Washington (born December 28, 1954) is a celebrated American actor, producer, and filmmaker. Known for his dramatic roles on stage and screen, he is widely regarded as one of the best actors of his generation, with a declaration from The New York Times naming him the best actor of the 21st century in 2020. He has won several prestigious awards over his career, including two Oscars, three Golden Globes, a SAG Award, and a Tony Award along with nominations in Emmys and a Grammy. He received the Cecil B. DeMille Award (2016), AFI Life Achievement Award in 2019, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom (2022). Following his training at the American Conservatory Theater, he started his acting career in theater, starring in off-Broadway shows. He was first recognized widely in the NBC drama *St. Elsewhere* (from 1982 to 1988), and in the war film *A Soldier's Story* (released in 1984). He won two Academy Awards, his first for Supporting Actor for playing a Union soldier in the war drama *Glory* (1989) and his second for Best Actor for playing a corrupt cop in the crime thriller *Training Day* (2001). He was nominated for an Oscar for his performances in *Cry Freedom* (1987), *Malcolm X* (released in 1992), *The Hurricane* (1999), *Flight* (released in 2012), *Fences* (released in 2016), *Roman J. Israel, Esq.* (in 2017), and *The Tragedy of Macbeth* (from 2021). A renowned leading man, Washington also acted in movies including *Mo' Better Blues* (in 1990), *Mississippi Masala* (in 1991), *Philadelphia* (from 1993), *Courage Under Fire* (1996), *Remember the Titans* (from 2000), *Man on Fire* (released in 2004), *Inside Man* (in 2006), *American Gangster* (from 2007), and the *Equalizer* films (2014–2023). Washington starred in and directed the films *Antwone Fisher* (2002), *The Great Debaters* (from 2007), and *Fences* (in 2016). In live theater, he has performed in performances of *Coriolanus* (1979) and *The Tragedy of Richard III* (1990) at The Public Theater. His first appearance on Broadway in the Ron Milner play *Checkmates* (1988). He won the Tony Award for Best Actor in the Play category for his role as a disheartened blue-collar father in the Broadway revival of *Fences* by August Wilson (2010). He has also acted in the Broadway revivals of William Shakespeare's *Julius Caesar* (2005), Lorraine Hansberry's play *A Raisin in the Sun* (2014), and Eugene O'Neill's play *The Iceman Cometh* (2018).