The division of people by skin color is still a painful topic for the United States. Scandals related to racial intolerance can destroy the most successful business or career of a person who indulges in incorrect statements. Therefore, Hollywood is very sensitive to the participation in the films of black actors. Sometimes, for this, changes are even made in the scripts of classical works.
But such efforts do not seem far-fetched or artificial at all. Fortunately, there are many talented African Americans who have won popularity and love of viewers around the world in Hollywood films. They receive accolades from critics, win prestigious awards, and provide excellent box office returns for films. Who are these most famous black actors?
African Americans in Hollywood: The Older Generation
Sidney Poitier will forever go down in film history as the first black actor to be awarded an Oscar for Best Actor. He received this award in 1963 for the film Lilies of the Field. Defending the rights of blacks, Poitiers was one of the first to receive royalties equal to the earnings of white actors. Subsequently, he left the cinema and took up a diplomatic career. In 2017, Poitiers celebrated its 90th birthday.
Morgan Freeman, a Hollywood veteran and a living movie legend, celebrated his 80th birthday in 2017, but still remains in the ranks, delighting fans with new roles. Real success came to Freeman quite late - in 1989, when the film "Miss Daisy's Chauffeur" was released. The picture received 4 Oscars, but the nomination for Best Actor was not victorious for Morgan that time. But he received his first Golden Globe for the role of Hawke's chauffeur.
The 90s saw the heyday of Freeman's acting career. One after another, films were released that eventually turned into classics of world cinema - "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves", "The Shawshank Redemption", "The Unforgiven", "Seven". True, the actor had to wait until 2005 for official recognition of his merits. His second co-production with director Clint Eastwood, Million Dollar Baby, was just as successful as his first, Unforgiven. For this work, on the fourth attempt, Freeman received an Oscar in the nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
Danny Glover is another member of the "old guard" of Hollywood, who turned 70 in 2016. The audience first drew attention to him in the mid-80s after the release of the films "A Place in the Heart" and "Witness". But the actor's calling card is the Lethal Weapon franchise, where he played the second major role - detective Roger Murt - paired with Mel Gibson.
Samuel Leroy Jackson - this black actor was born in 1948, began acting in films in the early 70s. At the moment, his filmography includes over 350 projects. Jackson attracted the attention of audiences and moviegoers in 1991, when he starred in the film "Jungle Fever." Well, the actor's finest hour was the cult film Pulp Fiction. This project marked the beginning of a long and fruitful collaboration between Jackson and director Quentin Tarantino. On their account four more collaborations: "Django Unchained", "Jackie Brown", "The Hateful Eight", "Kill Bill-2".
Spike Lee is a renowned actor, filmmaker and black rights activist. In his films, he pays a lot of attention to the fight against racial intolerance and the problems of oppression of blacks in the United States. Spike Lee became one of the first black directors in the Hollywood industry. He shot such films as "Do It Right!", "Malcolm X", "Blues about a Better Life", "Chirak". In 2019, his new film, Black Klansman, received six Oscar nominations.
Denzel Washington was born in 1954 and became famous on the television series St. Elsver. In 1988 he received his first Oscar nomination for his supporting role in The Cry of Freedom, but won the award in 1990 for the war drama Glory. He collaborated a lot with director Spike Lee. In 2000 he was awarded the Golden Globe and the Berlin Film Festival prize for his role in the biographical film Hurricane, dedicated to the life of the boxer Rubin Carter. In 2001, nearly 40 years after the Sidney Poitier award, Washington became the second black man to receive an Oscar for Best Actor. He played the inimitable role of a corrupt cop in the thriller "Training Day".
By the age of 57, Forest Whitaker has in his baggage over 200 projects and all the most prestigious acting awards - Emmy, Cannes Film Festival, Golden Globe, BAFTA, Oscar. The best works in his career include the drama "Bird" (1988) and the historical film "The Last King of Scotland" (2006). It was for the second picture that Whitaker received most of his awards, including an Oscar for Best Actor.
Laurence Fishburne was born in 1961, the audience is best known for the role of Morpheus in the fantastic action movie "The Matrix". Awarded the Tony Theater Award for Running Two Trains. Also Fishburne in 1995 for the first time in the history of cinema played the main role in the film adaptation of "Othello" by William Shakespeare.
Famous black actors in the USA
Jamie Foxx celebrated his 50th birthday in 2017. He began his career with participation in comedy shows. In addition to acting, he is seriously interested in music. Largely due to this hobby, Fox got the main role in the film adaptation of the biography of the singer and pianist Ray Charles. Ray brought him a crop of prestigious awards, including an Academy Award for Best Actor. Other notable films with Fox's participation are: "Accomplice", "Law Abiding Citizen", "The Soloist", "Django Unchained", "White House Shutrum", "Annie", "Robin Hood: The Beginning".
Will Smith is just a year younger than Jamie Foxx. He started his career as a rap and hip-hop performer and won a Grammy. As an actor, he successfully declared himself, starring in the action movie "Bad Boys". Films with his participation, in general, do not pretend to be of great artistic value, but they consistently bring high box office receipts to film studios. Among such works - the franchise "Men in Black", "I, Robot", "I Am Legend", "Hancock", "Independence Day", "Enemy of the State". There are serious projects in Smith's filmography, highly appreciated by film critics. For his roles in the films Ali, The Pursuit of Happiness, The Defender, the actor was nominated for the Golden Globe and Oscar.
Martin Lawrence partnered with Will Smith in Bad Boys (1995), which made both actors movie stars. Prior to this success, he was known in America as a comedian and host of comedy programs. In Hollywood, Lawrence also did not abandon the humorous genre, becoming famous thanks to the comedies "The Black Knight", "Nothing to Lose", "The Diamond Cop", the series of films "Big Momma's House".
Eddie Murphy is another comedian star of the 80s and 90s. He began his career with stand-up performances. In 1982 he made a successful film debut in the film "48 Hours" and even received a nomination for the "Golden Globe". He played his first major role in the comedy Beverly Hills Cop (1984), which later received two sequels. Murphy experienced the second wave of popularity in the mid-90s, when the films "The Nutty Professor", "Doctor Dolittle" were released. In addition to acting, he is known for dubbing the Donkey in the series of animated films "Shrek". He won his only Golden Globe in 2006 for his supporting role in the musical drama Dreamgirls. True, the Oscar went to another actor.
Listing actors with a dark complexion, one cannot but recall Michael Clarke Duncan, whose life tragically ended in September 2012 at the age of 54. The actor has forever remained in the hearts of millions of fans thanks to the role of John Coffey in the mystical drama The Green Mile. This work earned him Oscar and Golden Globe nominations.
Mahershala Ali has experienced a peak in popularity in recent years, despite the fact that he is over 40 years old. In 2016, the actor was awarded an Oscar for his supporting role in the film Moonlight. Thus, Ali became the first Muslim to receive this prestigious award. In 2019, he has already reaped a harvest of awards for the film "Green Book" and at the next ceremony will again compete for the "Oscar".
European Black Actors
Idris Elba was born and lives in the UK, sometimes coming to the US for filming. His career began to gain momentum in the mid-2000s after the release of the films "28 Weeks Later", "The Harvest", "Rock and Roller". On British television, he successfully starred in the detective series "Luther". He is also known for the fantastic films "Pacific Rim", "Prometheus", two parts of "Torah". In 2013, he was nominated for a Golden Globe for his role as Nelson Mandela in the drama The Long Way to Freedom.
Omar Sy is a French actor with African roots. In 2018 he celebrated his 40th birthday, has been filming since 2001. He gained worldwide fame after the premiere of the comedy "1 + 1" in 2011, after which Omar Si began to be invited to Hollywood projects. On account of his roles in such famous films as "Inferno", "X-Men: Days of Future Past", "Jurassic World".
Black female actors
The presence of African American actresses in Hollywood cinema is not as plentiful as in the case of men. But they all have a memorable appearance and unconditional talent.
Whoopi Goldberg is a comedian and television personality with a career spanning over 35 years. She was successful in theater, film and television. For her supporting role in the romantic thriller Ghost, she won an Oscar, Golden Globe, and a BAFTA in 1991. Viewers also know Goldberg well from the comedies "The Thief", "Fatal Beauty", "Sister Act", "Jumping Jack". In the 90s, she was one of the highest paid actresses in Hollywood. Whoopi is one of those few artists who managed to win Emmy, Tony, Grammy, Oscar awards.
Octavia Spencer is also the recipient of numerous awards and nominations. She starred a lot in the roles of minor characters, but at the same time she does not go unnoticed by connoisseurs of cinema. In 2011 she won an Oscar and a Golden Globe for her small role in The Servant. Also nominations were awarded to her work in the paintings "Hidden Figures" and "The Shape of Water"
Halle Berry is one of the most beautiful actresses with dark complexions. She is a mulatto because she was born to a white mother and a black father. She began her career as a model and first attracted attention in the film "Jungle Fever" in 1991. She received critical acclaim in 1999 with the release of the film "Meet Dorothy Dandridge". Then there was the lead role in the drama "Ball of Monsters" (2001), for which Berry received an Oscar in the category "Best Actress". This award is historic, as for the first time a black woman won the main acting nomination. She is also best known for her films Gothic, Catwoman, and the X-Men franchise.
Viola Davis is a famous theater and television actress, winner of Tony, Emmy, Oscar, Golden Globe. The first popularity was brought to her by serials, and fame in the cinema - the paintings "Doubt" and "Servant". In 2015, she became the first black actress to receive an Emmy for Best Actress in a Drama Series. Davis owes her success to the television project How to Avoid Punishment for Murder. The supporting role in the drama "Fences" became her next high point. In 2017, the work of the actress was recognized as the best at most prestigious awards, including the Oscars.
Other famous and popular African American actresses include Taraji Henson, Lupita Nyong'o, Angela Bassett, Jennifer Hudson.
Russian celebrities of Negro descent
Russia also has its own dark-skinned stars - actors, singers, journalists, TV presenters. True, their popularity is not as widespread as that of American celebrities, and is limited to the borders of our country. Among the representatives of the acting profession, the following names can be called:
- Grigory Siyatvinda - actor of the Satyricon Theater, Honored Artist of Russia, starred in the films "Don't play the fool …", "Zhmurki", "One Love in a Million" and the TV series "Kitchen", "Hotel Eleon", "Grand";
- James Patterson as a child starred with Lyubov Orlova in the film "Circus";
- Weiland Rodd Sr. - Soviet actor, familiar to viewers from the film "Fifteen Years Captain" (1945);
- Anatoly Bovykin played his first and only role in the film "Maxim" (1952);
- Alexey Dedov - Russian singer and actor, starred in crime series;
- Dane Lucombo became famous at the age of 13, playing in the film by Andrei Panin "The Grandson of the Cosmonaut" (2007);
- Tito Romalio Jr. is a Soviet actor who has played bit parts of black characters in many films.
