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 Alan Alda the part. But Nichols was so impressed with Hoffman's overall audition he cast him as the male lead in the movie "The Graduate" (1967). Hoffman played the character of Benjamin Braddock, who returns to his wealthy parents' home in California after graduating from college. Confused about what to do with his life, he is seduced into having an affair with Mrs. Robinson, an alcoholic and a neurotic, and the wife of his father's law partner. This was Hoffman's first major role, and he received an Academy Award nomination for it but lost to Rod Steiger in "In the