Dustin Lee Hoffman (born August 8, 1937) is an actor from United States who has had an active career in film, television, and theatre since 1960. He first drew critical praise for the 1966 Off-Broadway play Eh? for which he won a Theatre World Award and a Drama Desk Award. This was soon followed by his breakout movie role as Ben Braddock in the 1967 film The Graduate. After the success of this film, Hoffman's career has largely been focused in cinema with only sporadic returns to television and the stage. Some of his more important films are Midnight Cowboy (1969), Little Big Man (1970), Lenny (1974), All the President's Men (1976), Kramer vs. Kramer (1979), Tootsie (1982), Rain Man (1988), Hook (1991), Sleepers (1996), Wag the Dog (1997), Meet The Fockers (2004), and Last Chance Harvey (2008).

Respected for his versatility, Hoffman has won two Academy Awards, six Golden Globes, three BAFTAs, three Drama Desk Awards, and an Emmy Award. Dustin Hoffman received the AFI Life Achievement Award in 1999.

Hoffman was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of Lillian (née Gold) and Harry Hoffman, who worked as a prop supervisor/set decorator at Columbia Pictures before becoming a furniture salesman. Hoffman was named after stage and silent screen actor Dustin Farnum. His brother, Ronald, is a lawyer and economist. Hoffman is from a Jewish family, although he did not have a religious upbringing. He graduated from Los Angeles High School in 1955. He enrolled at Santa Monica College with the intention of studying medicine but left after a year to join the Pasadena Playhouse.