In 1996, he starred in the MGM action-comedy Fled and starred in the critically
acclaimed film Othello in the title role, co-starring with Kenneth Branagh
and Irene Jacob for Castle Rock. He is the first African-American to play the Moor king in a major screen release and he follows a noble tradition of such actors in the role as Sir Laurence Olivier and Orson Welles.
In 1995, he starred in an original HBO film The Tuskegee Airmen,
for which he received an NAACP Image Award for Best Actor in a Mini-Series,
and Golden Globe, Emmy and Cable Ace nominations for Best Actor in a Mini-Series. The project tells the story of America's first African-American combat pilots
and was an inspiration for Laurence.
Laurence's other film appearances include the steamy Bad Company for Touchstone,
co-starring with Ellen Barkin; Higher Learning, for which he received an NAACP
Image Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture as Professor Phipps, with writer/director John Singleton;
and Just Cause for Warner Brothers co-starring with Sean Connery.
A reviewer once wrote about Laurence, "He takes a director's talents and gives them heroic size. He knows the power of taking your time. He knows the power of silence. He knows the power of concentration."
As Ike Turner in What's Love Got To Do With It,
he captivated the public and the critics alike who predicted the Oscar nomination for this remarkable work.
As the New York Times put it, "The brilliant, mercurial portrayal of Laurence Fishburne is what elevates 'What's Love...' beyond the realm of bio-pic."
Rolling Stone notes, "Fishburne keeps providing insights into Ike's rage that illuminates the character without excusing him...Fishburne is superb."
In Searching For Bobby Fischer, Laurence played a New York
street-wise speed chess player who aids in the progress of a young chess protege.
Just prior to this he played a very different role as that of an undercover cop, co-starring with Jeff Goldblum in Deep Cover.
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