Laurence Fishburne
Born: 1961-07-30 in Augusta, Georgia, USA
Known For: Acting
Biography
Laurence John Fishburne III (born July 30, 1961) is an American actor. He is a three-time Emmy Award and Tony Award winner known for his roles on stage and screen. He has frequently portrayed forceful, militant, and authoritative characters. Some of Fishburne's best-known roles are Morpheus in The Matrix series (1999–2003), Jason "Furious" Styles in the John Singleton drama film Boyz n the Hood (1991), Tyrone "Mr. Clean" Miller in Francis Ford Coppola's war film Apocalypse Now (1979), and "The Bowery King" in the John Wick film series (2017–present). For his portrayal of Ike Turner in What's Love Got to Do with It (1993), Fishburne was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. He won a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his performance in Two Trains Running (1992) and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for his performance in TriBeCa (1993). Fishburne became the first African American to portray Othello on film when he appeared in Oliver Parker's 1995 film adaptation of the Shakespeare play. He has also received five Screen Actors Guild Award nominations. He received an Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead nomination for his performance in Deep Cover (1992). Other film credits of Fishburne include Steven Spielberg's The Color Purple (1985), Spike Lee's School Daze (1988), Abel Ferrara's King of New York (1990), Clint Eastwood's Mystic River (2003), Steven Soderbergh's Contagion (2011), and Richard Linklater's Last Flag Flying (2017). He has also gained a wider audience with the blockbuster films Man of Steel (2013), Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), and Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018). On television, he starred as Dr. Raymond Langston on the CBS crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2008–2011) and as Special Agent Jack Crawford in the NBC thriller series Hannibal (2013–2015), and had a recurring role as Earl "Pops" Johnson in the ABC sitcom Black-ish (2014–2022).
Filmography
2025
- The Amateur as Henderson
- Number One on the Call Sheet as Self
- The Astronaut as General William Harris
- Sneaks as The Collector (voice)
- Wick Is Pain as Self
- Megadoc as Self
2024
- Transformers One as Alpha Trion (voice)
- Clipped as Doc Rivers
- Megalopolis as Fundi Romaine
- Slingshot as Captain Franks
- Cellar Door as Emmett
- Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur: Moon Girl's Lab ... (Creator)
2023
- John Wick: Chapter 4 as Bowery King
- Marvel's Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur as Foster (voice)
2022
- The School for Good and Evil as School Master
- All the Old Knives as Vick Wallinger
- Is That Black Enough for You?!? as Self
- Bonnie as Self
- black-ish: A Celebration – An ABC News Special as Self
- The Cave of Adullam ... (Producer)
2021
- What If...? as Dr. Bill Foster / Goliath (voice)
- The Matrix Resurrections as Morpheus (archive footage) (uncredited)
- Clint Eastwood: A Cinematic Legacy as Self
- MacGruber as General Barrett Fasoose
- The Ice Road as Goldenrod
- Death to 2021 as Narrator (voice)
- Under the Stadium Lights as Harold Christian
2020
- History's Greatest Mysteries as Self - Host
- #FreeRayshawn as Steven Poincy
- Death to 2020 as Narrator (voice)
- Ricky Powell: The Individualist as Self
- Our Lady of 121st Street as Rooftop
2019
- The Witcher as Regis
- John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum as Bowery King
- mixed-ish as Pops Johnson
- Running with the Devil as The Man
- Where'd You Go, Bernadette as Paul Jellinek
- Imprisoned as Daniel Calvin
2018
- grown-ish as Pops Johnson
- Ant-Man and the Wasp as Dr. Bill Foster
- The Mule as Special Agent in Charge
- Black Hollywood: 'They've Gotta Have Us' as Self
2017
- John Wick: Chapter 2 as Bowery King
- Madiba as Nelson Mandela
- Year Million as Narrator
- Last Flag Flying as Reverend Richard Mueller
2016
- Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice as Perry White
- Passengers as Gus Mancuso
- Roots as Alex Haley
- Standoff as Sade
- The Snowy Day as Narrator (voice)
2015
- The Late Show with Stephen Colbert as Self - Guest
- Jay Leno's Garage as Self
- The Muppets as Self
- Sean Connery: In His Own Words as Self
- August Wilson: The Ground on Which I Stand as Self
- Getting the Old Scent Again: Reimagining Red Dragon as Self
2014
- black-ish as Pops Johnson
- The Signal as Dr. Wallace Damon
- Ride Along as Omar
- Rudderless as Del
2013
- Hannibal as Jack Crawford
- Man of Steel as Perry White
- The Frame as Perry White
- The Colony as Briggs
- Khumba as Seko (voice)
- Journey of Discovery: Creating Man of Steel
2012
- Slavery by Another Name as Narrator
2011
- Contagion as Ellis Cheever
- A Man's Story as Self
- Have a Little Faith as Henry Covington
- The Enduring Significance of 'Boyz n the Hood' as Self
- Thurgood as Thurgood Marshall
2010
- Conan as Self
- Predators as Noland
- Top Gear
- Predators: Moments of Extraction as Noland (voice)
- Predators: The Chosen
- Rappin' With The Rickster as Self
2009
- Armored as Baines
- The Black List: Volume Two as Self
2008
- 21 as Cole Williams
- Elvis Mitchell: Under the Influence as Self
- Tortured as Archie Green
- Days of Wrath as Mr. Stafford
2007
- Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer as Norrin Radd / Silver Surfer (voice)
- TMNT as Narrator (voice)
- The Death and Life of Bobby Z as Tad Gruzsa
- King: Man of Peace in a Time of War as Self
- America’s Game: 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers as Narrator
- America's Game: 1986 New York Giants as Narrator
2006
- Mission: Impossible III as Theodore Brassel
- America's Game: The Super Bowl Champions as Narrator (voice)
- Akeelah and the Bee as Dr. Larabee
- Bobby as Edward Robinson
- Five Fingers as Ahmat
- The Making of 'Event Horizon' as Self
2005
- The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson as Self
- Kiss Kiss Bang Bang as Bear in Genaros Beer Commercial (voice) (uncredited)
- Assault on Precinct 13 as Marion Bishop
- Ashes and Snow as Narrator (voice)
- On Location in Tulsa: The Making of 'Rumble Fish' as Self (archive footage)
2004
- The Matrix Recalibrated as Self
- The Matrix Revolutions Revisited as Self
- The Matrix Reloaded Revisited as Self
- Return to Source: The Philosophy of The Matrix as Morpheus
- The Matrix Reloaded: Car Chase as Self
- Mystic River: Beneath the Surface as Self
2003
- Jimmy Kimmel Live! as Self
- The Matrix Reloaded as Morpheus
- The Matrix Revolutions as Morpheus
- Mystic River as Whitey Powers
- The Blues as Self - Narrator
- Biker Boyz as Smoke
- MTV Reloaded as Morpheus (archive footage)
- A History of Sex as Self
- Dorothy Dandridge: An American Beauty as Self
- The Matrix Reloaded: Pre-Load as Self
- Friendly Fire: Making of an Urban Legend as Self
- Mystic River: From Page to Screen as Self
- The Soul of a Man as Self - Narrator
- Behind the Action in 'Biker Boyz' as Self
2002
- CSI: Miami as CSI Dr. Ray Langston
- Undercover Brother as Verification Hand (voice) (uncredited)
2001
- Osmosis Jones as Thrax (voice)
- The Matrix Revisited as Self - Morpheus
- Spooge as Self
2000
- CSI: Crime Scene Investigation as Raymond Langston
- Once in the Life as 20 / 20 Mike
- Welcome to Hollywood as Laurence Fishburne
- Sex and the Matrix as Morpheus (archive footage)
- Michael Jordan to the Max as Narrator (voice)
1999
- The Matrix as Morpheus
- Making "The Matrix" as Self
1998
- The Magic Hour as Self
- Always Outnumbered as Socrates Fortlow
1997
- The View as Self
- Event Horizon as Miller
- Hoodlum as Bumpy Johnson
- Miss Evers' Boys as Caleb Humphries
- Black Hollywood as Self
1996
- The Daily Show as Self
- Fled as Piper
1995
- Just Cause as Sheriff Tanny Brown
- MADtv as Self
- Higher Learning as Professor Maurice Phipps
- Bad Company as Nelson Crowe
- The Tuskegee Airmen as Hannibal Lee
- Othello as Othello
1994
- Inside the Actors Studio as Self
1993
- What's Love Got to Do with It as Ike Turner
- Searching for Bobby Fischer as Vinnie
- TriBeCa
1992
- The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
- Deep Cover as Russell Stevens Jr. / John Hull
1991
- Boyz n the Hood as Furious Styles
- Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse as Self
- Class Action as Nick Holbrook
- The Massachusetts 54th Colored Infantry as Self
1990
- The Civil War as Sgt. Louis Douglas / Samuel Jess / Various (voice)
- King of New York as Jimmy Jump
- Cadence as Roosevelt Stokes
- Decoration Day as Michael Waring, DOD Man
1988
- LIVE with Kelly and Mark
- Red Heat as Lt. Stobbs
- School Daze as Vaughn 'Dap' Dunlap
- Pee-wee's Playhouse Christmas Special as Cowboy Curtis
1987
- A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors as Max
- Cherry 2000 as Glu Glu Lawyer
- Gardens of Stone as Sgt. Flanagan
1986
- Pee-wee's Playhouse as Cowboy Curtis
- Quicksilver as Voodoo
- Band of the Hand as Cream
1985
- The Equalizer as Casey Taylor
- Spenser: For Hire
- The Color Purple as Swain
1984
- Miami Vice as Prison Guard Keller
- The Cotton Club as Bumpy Rhodes
1983
- Rumble Fish as Midget
- I Take These Men as Hank Johnson
- For Us, the Living: The Story of Medgar Evers as Jimbo Collins
1982
- Death Wish II as Cutter
1981
1980
- A Rumor of War as Lightbulb
- The Six O'Clock Follies as Robby Robinson
- Willie & Phil as High School Student
1979
- Trapper John, M.D.
- Apocalypse Now as Tyrone 'Clean' Miller
- Fast Break as Street Kid
1975
- Cornbread, Earl and Me as Wilford Robinson
1972
- M*A*S*H as Corporal Dorsey
- If You Give a Dance, You Gotta Pay the Band as Fish
1956
- Tony Awards as Self - Presenter
1953
- The Oscars as Self
1951
- Hallmark Hall of Fame as Michael Waring