Trivia: Kristen Stewart was poised to become a preteen star with her role opposite Jodie Foster in David Fincher's atmospheric thriller Panic Room (2002). A resident of Los Angeles, Stewart's nascent acting career got off to a promising start when she was cast in two vastly different films. Eschewing fluffy kids' movies, Stewart played troubled single mother Patricia Clarkson's tomboy daughter in independent film darling Rose Troche's tough examination of suburban angst, The Safety of Objects (2002). Stewart subsequently got her first taste of major Hollywood success with Panic Room. Replacing the original child actress cast as divorcée Meg's sullen, diabetic daughter Sarah, Stewart became an even more felicitous choice when original star Nicole Kidman dropped out and Foster stepped in. Though critics were less than ecstatic about the film, Stewart still garnered positive notice for her believable presence as Foster's offspring.Following a supporting performance as the daughter of a couple who unknowingly move into a seemingly haunted house in the 2003 chiller Cold Creek Manor, Stewart took top billing in the emotionally charged drama Speak in 2004. Cast as a traumatized high school freshman whose status as a selective mute draws the concern of friends and family, Stewart's handling of the remarkably intimate material drew praise from critics and Sundance audiences. Stewart would also continue to impress critics with her thoughtful performances in movies like 2007's The Cake Eaters and Into the Wild, but one of her most attention-grabbing roles would come in 2008, when she was cast as Bella Swan in the big screen adaptation of the teen-centric vampire romance novel Twilight. A franchise already adored by legions of tween fans, the ensuing series of films, 2009's New Moon, 2010's Eclipse, 2011's The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1, and 2012's The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2, would make Stewart a household name. Despite this, the actress remained selective and thoughtful in her other roles, starring opposite Jesse Eisenberg in the cult hit 2009 comedy/drama Adventureland, and playing innovating rock star Joan Jett in 2010's The Runaways.2012 would see Stewart joining Sam Riley and Kirsten Dunst for a much anticipated cinematic adaptation of Jack Kerouac's On the Road and starring as Snow White in Snow White and the Huntsman. In 2014, she appeared in Clouds of Sils Maria, which earned her a César Award for Best Supporting Actress, and also made her the first American actress to win a César Award. She also appeared in Still Alice, opposite Julianne Moore in her Academy Award-winning performance.

Trivia: There is nothing tranquil about comedian/actor Chris Tucker. A limber, wiry fellow with a high-pitched voice and a delivery as fast as a mosquito's wing beats, he seems energy incarnate. In regard to his acting, some have hailed him the next Eddie Murphy; indeed, Murphy was one of Tucker's icons while growing up. A native of Atlanta, GA, Tucker's proclivity for comedy has been lifelong, beginning when he, the youngest of six children, used humor as an attention-getting device and as a way to get his brothers to allow him to hang around them. In addition to Eddie Murphy's comedy, Tucker was heavily influenced by that of Richard Pryor. In high school, Tucker was one of those class clowns who was able to make even his teachers laugh and it was one of his instructors who suggested Tucker display his gifts in a school talent show. He proved a roaring success and following graduation, decided to become a professional. His classmates, having voted him "Most Humorous," supported his efforts. Tucker made his debut at a local comedy club. Because he was underage, Tucker had to sneak in and then do some real fast talking to be allowed to perform. He succeeded and his routine garnered a tremendous response. More local successes followed and this emboldened the then 19-year-old Tucker to try his luck in Los Angeles. Soon after arriving on the West Coast, Tucker had established himself in the major comedy clubs and, after appearing on HBO's Def Comedy Jam found himself a bona fide rising star.Tucker made his film debut with a small but memorable role in House Party 3 (1994). The following year, Tucker appeared in F. Gary Gray's crazy comedy Friday, playing Smokey, a lazy pot-smoking drug dealer who could be quite rich if only he'd stop using the merchandise himself. Tucker's hilarious improvisation during filming helped to make the film a sleeper hit. In his next film, Dead Presidents, directed by brothers Allen Hughes and Albert Hughes, Tucker hinted at some real talent as a dramatic actor. In regard to movies, 1997 proved a very good year for Tucker who was given his first showcase film in the action comedy Money Talks, which he executively produced. He also had a small but memorable role in Quentin Tarantino's Jackie Brown and played a hyper-manic intergalactic DJ in Luc Besson's The Fifth Element. In 1998, Tucker had his second starring role, working opposite international action superstar Jackie Chan in the action-packed comedy Rush Hour. For reasons known only to him, Tucker abruptly put a stop to his film career appearing only in Rush Hour 2 and 3 in the ten years after the original.

Trivia: Midwestern-born actor Garrett Hedlund debuted in the mid-2000s with a series of plum roles in A-list features. In the beginning, he seemed typecast as a well-rounded, average American young man, and made particularly strong impressions in that vein with his portrayal of high-school football hero Don Billingsley in Friday Night Lights, opposite Billy Bob Thornton. Yet Hedlund surprised and delighted his followers with a strong show of versatility thereafter, with effective portrayals as struggling musician Jack Mercer, who joins forces with his siblings to determine the reasons behind his mother's death, in John Singleton's urban drama Four Brothers (2005), and as Murtagh in the otherworldly fantasy Eragon (2006). In 2007, Hedlund essayed two very different roles: he joined Jane Fonda and Lindsay Lohan in the gentle rural drama Georgia Rule, then co-starred alongside Kevin Bacon in the one-man vigilante drama Death Sentence, about a father who attempts to wreak vengeance on those who rubbed out his family. Over the next several years, Hedlund would enjoy increasing success on screen, starring in TRON: Legacy, showing off his singing chops in Country Strong, and appearing in the highly anticipated Kerouac adaptation On The Road.Hedlund had an impressive string of films, working with big-name directors, in the following years: Inside Llewyn Davis with the Coen brothers, Lullaby with noted Renaissance man Andrew Levitas, Unbroken with Angelina Jolie and the live-action Peter Pan film Pan, playing a young James Hook, with Joe Wright.

Trivia: Actor, producer, writer, and director Vin Diesel had a charmed entry into the world of screen acting: after seeing Multi-Facial, a short that Diesel wrote, produced, financed, directed, and starred in, Steven Spielberg created the role of Private Caparzo specifically for the talented young newcomer in his Saving Private Ryan (1998).Born in New York City on July 18, 1967, Diesel made his stage debut at the age of seven in "Theatre for the New City," which was produced in Greenwich Village. He continued to be involved with the theatre throughout his adolescence, and he went on to attend the city's Hunter College, where his studies in creative writing led him to begin writing screenplays. Diesel became active in filmmaking in the early '90s, first earning notice for the short Multi-Facial, which was selected for screening at the 1995 Cannes Festival. He followed up Multi-Facial with his first feature-length film, 1997's Strays, an urban drama in which he cast himself as a gang boss whose love for a woman inspires him to try to change his ways. Written, directed, and produced by Diesel, the film was selected for competition at the 1997 Sundance Festival, which led to a deal with MTV to turn it into a series.Following the success of Saving Private Ryan, Diesel could be heard voicing the title character of the animated The Iron Giant (1999), another critically praised feature. He then starred with fellow young actors Giovanni Ribisi, Ben Affleck, Jamie Kennedy, and Nicky Katt in Boiler Room, an off-Wall Street drama that cast him as one of the members of a shady brokerage firm. He also flexed his sci-fi muscles in Pitch Black (2000), an interplanetary thriller that featured him and fellow Earthlings doing battle with a host of nasty alien mutants. Diesel jumped genres yet again as a devious, determined hot-rodder in The Fast and the Furious (2001), a cheeky, action-packed street racing picture in the vein of '50s exploitation flicks. The low-profile, star-free summer release left skid marks at the box office as it grossed over $40 million dollars in its first weekend alone -- more than enough to cover its production costs, and enough to lead many to believe that Diesel had finally arrived as a bankable leading man.Indeed Diesel was growing increasingly comfortable in his role as a tough guy action icon, though the ex-NYC club bouncer's prominent smirky scowl (usually accompanied by a hearty smile and laugh) proved almost a wink to his fans that while it worked well for him, he didn't take the image altogether seriously. The following year found Diesel teetering on the edge of mega-stardom with the release of his eagerly anticipated reteaming with The Fast and the Furious director Rob Cohen, XXX. With images of a bulky Diesel adorning movie theaters nationwide and an advertising campaign that left almost no viable stone unturned, the duo were undoubtedly aiming to repeat the success of the muscle-car extravaganza. This time setting their sights on breathing life into the ailing secret agent action adventure genre, XXX's protagonist, a former extreme sports athlete recruited by the government to take on a dangerous mission, would prove a large-scale attempt at bringing James Bond style thrills into the 21st century. With his reputation set in stone, Diesel would spend the 2000's enjoying a steady stream of similar work, starring in action adventure films like The Chronicles of Riddick (a sequel to 2000's Pitch Black) and Babylon A.D., as well as occasional comedic turns, like The Pacifier. He eventually rejoined the Fast & Furious franchise, reprising his role of Dom Toretto in numerous sequels, and also working as a producer on the films. In 2014, he voiced the role of Groot in the smash hit Guardians of the Galaxy, and also recorded his iconic line "I am Groot" in numerous languages for international versions of the film.

Trivia: Working as a Disneyland concessionaire in his teens, comedian Steve Martin's first experiences in entertainment were of the party performer variety -- he picked up skills in juggling, tap-dancing, sleight of hand, and balloon sculpting, among other things. He later attended U.C.L.A., where he majored in philosophy and theater before moving on to staff-writer stints for such TV performers as Glen Campbell, the Smothers Brothers, Dick Van Dyke, John Denver, and Sonny & Cher. Occasionally allowed to perform as well as write, Martin didn't go into standup comedy full-time until the late '60s, when he moved to Canada and appeared as a semi-regular on the syndicated TV variety series Half the George Kirby Comedy Hour. As the opening act for rock stars in the early '70s, Martin emulated the fashion of the era with a full beard, shaggy hair, colorful costumes, and drug jokes. Comedians of such ilk were common in this market, however, so Martin carefully developed a brand-new persona: the well-groomed, immaculately dressed young man who goes against his appearance by behaving like a lunatic. By 1975, he was the "Comic of the Hour," convulsing audiences with his feigned enthusiasm over the weakest of jokes and the most obvious of comedy props. His entire act a devastating parody of second-rate comedians who rely on preconditioning to get laughs, Martin became internationally famous for such catch phrases as "Excu-u-use me!," "Happy feet!," and "I am...one wild and crazy guy!" It was fun for a while to hear audiences shout them out even before he'd uttered them, but it wasn't long before Martin was tired of live standup and anxious to get into films. Though Martin had roles in Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1977) and The Muppet Movie, Martin's true screen bow was The Jerk (1979), in which, with the seriousness of Olivier, he portrayed a bumbling, self-described poor black child-turned accidental millionaire. Had he been a lesser performer, Martin could have played variations on The Jerk for the remainder of his life, but he preferred to seek out new challenges. It took nerve to go against the sensibilities of his fans with an on-edge portrayal of a habitual loser in Pennies From Heaven (1981), but Martin was successful, even if the film wasn't. And few other actors could convincingly pull off a project like Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1983), wherein, and with utter conviction, he acted opposite film clips of dead movie stars. After a first-rate turn in All of Me (1984), in which he played a man whose body is inhabited by the soul of a woman, Martin's film work began to fluctuate in quality, only to emerge on top again with Roxanne (1987), a potentially silly but ultimately compelling update of Cyrano de Bergerac. Though he participated in a fair amount of misses in the '80s and '90s (Mixed Nuts (1994), Housesitter (1992), Leap of Faith (1992), and Sgt. Bilko (1996), to name a few), Martin was unarguably full of surprises, as witnessed in his unsympathetic portrayal in Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1989), his hilariously evil dentist in Little Shop of Horrors (1986), his angst-ridden father in Parenthood (1989), his smooth-talking Italian in My Blue Heaven, and his callow film producer in Grand Canyon (1991) -- though the public still seemed to prefer his standard comic performances in The Three Amigos (1986), Father of the Bride (1991), and L.A. Story (1991). Martin then went out on yet another artistic limb with A Simple Twist of Fate (1994) -- a film update of that high-school English-class perennial Silas Marner. After starring in a very dark role in David Mamet's The Spanish Prisoner (1997) and an unsuccessful return to comedy in The Out-of-Towners (1999), Martin again won acclaim for Bowfinger, a 1999 comedy-satire that cast him as its titular hero, an unsuccessful movie director trying to make a film without the aid of a real script or real star. Martin -- who also wrote the film's screenplay -- played the straight man against Eddie Murphy, once again impressing critics with his versatility. According to rumor, Martin based Heather Graham's character on former flame Ann Heche.In addition to his Hollywood activities, Martin is well-known for his intellectual pursuits. His play Picasso at the Lapin Agile was produced successfully off-Broadway, and he has contributed numerous humor pieces to The New Yorker magazine, and penned the bestselling novella Shopgirl. Martin was also a featured artist in the PBS documentary series Art 21: Art in the 21st Century and discussed the visual arts as an integral form of self-expression. The 2000's found Martin in a slew of smaller roles, including a cameo as a heckler in Remember the Titans (2000), and a supporting role in director Stanely Tucci's historical comedy drama Joe Gould's Secret (2000). In 2001's Novacaine, Martin found himself playing dentist for the second time in his life, though this dentist would be decidedly less sadistic than the one he had played in camp favorite Little Shop of Horrors (1986). Despite an all-star cast (besides Martin, Novacaine featured Oscar-winner Helena Bonham Carter and Laura Dern) the black comedy was dismally received. Luckily, 2003's odd-couple comedy Bringing Down the House with Queen Latifah, rapper and surprising Oscar nominee for her role in Chicago, fared relatively well in theaters. Martin teamed up with the likes of Brendan Fraser, Jenna Elfman, and Bugs Bunny in Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003), in which he plays the evil Mr. Chairman, head of the monolithic Acme Corporation. A film version of Shopgirl starring Martin and Claire Danes is currently slated for a 2005 release. Martin would remain a vital comedic actor in the years to come, appearing in films like Baby Mama and It's Complicated.

Trivia: Attended private school on a swimming scholarship.Was a member of his high school drama club.Started working in local commercials, television and film when he was 15.Moved to New York in 2006.Was a Resident Assistant at New York University.Was featured in Latino Leaders Magazine as one of the 25 Leaders of the future.

Trivia: Joined the national tour of Caroline, or Change at age 11. Played the role of Elder Cunningham in the Chicago production of The Book of Mormon from 2012-13. In 2014, made his Broadway debut in the musical The Book of Mormon, reprising his role as Elder Cunningham.

Trivia: Took tap-dancing lessons in kindergarten. Is an Eagle Scout. Originally entered college as a forestry major. Boxed competitively in college and once auditioned for a role while sporting two black eyes and a broken nose as the result of a bout. Worked on oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico to earn money to move to New York. Studied at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre under Sanford Meisner. Worked as a professional pallbearer, as a baker and at a toilet-paper factory, among other jobs, while struggling to find work as an actor.

Trivia: An accomplished playwright, screenwriter, director, and actor, former classics major Tim Blake Nelson is perhaps most familiar to the movie audience as the hilariously dim Delmar in Joel and Ethan Coen's goofy Oscar-nominated comedy O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000).Born in Oklahoma, Nelson attended college at Brown University where he became a Latinist in the classics department. Opting for the arts over academia, Nelson headed to New York after college, studying acting at Juilliard and embarking on an Obie Award-winning career as a stage writer. After making his film debut in Nora Ephron's freshman directorial effort This Is My Life (1992), Nelson occasionally appeared in films throughout the 1990s, playing small roles in Hal Hartley's Amateur (1994), the Al Pacino/Johnny Depp mob drama Donnie Brasco (1997), and Terrence Malick's radiant anti-war anti-epic The Thin Red Line (1998). Along with film acting, Nelson turned to filmmaking with the screen adaptation of his play Eye of God (1997), a somber rural drama about a woman's marriage to a pious ex-con with a violent past, which earned positive notice at the Sundance Film Festival. Because of his ability to handle difficult questions of violence and create an ominous mood out of the everyday, Nelson was asked to helm the modernized, teen version of Shakespeare's Othello, retitled O (2001). Shot in 1999, O languished on the shelf in the wake of a series of high school shootings, deemed an inappropriate release because of its violent denouement. In the meantime, Nelson's friend Joel Coen offered him one of the starring roles in O Brother, Where Art Thou?. As comfortable playing rural comedy as directing rural drama, Nelson shined as the dimmest of a trio of hare-brained fugitives in the Coen brothers' shaggy-dog 1930s Southern Odyssey. After his successful stint with the Coens' light-hearted movie, Nelson returned squarely to downbeat material, directing the screen adaptation of his play The Grey Zone (2001). A drama about the only armed revolt at Auschwitz, The Grey Zone was already hitting the film-festival circuit when Lionsgate removed O from its Miramax purgatory, releasing it in August 2001. Impressing some critics with its central performances and evocative Southern Gothic atmosphere (if not always with all aspects of the adaptation), O confirmed Nelson's ability to translate his concern with the complex motivations for (and fall out from) violence to the film medium. Back to being an actor for hire, Nelson scored a summer 2002 hat trick with roles in one glossy big studio blockbuster and two well-regarded independent releases. In Steven Spielberg's Minority Report (2002), Nelson stood out (albeit a bit too much for some critical tastes) as the oddball, organ-playing guardian of the imprisoned "pre"-killers captured by Precrime hotshot Tom Cruise. Refraining from such theatrical eccentricity, Nelson garnered more positive reviews for his turn as a shy technician charged with servicing house arrestee Robin Tunney's ankle bracelet in the singular indie romance Cherish (2002), and as John C. Reilly's doltish, stoner best friend and co-worker in Miguel Arteta's dark comedy The Good Girl (2002). Nelson's roles proliferated through the first years of the new millennium -- he averaged around six to eight A-list features per year, the number doubtless heightened by Nelson's status as a character actor and his resultant tendency to gravitate to bit parts in lieu of leading roles. For the first several years after The Good Girl, Nelson's roles included, among others: Dr. Jonathan Jacobo, the "pterodactyl ghost" in Raja Gosnell's Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (2004); Danny Dalton, a representative of the oil company Killen, in Stephen Gaghan's muckraking drama Syriana (2005); and Tom Loyless, the supervisor of a polio treatment center revitalized by F.D.R., in Joseph Sargent's superior telemovie Warm Springs (2005). Nelson then appeared as Curly Branitt, an entrepreneur determined to build a pancake house and expel the resident animals at the location, in the Jimmy Buffett-produced, family-oriented comedy Hoot (2006). He plays Kevin Munchak in Michael Polish's drama The Astronaut Farmer (2006), starring Billy Bob Thornton, Virginia Madsen, and Bruce Dern; and The North Beach Killer in Finn Taylor's fiendish black comedy The Darwin Awards (2007). He had a major supporting turn in 2008's The Incredible Hulk, and in 2010 he wrote directed and acted in Leaves of Grass. He appeared in the 2011 teaching drama Detachment, and in 2012 he landed a major part in the inspirational drama Big Miracle and appeared in Steven Spielberg's long-planned biopic Lincoln.Nelson is married to the actress Lisa Benavides; they reside in Southern California.

Trivia: Played competitive hockey throughout the U.S. and Canada until the age of 13. After his freshman season at Central Michigan, gave up his scholarship and took a job at Pizza Hut to earn money to help pay his way as a walk-on at the University of Wisconsin. While still in college, created a nonprofit organization called the Justin J. Watt Foundation, which benefits elementary and middle schools that lack funding for sports and activities. Was selected 11th in the 2011 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans. Participated in a 2013 NFL-USO tour of U.S. military bases in the Middle East.

Trivia: Lisa Wu became well known to audiences in 2008 when she became a member of the cast of the reality series Real Housewives of Atlanta. Additionally, the reality star became involved in show business when she penned the script for 2003's Black Ball.

Trivia: In 2005, Louisiana-born and North Carolina-raised singer Kellie Pickler landed a spot in the fifth season of American Idol. Though she finished sixth, the former waitress and Miss North Carolina contestant charmed American audiences with her Southern twang and blonde ambition, resulting in a contract with BNA Records that yielded her debut album, Small Town Girl, in the fall of 2006.

Trivia: Is an Upright Citizens Brigade alumnus.Has stage combat training, with an emphasis on swords from Swordplay L.A.Has acting training from John Rosenfeld Studios and Margie Haber; and comedy intensive training from Lesly Kahn.First major television role was Jake Holling / Black Megaforce Ranger / Green Super Megaforce Ranger in the series Power Rangers Megaforce from 2013 to 2014.Co-wrote, produced and starred in the action comedy short film Meet the Winklesteins in 2015.