Dustin Hoffman filmography acting with a 1984 performance as Willy Loman in "Death of a Salesman" – Hoffman reprised the role a year later in a television film. 1987 saw the release of originally ill-received comedy "Ishtar", in which he starred with Warren Beatty; its critical support has since grown. He won his second Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of the autistic Ray Babbitt in the 1988 film "Rain Man", co-starring Tom Cruise. In 1989, he was nominated for a Tony Award and a Drama Desk Award for playing Shylock in a stage performance of "The Merchant of Venice". In
Dustin Hoffman disciplined and Dustin is very improvisational, all over the place with his lines. I didn't know where it would end up, but Sean met Dustin improvisation for improvisation, and a great deal of richness and humor came out of it." In 1991, Hoffman voiced substitute teacher Mr. Bergstrom in "The Simpsons" episode "Lisa's Substitute", under the pseudonym Sam Etic. As a reference to this episode, during the Itchy & Scratchy movie, Lisa claims that Dustin Hoffman had a cameo in that movie but didn't use his real name. Throughout the 1990s, Hoffman appeared in many large, studio films, such as