See Side-by-Side Photos of Actors and Actresses with the Black Historical Figures They Played

Denzel Washington in ‘Malcolm X’

When it comes to actors who expertly played historical figures, it’s only right we start with Denzel Washington, as his portrayal of Malcom X remains one of the most lauded in recent memory.

Directed by Spike Lee, Malcolm X follows the life of the renowned revolutionary, from his time as a criminal, through his journey finding faith, all the way to the day he was murdered in February 1965.

Though the film received major acclaim from both viewers and critics, Lee who wrote and directed, wasn’t nominated for an Oscar the following year and Washington, who was nominated for Best Actor, lost. Many consider those snubs to be some of the biggest in Oscar’s history.

Will Smith in ‘Ali’

Will Smith and Muhammad Ali’s relationship continued after the 2010 biopic came out; the pair became so close after having worked together on the Michael Mann-directed film, Smith served as one of the pallbearers at Ali’s funeral.

“For nearly two years, I worked to transform myself into the man who changed his name from Cassius Clay to Muhammad Ali and shook up the world,” Smith said when the two visited The Oprah Show following the film’s release, per The Hollywood Reporter.

“That’s really what makes my job so beautiful as an actor. For four or five months at a time, I get to wear people’s lives, so I got to wear Muhammad Ali’s greatness. I got to study and feel and embody the soul of the man … from the foundations of Islam and the strength of his Muslim faith and his life to the beautiful wake that he always leaves in his magnificent path.”

Asked what he thought of Smith’s performance, Ali responded, “He scared me.”

Daniel Kaluuya in ‘Judas and the Black Messiah’

Daniel Kaluuya embodied the essence of Fred Hampton so well, he won the Best Supporting Actor for the role in 2021.

Starring in Judas and the Black Messiah, Kaluuya showcased Hampton’s journey as the Illinois chairman of the Black Panther Party, who ultimately got betrayed by one of his closest confidants, who was really an FBI informant.

“It was a challenge. It was a mountain,” Kaluuya said of playing Hampton. “Because you’re looking at it like, ‘I have to do an interpretation, not an impersonation.’ So in that sense, it’s very vulnerable because you’re saying, ‘This is what I think, this is how I see it, this is what I believe.’ You have to make an art piece from what you’ve collected and make it feel like Chairman Fred.”

Halle Berry in ‘Introducing Dorothy Dandridge’

Long before she scored the Oscar for Monster’s Ball, Halle Berry took the awards circuit by storm for her flawless portrayal of barrier-breaking actress Dorothy Dandridge in 1999’s Introducing Dorothy Dandridge.

“She has been very important in our history, not only as African Americans, but certainly in our history in film and television,” Berry said while on Rosie O’Donnell’s talk show. “A lot of young Black actors and actresses didn’t know about her and she’s where it started, so I thought it was really important to get her story out there.”

The actress won an Emmy, Golden Globe and NAACP Image Award for her lead performance in the film.

Angela Bassett in ‘The Rosa Parks Story’

Angela Bassett has a number of impressive real-life roles on her resume, one of them being her poignant portrayal of civil rights activist Rosa Parks.

Directed by Julie Dash, The Rosa Parks Story delved into her background as a Black person growing up and living in the segregated South and how that ultimately led to her refusal to give up her seat to a white man in 1955, which then led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

Chadwick Boseman in ’42’

Chadwick Boseman’s ability to effortlessly embody real-life Black icons made him a go-to for biopics, and it started with his performance as Jackie Robinson in 42. The actor would go on to famously play James Brown in Get on Up and Thurgood Marshall in Marshall.

“Anytime you do somebody that’s real, I feel like you have to make a decision about how you’re gonna do it,” Boseman told Larry King.

“There are different ways of doing it. For Jackie Robinson, [director] Brian Helgeland was adamant about the fact that I should not imitate Jackie’s voice. He felt that finding the essence of who Jackie was [was more important]… This is about the inner workings of who this man is, not the imitation of who the man is.”

David Oyelowo in ‘Selma’

Several actors have stepped into the shoes of Martin Luther King Jr., but David Oyelowo’s portrayal of the famed orator and beloved civil rights leader remains one of the most captivating. Directed by Ava DuVernay, Selma was a juggernaut that scored four NAACP Image Awards, as well as a Golden Globe, Academy Award and Grammy for its theme song, “Glory” written and performed by John Legend and Common.

Cynthia Erivo in ‘Harriet’

Cynthia Erivo brought her acting chops to 2019’s Harriet, portraying heroic abolitionist Harriet Tubman from her early beginnings as an enslaved person, to her escape, all the way to the formation of the Underground Railroad, which helped her liberate thousands of slaves.

The film scored Erivo two Oscar nods — one for Best Actress and another for Best Original Song for “Stand Up.”

Kerry Washington in ‘Confirmation’

Never one to shy away from playing brave women who speak truth to power, Kerry Washington took on the role of Anita Hill in 2016’s Confirmation.

The film, which was the first she produced under her production company, Simpson Street, told the story of Hill, who came to prominence in 1991 after testifying against the confirmation of U.S. Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas, whom she claimed sexually harassed her when he was her superior at the United States Department of Education and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

Andra Day in ‘The United States vs. Billie Holiday’

Andra Day took on the poignant role of blues singer Billie Holiday in Lee Daniels’ The United States vs. Billie Holiday. The film chronicled the FBI’s efforts to incriminate Holiday after she released “Strange Fruit” and was deemed a political threat.

For her work, Day scored a Golden Globe for Best Actress — Drama as well as an Oscar nod.

Ruth Negga in ‘Loving’

Ruth Negga, alongside Joel Edgerton, took on the roles of Mildred and Richard Loving, an interracial couple from Virginia whose love for one another led to the landmark Loving v. Virginia court case, which struck down anti-interracial marriage laws nationwide.

“It was a privilege playing them. They really were very much in love,” Negga stated. “They liked one another, respected one another and they treated each other as equals. We felt it was our job to translate that to the world, show the world and introduce them to people who might not know them.”

Regina King and Uzo Aduba in ‘Shirley’ and ‘Mrs. America’

She was charismatic, confident and meant every word she said, so one can imagine that playing the role of Shirley Chisholm is a treat for an actress. Chisholm was not only the first African American woman to be elected to the United States Congress, but she also made history as the first African American candidate to run for president from a national political party when she ran for office in 1972.

Uzo Aduba first stepped up as the trailblazer in FX’s Mrs. America, before Regina took on the role in Netflix’s Shirley.

Tika Sumpter and Parker Sawyers in ‘Southside with You’

Barack and Michelle Obama remain #CoupleGoals for many. So when it came to telling their story, director Richard Tanne wanted to start by taking us back to the beginning.

Starring Parker Sawyers as Barack and Tika Sumpter as Michelle, Southside with You chronicled the Obamas’ first date in Chicago, during the summer of 1989. At the time, Michelle was working as an attorney and Barack’s mentor as he was still an associate.

Colman Domingo in ‘Rustin’

Colman Domingo’s take on Bayard Rustin catapulted his already shining star into the stratosphere. The actor had lent his talents to projects such as Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Euphoria, Candyman and more, before taking on Rustin, for which he received BAFTA, Golden Globe and Oscar nominations.

He also took home the NAACP Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture and the film walked away with the Outstanding Film — Streaming or TV award at the GLAAD Media Awards that year.

Taraji P. Henson in ‘Hidden Figures’

Taraji P. Henson delivered a powerhouse performance as Katherine Johnson in Hidden Figures. A brilliant NASA mathematician and aerospace technologist, Johnson was one of a three-woman team whose calculations helped figure out how to launch astronauts into orbit.

Henson nabbed an Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture NAACP Award for her role.

Janelle Monaé in ‘Hidden Figures’

Next to Henson was Janelle Monáe, who brought her acting skills as Mary Jackson, who was also a mathematician and NASA’s first African American aerospace engineer.

“When I got the script, I was reading a script I was so excited about because I said, ‘Finally, someone has crafted a script and created the characters that show us as complete human beings, not just celebrating our beauty, but also celebrating our brilliance as African American women,” Monáe told The Wrap.

Octavia Spencer in ‘Hidden Figures’

Oscar winner Octavia Spencer rounded out the leading ladies of Hidden Figures, playing Dorothy Vaughan, who was also a noted mathematician and computer programmer at NASA. Spencer received her second Oscar and Golden Globe nominations for the role.