Trivia: Scottish actor Gerard Butler spent seven miserable years studying law before trying his hand at acting on the London stage. Half a decade later, a much happier Butler had over a dozen theater, movie, and television credits under his belt, including starring roles in the stage version of Trainspotting (1996) and the award-winning film Mrs. Brown (1997).Born on November 13, 1969, in Glasgow, Butler is the youngest of Margaret and Edward Butler's three children; he has a sister and a brother. When Butler was barely six months old, his family relocated to Montréal, Canada, where his father undertook several failed business ventures. A year and a half later, Butler's parents divorced, and his mother took the children back to Scotland. He saw his father once more when he was four years old, and then not again until he was 16. In the meantime, Butler grew up in his mother's hometown of Paisley, where he frequented a nearby movie theater. Enamored with acting, he convinced his mother to take him to auditions, eventually joining the Scottish Youth Theatre and playing a street urchin in Oliver! at the Kings Theatre in Glasgow. An exceptional student, Butler graduated at the top of his class. Hoping to please his family and his teachers, who felt acting was an unrealistic career choice, Butler enrolled in Glasgow University's law program. He served as the president of the school's law society and earned an honor's degree. After finishing college, Butler took a year and a half off to live in Los Angeles, where he appeared as an extra in the Kevin Costner/Whitney Houston vehicle The Bodyguard (1992). He then traveled to Canada to be at his father's bedside as he succumbed to cancer. Shortly after his father's death, Butler returned to Scotland to begin a two-year law traineeship in Edinburgh at one of the country's top firms. But he was bored and discontented as a lawyer, and still dreamed about performing. He went to see Trainspotting on-stage at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh and knew he had made the wrong career choice. Soon enough, Butler's unhappiness began to show in his work, and his firm fired him with only a week left in his training. Two days later, at age 25, he moved to London to begin his acting career. Butler took on a series of odd jobs -- from waiting tables to demonstrating clockwork toys at a trade show -- while looking for work as an actor. He was supposed to be serving as a casting assistant for the play Coriolanus at the Mermaid Theatre when he ran into the show's director, actor Steven Berkoff, at a coffee bar and asked to read for a part. Impressed with the ex-barrister's moxie, Berkoff agreed and Butler secured his first professional acting role. While rehearsing for Coriolanus, he accompanied one of the other actors to an audition for the same stage adaptation of Trainspotting he had seen in Edinburgh and landed the lead part of Mark Renton. In 1997, with his theater career firmly established, Butler made his big-screen debut opposite Billy Connolly and Judi Dench in Mrs. Brown. Sometime later, he had returned to the film's shooting location, Taymouth Castle, for a picnic when he saw a child drowning in the nearby River Tay. Butler dove into the water and saved the boy. The actor received a Certificate of Bravery from the Royal Humane Society for his selfless act. That same year, he earned a small speaking part as a bad guy in the Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies before spoofing ex-Wet Wet Wet singer Marti Pellow for the 1998 series The Young Person's Guide to Becoming a Rock Star. Butler finished out the '90s by appearing in the television comedy Lucy Sullivan Is Getting Married, as well as returning to the stage to appear opposite Sheila Gish and Rachel Weisz in Suddenly, Last Summer in London's West End. Butler began the new millennium with supporting parts in the gangster film Shooters (2000) and the war drama Harrison's Flowers (2000). He then simultaneously landed the high-profile title roles in Wes Craven's Dracula 2000 (2000) and the USA television movie Attila (2001). Produced by the creators of The Mummy franchise, Attila chronicled the life of the eponymous fifth century barbarian and co-starred veteran actors Tim Curry and Powers Boothe. It also re-teamed Butler with his Coriolanus director, Berkoff, who played his uncle in the film. The hype that surrounded both Dracula 2000 and Attila was fueled by CNN's announcement that Butler was the frontrunner to replace Pierce Brosnan as the next James Bond. The following months, however, were anticlimactic for Butler. Dracula 2000 bombed at the box office and Attila, though one of the year's highest-rated television miniseries, proved to be forgettable. The rumors surrounding his involvement with 007 were quickly quelled when Brosnan announced that he was staying on for at least two more Bond films, and the series' producers never contacted Butler. Determined to get back on his feet, Butler signed on with a new agency. He returned to British television for ITV's miniseries The Jury (2002), which also featured Derek Jacobi and Antony Sher, while simultaneously filming a role as Christian Bale's dragon-slaying best friend in the special-effects spectacle Reign of Fire (2002). He then quickly landed a supporting role in Renny Harlin's Mindhunters with Val Kilmer and LL Cool J, but pulled out of the project to play the lead in Richard Donner's long-awaited adaptation of Michael Crichton's best-selling novel Timeline (2003). Butler also turned heads as Angelina Jolie's hunky love interest in the sequel Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life that same year.Though, to this point in his career, Butler had no doubt displayed immense talent as an actor, the films he had appeared in had almost consistently disappointed in terms of box-office returns. In 2004, that disheartening trend continued as Butler donned the famous mask of the disfigured musical genius made popular on the stage by actor Michael Crawford in the big-screen adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera, with subsequent roles in The Game of Their Lives and Beowulf & Grendel doing little to increase his international recognizability. By 2006, it seemed that Butler was finally poised to break big, and as he prepared to lead the soldiers of Sparta in battle against the overwhelming forces of the Persian Empire in Dawn of the Dead director Zack Snyder's adaptation of Frank Miller's popular graphic novel 300, it appeared as if he was determined to do so in style.The movie was a huge international box-office hit, and Butler followed it up with the Guy Ritchie film RocknRolla the next year. In 2009 he took the starring role in the thriller Law Abiding Citizen, and appeared in the virtual reality action film Gamer. 2010 saw the release of his romantic comedy The Bounty Hunter opposite Jennifer Aniston, and in 2011 he starred in the drama Machine Gun Preacher. That same year he played the arch enemy of Coriolanus in Ralph Fiennes adaptation of that Shakespearean tragedy.

Trivia: With a love for both the screen and the stage, Pablo Schreiber learned the tools of the acting trade in theater, appearing in plays in his home state of Washington. He continued to appear in theatrical productions while attending Carnegie Mellon in the early 2000s, and made his Broadway debut in 2006, with a role in the revival of Awake and Sing!, for which he earned a Tony Award nomination. Meanwhile, Schreiber nurtured an on-screen career, as well, appearing in films like Lords of Dogtown and Vicky Christina Barcelona, and on TV shows like Law & Order, but his most noted role came in 2003, when he took on the role of Nick Sobotka on the critically acclaimed crime drama The Wire. He would stick with the series until 2008, soon moving on to appear in the quirky ensemble movie happythankyoumoreplease in 2011. That same year, having found such success with TV drama in the past, Schreiber returned to the small screen, starring in the boxing drama Lights Out. In 2013, Schreiber played correctional officer George "Pornstache" Mendez on the Netflix series Orange is the New Black, and was a regular on the quickly-canceled Ironside remake on NBC.

Trivia: At 18 began to perform on stage with his famous father Ice Cube during concerts. Is featured on two songs, "She Couldn't Make It on Her Own" and "Y'all Know How I Am," from Ice Cube's 2010 album I Am the West. Under the name OMG (Oh My Goodness), released Jackin' for Beats: The Mixtape in 2012. Endured a two-year audition process before landing the role of his father in the biopic Straight Outta Compton, which marks his acting debut.

Trivia: Born Curtis James Jackson III in Queens, NY, superstar hardcore rapper 50 Cent -- more than any of his contemporaries -- lived out the mythology of the "urban gangsta," to such a degree that he's quite fortunate to be alive, let alone a pop-culture superstar. The product of a broken home, 50 Cent survived stabbings, shootings, crack dealing, multiple incarcerations, and many other calamities and near-misses, and then drew lyrically from his own violent personal history, using this authentic material (with the help of Run-D.M.C.'s Jam Master Jay and Eminem) to establish himself as one of the most important rap acts of the early 21st century. 50 Cent's albums Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2003) and The Massacre (2005) thrived on the songster's outstanding hooks, clever lyrics, and superlative production values; consequently, each album sold several million copies and turned the rapper into an American icon. The musician's look also turned heads: tall, rippled, and tattooed, frequently sporting a bulletproof vest and a large pistol, he became the newest spokesperson for the "gangsta" subculture. The leap from rap superstardom to movie stardom can be a short one, as Ice-T and Ice Cube demonstrated. Although 50 Cent launched his cinematic career as an onscreen subject -- in the 2003 documentaries 50 Cent: The New Breed and 50 Cent: Unauthorized -- Shoot First -- he soon branched out into more challenging material. In 2005, 50 Cent headlined a gritty big-screen biopic of his own life, Get Rich or Die Tryin', directed by My Left Foot helmer Jim Sheridan. In that movie, the rapper hearkened back to his given name, with billing as Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson. In 2008, he went on to co-star in the cop thriller Righteous Kill, directed by Jon Avnet, with legendary actors Robert De Niro and Al Pacino as a pair of Manhattan cops on the trail of a serial murderer. He continued to appear in music-related documentaries and concert films, and in 2011 he produced the Mario Van Peebles film All Things Fall Apart. The next year he appeared in the thriller Odd Thomas as part of a cast that includes Anton Yelchin, Willem Dafoe, and Patton Oswalt.

Trivia: Grew up in Tennessee on a dairy farm. Was an excellent student in high school while taking drama classes and doing plays. Travelled to New York for the first time due to a modeling job. Worked as a foot model. Was a trophy girl at a race track. Studied acting in New York before moving to Los Angeles. Studied acting at Larry Moss Studio and holds a B.F.A. in Theater Arts. Skilled in swimming, horseback riding, rock climbing and softball.

Trivia: Grew up in Huntington Beach, Cal. An avid surfer since the age of 8, when his sister bought him his first surfboard. Acted in commercials to pay college tuition. Turned down the opportunity to study screenwriting at New York University.

Trivia: Quit the basketball team when he landed the lead in the high school play. Appeared in commercials for Nike, Reebok and Visa early in his career. Participated in Assemblies in Motion, a program that uses music and poetry to educate at-risk youth while working as a full time grocery bagger. Produced and starred in a short film, The Fall which was in competition at the Cannes Film Festival in 2008. Involved with Kids in the Spotlight, a charity that teaches foster care children and underserved youth how to create their own short films.

Trivia: Practiced Brazilian Jiu jitsu, played water polo, surfed, sailed and paddled outrigger canoes while growing up in Hawaii.Is an experienced close up magician and has both won and placed in numerous magic competitions.Moved to California in 2002 after high school to pursue a career in entertainment.Some of his acting training includes the Stanislavski Method with Adrian Harrop, Dialect Technique with Robert Easton and Lee Strasberg Method with Sharon Chatten.Some of the special skills listed on his resume include Firearms, Guitar and Bass (Folk, Classical, Rock and Punk), Poker (Texas Hold'Em) and Stage Combat (Sword, Staff, Double Rapier and Dagger).

Trivia: Played bassoon in her high-school band. Father runs a jewelry and pawn shop in Seminole, FL. At 17, she lived for three months in Milan, Italy, while training to be a model. In college, she majored in chemistry, with plans to become a veterinarian. Provides the voice of Pepper Potts on the animated series The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes. Provided the voice of Lucy Kuo in the video game Infamous 2. Was one of the women who held a numbered briefcase in the first season of Deal or No Deal.

Trivia: German-born Hans Gudegast was still in his teens when he made his first film appearance in The Colossus of Rhodes (1957). Spending virtually his entire career in Hollywood, Gudegast achieved TV fame as the eternally outflanked Afrika Korps officer Hauptman on the weekly TV series The Rat Patrol (1967-1969). Sensing that he'd forever be typecast as a Nazi under his given name, Gudegast changed his professional cognomen to Eric Braeden in 1970 (he reportedly borrowed the name of his home town in Germany, though some sources indicate that he was actually born in Kiel). The actor's instincts were correct: under his new professional name, Braeden was afforded the opportunity to demonstrate his versatility as both leading man -- he was Charles Forbin in Colossus: The Forbin Project -- and villain. He was often called upon to convey insufferable arrogance, vide his memorable appearance as a media critic on an episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show (that's the one where Braeden received a pie in the face, courtesy of Ted Knight). Eric Braeden's best-known characterization was as the smoothly sinister Victor Newman in the CBS daytime drama The Young and the Restless. Braeden played a small role as the wealthy John Jacob Astor in 1997's mega-hit Titanic, and co-starred in the comedy Meet the Deedles the following year. Following a long run on The Young and the Restless, Braeden co-starred with fellow Titanic alumni Billy Zane in The Man Who Came Back (2008), and took on the role of Robin Scherbatsky, Sr. for the television series How I Met Your Mother.

Trivia: Son of Beau Bridges, is a native Californian. Young Bridges began making his way into the family business at the tender age of nine with a supporting role in the 1982 made-for-television feature The Kid From Nowhere. Throughout the remainder of the decade, as well as the majority of the 1990s, one could always count on spotting Jordan in father Beau's many made-for-TV movies. Climbing the credits from The Thanksgiving Promise (1986) to The Defenders: Taking the First, it wasn't until 1999's Macbeth in Manhattan that young Bridges finally began to carve his own path in show business. He would play supporting roles in movies like Drive Me Crazy, Frequency, New Suit and Mona Lisa Smile. Bridges would go on to appear in movies like J. Edgar, as well as star on TV shows like Rizzoli & Isles and Conviction.

Trivia: Of Chinese and British descent.Moved to Los Angeles when he was young because his father worked as a stuntman and fight choreographer in action movies.Learned martial arts from his father, and won amateur fights in Muay Thai and kickboxing.Attended theater school.Studied acting with coach John Kirby.Worked as a fashion model and was the face of Nivea in Asia.Performed all his stunts and fight sequences in Mortal Kombat (2021).

Trivia: Russian actor and mixed martial artist Oleg Taktarov earned accolades in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and the PRIDE Fighting Championship before retiring in 2001 to focus on a career on-screen. Leveraging his popularity in the fighting world, he began making appearances in action films like Bad Boys II, National Treasure, and Miami Vice, before coming out of retirement in 2007 to rack up additional successes, before retiring again in 2008. Taktarov then resumed his focus on movies, appearing in Predators and Righteous Kill.

Trivia: Actor, stuntman, and college baseball player Michael Papajohn got his start in show business while he was attending Louisiana State University, where he played for the LSU Tigers. After having the opportunity to perform some stunts in the sports movie Everybody's All American in 1988, Papajohn began pursuing stunt and acting roles, appearing in movies like The Last Boy Scout and Mr. Baseball. He would find consistent acting work over the coming years, frequently making small appearances. He played an unnamed thug in 2000's Charlie's Angels and a security guard in the 2002 comedy The Hot Chick, and continued to take on several roles per year throughout the 2000s, notably appearing in I Know Who Killed Me, Spider-Man 3, and Terminator Salvation.