Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Biography
Born in New York City, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a retired American basketball center who also worked as an actor. He starred at UCLA, helping the Bruins to three consecutive NCAA titles, and the Milwaukee Bucks took him with the first pick of the 1969 NBA draft. He led Milwaukee to its first championship in 1971, then was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers in 1975, winning five more titles during the Showtime era. Abdul-Jabbar collected a record six NBA MVP awards and retired in 1989 as the league's career leader in points, a mark he set in 1984 and held until 2023. Away from basketball, he studied Jeet Kune Do under Bruce Lee and appeared in Lee's Game of Death (1972). He played Roger Murdock in Airplane! (1980), an airline pilot mistaken for Abdul-Jabbar. He has also coached and written best-selling books.
79years old
Turns 80 on April 16in 157 days
- Born New York City
- Star sign: AriesThe sign runs March 21 to April 19
- Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Jr. (birth name)Also credited as Lew Alcindor
Movie Career
- Films
- 18
- Career span
- 45 years1977 to 2022
Genres
- Documentary39%, 7 films
- Comedy33%, 6 films
- Drama22%, 4 films
- Sport22%, 4 films
- Biography17%, 3 films
Photos
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Own stunts
Between his sophomore and junior year, Abdul-Jabbar learned aikido in New York. He went on to study Jeet Kune Do under Bruce Lee in Los Angeles.
Behind the camera
Abdul-Jabbar narrated and served as executive producer on the History channel special Black Patriots: Heroes of the Revolution in 2020, and his narration earned him an Emmy Award nomination.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar movies on Netflix
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mysteryas Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parksas Himself
Be Wateras Self - Student / Friend
Quincyas Himself
Kobe Bryant's Museas Himself
Kobe Doin' Workas Himself
Weaponsas P.J.
The Unbeatable Bruce Leeas Himself
BASEketballas Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigaultas Himself
Slam Dunk Ernestas Archangel
D2: The Mighty Ducksas Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
The Best of the Martial Arts Filmsas Himself
Troop Beverly Hillsas Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Fletchas Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Airplane!as Murdock
The Visitoras Basketball player
The Real Bruce Leeas Hakim
Best known for
The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.
- Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery2022 Crime, Drama, Thrilleras Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
IMDb rating 7.1534K votes
Most often with
David Zucker directed two of these films. Bruce Lee appears in four of them, more than any other actor. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.








Films together
Bruce Lee4 films together, 1977 to 2020
Bruce Lee's page Be Water2020IMDb rating 7.3Abdul-Jabbar as Self - Student / FriendLee as Self (archival)
The Unbeatable Bruce Lee2001IMDb rating 7.0Abdul-Jabbar as HimselfLee as Himself
The Best of the Martial Arts Films1990IMDb rating 6.9Abdul-Jabbar as HimselfLee as Himself
The Real Bruce Lee1977IMDb rating 4.4Abdul-Jabbar as HakimLee as Himself
Jackie Chan2 films together, 1990 to 2001
Jackie Chan's page The Unbeatable Bruce Lee2001IMDb rating 7.0Abdul-Jabbar as HimselfChan as Himself
The Best of the Martial Arts Films1990IMDb rating 6.9Abdul-Jabbar as HimselfChan as Himself
Robert Stack2 films together, 1980 to 1998
Robert Stack's page BASEketball1998IMDb rating 6.5Abdul-Jabbar as Kareem Abdul-JabbarStack as Himself - Unsolved Mysteries Host
Airplane!1980IMDb rating 7.7Abdul-Jabbar as MurdockStack as Kramer
Spike Lee2 films together, 2009 to 2021
Spike Lee's page A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parks2021IMDb rating 7.6Abdul-Jabbar as HimselfLee as Himself
Kobe Doin' Work2009IMDb rating 6.6Abdul-Jabbar as HimselfLee as Himself
Nancy Kwan2 films together, 2001 to 2020
Nancy Kwan's page Be Water2020IMDb rating 7.3Abdul-Jabbar as Self - Student / FriendKwan as Self - Actress / Friend
The Unbeatable Bruce Lee2001IMDb rating 7.0Abdul-Jabbar as HimselfKwan as Himself
Kobe Bryant2 films together, 2009 to 2015
Kobe Bryant's page Kobe Bryant's Muse2015IMDb rating 7.8Abdul-Jabbar as HimselfBryant as Himself
Kobe Doin' Work2009IMDb rating 6.6Abdul-Jabbar as HimselfBryant as Himself
David ZuckerDirector, 2 films, 1980 to 1998
All films by David Zucker BASEketball1998IMDb rating 6.5Abdul-Jabbar as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Airplane!1980IMDb rating 7.7Abdul-Jabbar as Murdock
Also two films together5 more actors
- Bruce LiThe Unbeatable Bruce Lee (2001) and The Real Bruce Lee (1977)
- Angela MaoBe Water (2020) and The Best of the Martial Arts Films (1990)
- Stephen A. SmithKobe Bryant's Muse (2015) and Kobe Doin' Work (2009)
- Kevin GarnettKobe Bryant's Muse (2015) and Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault (1996)
- Derek FisherKobe Bryant's Muse (2015) and Kobe Doin' Work (2009)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.
Box office
What Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's films earned in cinemas worldwide.
Combined worldwide box office
$219 million
6 of the 18 films have a worldwide figure.
Of the 18 films: 6 worldwide figure; 6 never in cinemas; 6 figure not found.
- 6Worldwide figure
- 6Never in cinemas
- 6Figure not found
Top grosser

Highest grossing
The six biggest films earned 100% of the total. The bars are drawn to scale.
- 1$83M38.1% of the total
- 2$60M27.2% of the total
- 3$46M20.8% of the total
- 4$15M6.8% of the total
- 5$8.5M3.9% of the total
- 6$7.0M3.2% of the total
Awards
Twelve awards and honors from 1980 to 2016.
| Year | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Other honors | |||
| 2016 | Presidential Medal of Freedom | Won | |
| 2014 | California Hall of Fame | Won | |
| 2013 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work – Children | Won | |
| 1986 | All-NBA Team | Won | |
| 1985 | Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award | Won | |
| 1985 | Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year | Won | |
| 1984 | All-NBA Team | Won | |
| 1981 | All-NBA Team | Won | |
| 1981 | NBA All-Defensive Team | Won | |
| 1980 | All-NBA Team | Won | |
| 1980 | NBA All-Defensive Team | Won | |
| 1980 | NBA Most Valuable Player Award | Won | |
Online
Official profiles and reference pages.











