...
|
Himself |
|
| 2007 |
Evan Almighty Evan Almighty is a 2007 American religious comedy film and the stand-alone sequel to Bruce Almighty . The film was directed by Tom Shadyac, written by Steve Oedekerk, and starring Steve Carell as the title character. Morgan Freeman also reprised his role as God from the original film. Production of...
|
GodGod is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
|
|
| 2007 |
Feast of Love Feast of Love is a 2007 American drama film directed by Robert Benton, starring Morgan Freeman, Greg Kinnear, Radha Mitchell, Billy Burke and Selma Blair...
|
Harry Stephenson |
|
| 2007 |
Gone, Baby, Gone |
Jack Doyle |
|
| 2007 |
|
Carter Chambers |
Also Narrator |
| 2008 |
Wanted |
Sloan |
|
| 2008 |
|
Narrator |
Voice |
| 2008 |
|
Lucius Fox |
Nominated—Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Cast |
| 2009 |
Prom Night in Mississippi Prom Night in Mississippi is a 2009 Canadian documentary film written and directed by Paul Saltzman. The documentary follows a group of 2008 Charleston High School high school seniors in Charleston, Mississippi as they prepare for their senior prom, the first racially integrated prom in Charleston...
|
Himself |
limited release |
| 2009 |
Thick as Thieves |
Keith Ripley |
|
| 2009 |
|
Charlie |
|
| 2009 |
Invictus Invictus is a 2009 biographical sports drama film directed by Clint Eastwood starring Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon.The story is based on the John Carlin book Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Changed a Nation about the events in South Africa before and during the 1995 Rugby World...
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Nelson MandelaNelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
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NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding African-American Actors in a Motion Picture:# of Performances that have won or been nominated for an Academy Award :*1. Louis Gossett Jr.- An Officer and a Gentleman...
National Board of Review Award for Best ActorAn incomplete list of the winners of the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures Award for Best Actor :-1940s:-1950s:-1960s:-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:...
(tied with George ClooneyGeorge Timothy Clooney is an American actor, film director, producer, and screenwriter. For his work as an actor, he has received two Golden Globe Awards and an Academy Award...
for Up in the AirUp in the Air is a 2009 American comedy-drama film directed by Jason Reitman and co-written by Reitman and Sheldon Turner. It is a film adaptation of the 2001 novel of the same name, written by Walter Kirn. The story is about a corporate downsizer Ryan Bingham and his travels...
)
Nominated—Academy Award for Best ActorPerformance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
Nominated—Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best ActorThe Critics' Choice Award for Best Actor is one of the awards given to people working in the motion picture industry by the Broadcast Film Critics Association.-List of winners and nominees:*1995: Kevin Bacon - Murder in the First as Henri Young...
Nominated—Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best ActorThe Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor is an award given by the Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association to honor the best achievements in filmmaking.-1990s:*1993: Anthony Hopkins - The Remains of the Day*1994:...
Nominated—Denver Film Critics Society Award for Best ActorThe Denver Film Critics Society is an organization of film critics based in Denver, Colorado. -2009 Winners and Nominees:Best Film*The Hurt Locker**A Serious Man**Star Trek**Up in the AirBest Director...
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama
Nominated—Houston Film Critics Society Award for Best ActorThe Houston Film Critics Society is a film critic organization in Houston, Texas, United States. The group presents an annual set of film awards for "extraordinary accomplishment in film" in a ceremony held at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston...
Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
Nominated—St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Award for Best ActorThe St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association is an organization of film critics operating in metropolitan St. Louis and adjoining areas of Missouri and Illinois which was founded in 2004....
Nominated—Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association for Best ActorThe Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association is a group of film critics based out of Washington, D.C., United States that was founded in 2003. WAFCA is composed of 34 DC-based film critics from television, radio, print and the internet...
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| 2010 |
RED RED is a 2010 American action comedy film loosely inspired by the three-issue comic book series of the same name created by Warren Ellis and Cully Hamner, and published by the DC Comics imprint Homage...
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Joe |
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| 2011 |
Born to Be Wild 3D Born to Be Wild 3D is a 2011 American nature documentary short film about orphaned orangutans and elephants. It's directed by David Lickley and written and produced by Drew Fellman. It was distributed in the United States by Warner Bros. Pictures and IMAX Pictures. The trailer was released in...
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Narrator |
|
| 2011 |
Conan the Barbarian |
Narrator |
|
| 2011 |
Dolphin Tale |
Dr. Cameron McCarthy |
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| 2012 |
|
Lucius Fox |
filming |
| 2012 |
|
Zachariah |
in production |
| 2012 |
Summer at Dog Dave's |
|
pre-production |
Television
| Year |
Title |
Role |
Notes |
| 1971–1977 |
|
Easy Reader, DJ Mel Mounds, Dracula, Vincent the Vegetable Vampire |
television series |
| 1978 |
Roll of Thunder, Hear My CryRoll of Thunder, Hear My Cry is a 1976 children's novel by Mildred D. Taylor. The novel won the 1977 Newbery Medal. Its sequel, Let the Circle Be Unbroken, was released in 1981. It also has a prequel in 1975, Song of the Trees...
|
Uncle Hammer |
made-for-television |
| 1981 |
Ryan's HopeRyan's Hope is an American soap opera, revolving around 13 years of trials and tribulations within a large Irish American family in the Riverside district of New York City. It aired from July 7, 1975 to January 13, 1989 on ABC...
|
Cicero Murphy |
TV series (various episodes) |
| 1981 |
|
Clarence Collins |
made-for-television |
| 1982–1984 |
Another WorldAnother World is an American television soap opera that ran on NBC from May 4, 1964 to June 25, 1999. It ran for a total of 35 years. It was created by Irna Phillips along with William J...
|
Roy Bingham |
TV series (various episodes) |
| 1985 |
|
Tony |
Television series (episode "Dealer's Choice") |
| 1986 |
Resting Place |
Luther Johnson |
made-for-television |
| 1987 |
Fight For Life Fight For Life was a television film produced in 1986 and broadcast on March 23, 1987 on the ABC Television Network.-Plot:Dr Bernard Abrams , an Ohio optometrist, and his wife Shirley Abrams have a six-year old daughter that suffers from a rare form of epilepsy. The child's paraplegic doctor ...
|
Dr. Sherard |
made-for-television |
| 2008 |
Smithsonian Channel's Sound Revolution Smithsonian Channel's Sound Revolution is a documentary television series hosted by award-winning actor Morgan Freeman. Documentary footage, expert interviews and musical performances trace the origins of be-bop, jazz, rock 'n' roll and soul music, all emanating from “ground zero” – Clarksdale,...
|
Himself (host) |
television series, series host |
| 2008 |
Stephen Fry in AmericaStephen Fry in America is a six part BBC television series in which Stephen Fry travels across America to reveal a country in which he was almost born. Just before Fry was born, his father was offered a job at Princeton University, in New Jersey, but chose to turn it down in favour of Hampstead. In...
|
Himself |
television series, appears in episode 3 |
| 2010 |
|
Himself |
interview |
| 2010 |
|
Himself |
interview |
| 2010 |
Through the Wormhole Through the Wormhole with Morgan Freeman is an American science documentary television series narrated by American actor Morgan Freeman. It began airing on Science in the United States on June 9, 2010.- Development :...
with Morgan Freeman |
Himself (host) |
television series, series host |
| 2010 |
Saturday Night LiveSaturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
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Himself (celebrity cameo) |
What Up With That What Up With That is a recurring sketch on the NBC television series Saturday Night Live which first aired in 2009. It stars Kenan Thompson as DeAndre Cole, host of a talk show on BET...
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Other awards and honors
- 1978 Nominated for Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play
This is a list of the winners and nominations of Tony Award for the Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play. The award has been presented since 1949.-1950s:* 1951: Eli Wallach – The Rose Tattoo* 1952: John Cromwell – Point of No Return...
in The Mighty Gents
- 1997 Received an honorary degree from Rhodes College
Rhodes College is a private, predominantly undergraduate, liberal arts college located in Memphis, Tennessee, USA. Originally founded by freemasons in 1848, Rhodes became affiliated with the Presbyterian Church in 1855. Rhodes enrolls approximately 1,700 students pursuing bachelor's and master's...
, becoming an honorary alumnus
- 2003 Received the Crystal Globe
Crystal Globe is the main award at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, first given in the city of Karlovy Vary of the Czech Republic, in 1948.In the international competition of films, IFFKV presents the following awards:...
award for outstanding artistic contribution to world cinema at the Karlovy Vary International Film FestivalThe Karlovy Vary International Film Festival is a film festival held annually in July in Karlovy Vary , Czech Republic. The Karlovy Vary Festival gained worldwide recognition over the past years and has become one of Europe's major film events....
- 2006 Guest of honor at the Cairo International Film Festival
The Cairo International Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Cairo, Egypt. It was established in 1976 and was the first international film festival held in the Arab world...
- 2007 He and his wife received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters
The Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters is a privately funded foundation created to recognize annually the greatest accomplishments in art, music, literature, and photography among Mississippians. The idea was conceived by, among others, former Mississippi Governor William Winter, Dr. Cora...
- 2007 Outstanding Contribution To Film And TV gong at the Screen Nation Film and TV Awards
- 2008 Kennedy Center Honors
The Kennedy Center Honors is an annual honor given to those in the performing arts for their lifetime of contributions to American culture. The Honors have been presented annually since 1978 in Washington, D.C., during gala weekend-long events which culminate in a performance for—and...
- 2010 Received an honorary degree from Brown University
Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,...
- 2011 Received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Film Institute
The American Film Institute is an independent non-profit organization created by the National Endowment for the Arts, which was established in 1967 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act...
External links
in 2010