Idi Amin and alluded to in the film "The Last King of Scotland" in 2006, a movie which earned actor Forest Whitaker an Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Amin. During Amin's time in power, popular media outside of Uganda often portrayed him as an essentially comic and eccentric figure. In a 1977 assessment typical of the time, a "Time" magazine article described him as a "killer and clown, big-hearted buffoon and strutting martinet". The comedy-variety series "Saturday Night Live" aired four Amin sketches between 1976 and 1979, including one in which he was an ill-behaved houseguest in exile,
Idi Amin Wilson Oryema and Charles Oboth Ofumbi. Amin recruited his followers from his own ethnic group, the Kakwas, along with South Sudanese. By 1977, these three groups formed 60 percent of the 22 top generals and 75 percent of the cabinet. Similarly, Muslims formed 80 percent and 87.5 percent of these groups even though they were only 5 percent of the population. This helps explain why Amin survived eight attempted coups. The army grew from 10,000 to 25,000 by 1978. Amin's army was largely a mercenary force. Half the soldiers were South Sudanese and 26 percent Congolese, with only 24 percent