African-American film directors

Morgan Freeman is an American actor, producer, and narrator. In a career spanning six decades, he has received numerous accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award, as well as a nomination for a Grammy Award and a Tony Award. He was honored with the Kennedy Center Honor in 2008, an AFI Life Achievement Award in 2011, the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2012, and Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 2018. In a 2022 readers' poll by Empire, he was voted one of the 50 greatest actors of all time.

Halle Maria Berry is an American actress. She began her career as a model and beauty contestant becoming Miss Ohio USA in 1986, first runner-up in Miss USA 1986 and placing sixth in Miss World 1986. Her early film roles include Boomerang (1992), The Flintstones (1994) and Bulworth (1998). She later produced and starred in the television film Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999), for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award.

Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. is an American actor, producer, and director. Known for his dramatic roles on stage and screen, he has received numerous accolades including two Academy Awards, an Actor Award, two Golden Globes, two Silver Bears and a Tony Award as well as nominations for a Grammy Award and two Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2020, The New York Times named Washington the greatest actor of the 21st century. He has also been honored with the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2016, AFI Life Achievement Award in 2019, the Honorary Palme d'Or in 2025, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2025. Films in which he has appeared have grossed over $5.1 billion worldwide.

Prince Rogers Nelson, known mononymously as Prince, was an American singer, songwriter, musician, dancer, actor, and filmmaker. Often being credited as one of the greatest musicians of his generation, he pioneered the Minneapolis sound and was influential in the evolution of various other genres.

Ye is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. He has been listed among the greatest rappers of all time and referred to as one of the most prominent figures in hip-hop. His music, characterized by frequent stylistic shifts, has been credited with facilitating the emergence of rappers who did not conform to gangster rap conventions. He is also known for his controversial public persona, including his polarizing cultural and political commentary.

Bahamian and American actor and diplomat (1927–2022)

American actor

Kendrick Lamar Duckworth is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Rooted in West Coast hip-hop, Lamar's music features conscious, introspective lyrics, with political criticism and social commentary concerning African-American culture. Journalists have referred to Lamar as one of the greatest rappers of all time. In 2018, he became the first musician outside of the classical and jazz genres to receive the Pulitzer Prize for Music.

American actor and comedian (born 1965)

American actor (born 1964)

American filmmaker (born 1957)

American comedian, actor, screenwriter, producer, and director

American actor (born 1946)

Zoë Isabella Kravitz is an American actress, singer, and filmmaker. She has received nominations for a Critics' Choice Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2022, she was named by Time magazine as one of the 100 Most Influential People.

American comedian and actor (1940–2005)

American actress and director (born 1971)

American actor, director, screenwriter, playwright, producer, author, and songwriter

American actor, comedian and filmmaker (born 1979)

Ryan Kyle Coogler is an American filmmaker. His accolades include an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Grammy Award, a Golden Globe Award, four Black Reel Awards, and ten NAACP Image Awards.

American actress, comedian, director, and talk show host

American actor

American comedian, writer, and actor (born 1960)

American film director

American photographer, musician, writer and film director (1912–2006)

American film director, screenwriter, and producer (1968–2019)

Antoine Fuqua is an American director and producer. Known for his work on film, television, and music videos, and for his work in the action and thriller genres, he was originally known as a director of music videos, and made his film debut in 1998 with The Replacement Killers. His critical breakthrough was the 2001 crime thriller Training Day, winning the Black Reel Award for Outstanding Director.

American film director

American writer and director (born 1979)

American director, producer, and screenwriter

American actor

American actor, director, poet, playwright, writer, and social activist (1917-2005)

American actor and producer

American singer and actor

American actor, comedian, filmmaker

American football player and actor

American director and screenwriter

American actor, director and producer

American actor and director

American actor and director (born 1943)

American singer, musician, poet, writer, and actor

American actress and director

American comedian, actor, writer and director

American actress and director (born 1966)

American writer and director (1884-1951)

American-Canadian actor and director

American film director

American filmmaker

American actor and film director

American film director and screenwriter

American film director

actor, director, screenwriter

American writer and director

American music video, film, commercial and television director

American actor and director

American filmmaker (1932–2021)

American film director, screenwriter

American film director

American actor (1930–1990)

American actor, singer and director (born 1962)

American actor and director