Washington (with a birthdate of December 28, 1954) is an American actor, producer, and director. Recognized for his powerful performances 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 greatest 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 as well as nominations for two Emmy Awards and one Grammy Award. Washington has been honored with the 2016 Cecil B. DeMille Award, AFI Life Achievement Award (2019), and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2022. After studying at the American Conservatory Theater, he launched his career in theater, acting in performances off-Broadway. He was first recognized widely in the medical drama *St. Elsewhere* on NBC (from 1982 to 1988), and in the war film *A Soldier's Story* (1984). He won two Academy Awards, his first for Supporting Actor for playing a soldier during the Civil War in the war drama *Glory* (released in 1989) and his second for the Best Actor category for playing a corrupt cop in the crime thriller *Training Day* (in 2001). He was nominated for an Oscar for his performances in *Cry Freedom* (from 1987), *Malcolm X* (from 1992), *The Hurricane* (1999), *Flight* (from 2012), *Fences* (from 2016), *Roman J. Israel, Esq.* (from 2017), and *The Tragedy of Macbeth* (2021). A renowned leading man, Washington appeared in films such as *Mo' Better Blues* (released in 1990), *Mississippi Masala* (in 1991), *Philadelphia* (1993), *Courage Under Fire* (1996), *Remember the Titans* (2000), *Man on Fire* (from 2004), *Inside Man* (in 2006), *American Gangster* (from 2007), and The Equalizer trilogy (released from 2014 to 2023). Washington starred in and directed the films *Antwone Fisher* (in 2002), *The Great Debaters* (in 2007), and *Fences* (in 2016). In theater, Washington has appeared in performances of *Coriolanus* (1979) and *The Tragedy of Richard III* (1990) at The Public Theater in New York. His first appearance on Broadway in the Ron Milner play *Checkmates* (in 1988). He received a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his role as a disillusioned father from the working class in the Broadway revival of the play *Fences* by August Wilson (from 2010). He has also starred 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).