Washington (with a birthdate of December 28, 1954) is a celebrated American actor, producer, and filmmaker. Known for his dramatic roles on stage and screen, he is considered one of the greatest actors of his time, with a declaration from The New York Times naming him the best actor of the 21st century in the year 2020. Throughout his career, Washington has garnered numerous awards, including two Academy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a Tony Award in addition to being nominated for Emmys and a Grammy. He has been awarded the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2016, AFI Life Achievement Award (2019), and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2022. After training at the American Conservatory Theater, he launched his career in theater, acting in performances off-Broadway. He first came to prominence in the NBC drama *St. Elsewhere* (from 1982 to 1988), and in the war film *A Soldier's Story* (in 1984). He has two Academy Awards to his name, his first for the Best Supporting Actor category for playing an American Civil War soldier in the war drama *Glory* (released in 1989) and his second for the Best Actor category for playing a corrupt police officer in the crime thriller *Training Day* (in 2001). He was received Oscar nominations for his performances in *Cry Freedom* (1987), *Malcolm X* (released in 1992), *The Hurricane* (in 1999), *Flight* (2012), *Fences* (2016), *Roman J. Israel, Esq.* (from 2017), and *The Tragedy of Macbeth* (2021). A renowned leading man, Washington starred in films such as *Mo' Better Blues* (1990), *Mississippi Masala* (1991), *Philadelphia* (in 1993), *Courage Under Fire* (from 1996), *Remember the Titans* (in 2000), *Man on Fire* (from 2004), *Inside Man* (2006), *American Gangster* (released in 2007), and the *Equalizer* trilogy (released from 2014 to 2023). Washington both starred in and directed the films *Antwone Fisher* (in 2002), *The Great Debaters* (in 2007), and *Fences* (2016). On stage, he has acted in productions of both Coriolanus (1979) and The Tragedy of Richard III (1990) at The Public Theater. He made his Broadway debut in the Ron Milner play *Checkmates* (released in 1988). He earned the Tony Award for Best Actor in the Play category for his role as a disheartened blue-collar father in the Broadway revival of August Wilson's play *Fences* (released in 2010). He has also appeared in the Broadway revivals of Shakespeare's *Julius Caesar* (2005), Hansberry's *A Raisin in the Sun* (2014), and O'Neill's *The Iceman Cometh* (2018).