Trivia: As a University of Virginia grad sans a degree in drama (he balanced a dual major in foreign affairs and economics), the neophyte Hollywood thesp Benjamin McKenzie first cut his teeth on-stage, at the Williamstown Theater Festival. McKenzie went professional with a move to the City of Angels only a few short months after graduation (late 2001), where he traveled the road of most aspiring actors. He began small, with bit parts in various television series (including JAG and The District), but landed his big break with one of the main roles on Fox's teen drama The O.C. (2003), starring Peter Gallagher (sex, lies, and videotape), which quickly became a popular hit. As Ryan Atwood, the boy from "the wrong side of town" who shakes up the lives of the Cohen, Cooper, and Nichol clans, McKenzie made an indelible impression with audiences and became a series fixture.McKenzie made his big-screen debut in 2005's indie comedy drama Junebug, appearing alongside Amy Adams, Embeth Davidtz, and Alessandro Nivola. The Sony Classics picture, about a worldy big-city art dealer (Davidtz) who grapples with culture clash when she first meets the family of her new husband, stole critics' hearts, and -- in time -- went down as one of the best-received sleepers of the year. McKenzie's performance as the irritable, repressed Johnny, Amy Adams' husband and the less intellectual of the family's two brothers, impressed viewers. McKenzie would next appear in the thriller 88 Minutes, starring Al Pacino, in 2006. He would go on to appear on the series Southland; when that show ended after five seasons, he quickly got another TV job, playing a young James Gordon on Gotham.

Trivia: Combining low-key, average-Joe charisma with a bottomless capacity for shrewd comic timing, Donal Logue earned a reputation in the late '90s as one of the decade's most compelling -- and prolific -- character actors. First winning notice and a dedicated cult following for his portrayal of Jimmy McBride, a cab driver featured in a series of MTV promos, Logue went on to work in a string of films good, bad, and ugly before finally landing his first major starring role in Jenniphr Goodman's 2000 Sundance favorite The Tao of Steve. The son of Irish immigrants, Logue was born in Ottawa, Canada, on February 27, 1966. Raised largely in the Southwestern United States, he went on to attend Harvard, where he studied history and began to nurture an interest in theater. Although Logue had long aspired to be a writer, a stint at the British-American Drama Academy in London strengthened his dedication to acting, and after graduating from college, he began performing on the stage. Logue got his first break in the early '90s, when he began doing the notorious Jimmy the cab driver segments for MTV and won a small role in Robert Redford's Sneakers (1992). Supporting work in films ranging from Little Women (1994) to 3 Ninjas Knuckle Up (1995) to the American remake of Diabolique (1996) followed, as did work on several TV series. In 1999, film audiences were finally given a greater opportunity to see what Logue was capable of when he turned in a scene-stealing performance as a slobby L.A. limo driver with half-baked acting ambitions in The Big Tease, Kevin Allen's light-hearted hairdressing mockumentary. Full-blown appreciation finally came the actor's way the following year, when he starred as the title character of Goodman's The Tao of Steve. A wry comedy about a late-twentysomething slacker whose savvy dating philosophy allows him to win over the ladies despite a gut whose bounty is matched only by the amount of pot he consumes, the film was a great success at the 2000 Sundance Festival, where Logue was awarded a Special Jury Prize for Outstanding Performance.The growing appreciation that surrounded Logue's work was reflected in the number of projects the actor was involved with that same year. Appearing in no less than six movies, including the summer blockbuster The Patriot, Logue was soon being touted as one of the industry's more promising -- to say nothing of hard-working -- talents.

Trivia: Is the son of a French-born father and a mother of Greek descent. First name is pronounced "Dah-veed." Has studied musical and sketch improvisation at Second City. Takes guitar lessons; got a guitar from Touch costar Kiefer Sutherland as an 11th-birthday present.

Trivia: When she took her on-camera bow in the early 2000s, Brazilian-born actress Morena Baccarin maintained equal footing in the film and television arenas, typically filling parts that called for an exotic ingenue with an undercurrent of raw intelligence. Feature roles included the evocation of a gifted and brilliant young actress typecast by gender at the hands of sexist casting directors in Daniel Kay's ensemble comedy drama Way Off Broadway (2001) and a bit part in the 2002 comedy Roger Dodger (as a pickup). Baccarin's regular small-screen role on the 2002 sci-fi-Western hybrid series Firefly -- as Inara, a "companion" (a well-respected courtesan) on board a futuristic spaceship -- yielded an assignment to reprise that characterization in the big-screen adaptation of that series, Serenity (2005). After taking on guest roles on such small-screen programs as The O.C., Justice League, and Stargate SG-1, Baccarin landed regular billing as a nurse on the series medical drama Heartland (2007), opposite Treat Williams and Dabney Coleman. She continued to find steady work on the small screen with supporting roles in the reboot of ABC's sci-fi series V, as well as in the award-winning spy series Homeland; she later recurred on The Flash before joining the cast of Gotham

Trivia: While Sean Pertwee, son of the late Jon Pertwee, has amassed an impressive number of credits in a short time, along with a respectable fan club, not that much is known about his life. He has performed in theater, television, and motion pictures, often playing rough-edged or tough characters such as his role as an ambitious ram-raider in Paul Anderson's breakthrough film Shopping, and his part as Smith, the ill-fated pilot of the Lewis and Clark in Anderson's Event Horizon. He has played a number of more intriguing and thoughtful parts as well, however, including the lead role of JC in the British surf parable Blue Juice, and the role of Hugh Beringar in the first set of the Cadfael TV movies (unable to continue in the role due to film work, he was replaced by Eoin McCarthy). During periods without acting work, he has worked as an animator, a painter, and an album cover designer.While Pertwee continued to act in a broad variety of films, such as Talos the Mummy, Paul Anderson's Soldier, and David Cronenberg's eXistenZ, he also set out on a directorial career, beginning with the short film Another Day in London. In 1996, he became part of a group of actors, producers, editors, and directors to form a pair of companies under the name of Natural Nylon, based in London and New York, with the aim of developing and producing motion pictures and television projects for the members of the consortium. He lives in London, preferring not to move to the United States.

Trivia: Attended architecture camp at Washington University in St. Louis as a kid. Roomed with Billy Eichner at Northwestern. Co-created and co-starred with Eichner in Creative Nation, a live-talk show, at the 2008 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Dyed his naturally blond hair to a dark brown and wore a prosthetic nose to play Oswald Copplepot/The Penguin on Gotham.

Trivia: Speaks Welsh and hosted the Welsh teen-magazine series Mosgito. In 2009 made her stage debut as The Bankrupt Bride in Cardiff, Wales. Following her audition for the Fox series Breaking In, her character (Molly) was rewritten to be British. Ran in the London Marathon to raise money for the teen-counseling organization Relateen.

Trivia: Though known mainly for his role as complicated police officer Vic Mackey on F/X's television cop drama The Shield, Massachusetts native Michael Chiklis has been acting professionally since the age of 13, when he made several appearances at the Town and Country Playhouse in Salem, NH. From there, Chiklis enlisted in a variety of classical, occasionally Shakespearian theatrical productions at the prestigious Merrimack Repertory Theatre and ultimately studied acting in the drama program at Boston University's College of Fine Arts. After graduating, Chiklis traveled to New York and began the auditioning process. In 1988, he was picked to portray John Belushi in the feature film Wired, though litigation and controversy delayed the release and proper promotional process, and the picture itself was a wretched mess (not to mention a depressing affair).By 1991, after making guest appearances in some of the most popular sitcoms of the time (Murphy Brown, L.A. Law, and Seinfeld, to name a few), Chiklis was cast as amiable police commissioner Tony Scali on ABC's The Commish. Though a few extra pounds at that time helped him land the role after his audition, his subsequent weight loss required him to wear a "fat suit" to remain in character (though the actor was only in his mid-twenties, series producers created the role for someone much older). When The Commish ceased to be after a five-year run, Chiklis took on a small role in Oliver Stone's Nixon (1995) and starred in the ill-fated NBC sitcom Daddio (2000). Two years later, the series premiere of The Shield catapulted Chiklis back into the forefront of network success. His role on the popular series would bring him two Best Actor nominations from the Golden Globes, as well as one from the Screen Actor's Guild.Chiklis contented himself with this part for several years, but in 2005, he returned to cinematic ventures and went big budget with the FX-laden summer extravaganza Fantastic Four. This film - like the famous Stan Lee comic strip - concerns a group of individuals who journey into outer space to investigate a cosmic storm, and find each of their DNA codes altered in a unique way; one by one, they become The Human Torch, The Thing, The Invisible Girl, and Mr. Fantastic (four superheroes, each of whom has a unique power) -- and must collectively take on the seemingly invincible Doctor Doom (Julian McMahon). Chiklis plays The Thing (nee Ben Grimm), a creature made entirely of stone. Though broadly derided in the press, the public ignored the negative critical responses and helped The Fantastic Four reel in an estimated worldwide gross of around $330 million -- paving the way for a 2007 sequel, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. The Shield would end its run in 2008, but that same year, Chiklis signed for a supporting role in director D.J. Caruso's psychological thriller Eagle Eye. He was soon back on the small screen, however, with a starring role on the short-lived comedy series No Ordinary Family.

Trivia: Began training in dance at the age of 6. Suffered from seizures until age 7. Lived in Hawaii for four years when her father, a Navy SEAL, was transferred there. First professional dancing job was on Disney's Shake It Up. Was a member of 8 Flavah, an eight-member, all-girl dance crew.

Trivia: Did an internship with a casting office during his senior year of college. Moved from Columbus, Ohio to New York City at 22. Made his off-Broadway debut in The Shaggs: Philosophy of the World in 2011. Made his Broadway debut as narrator Fred in Breakfast at Tiffany's in 2013. His first feature film, Camp X-Ray, premiered at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival.

Trivia: A film and television actress who began on-camera appearances in her mid-teens, Jessica Lucas kick-started her career with small-screen work in such productions as Halloweentown II: Kalabar's Revenge (2001) and the series 2030 CE; she achieved her first significant break, however, with regular billing on the 2004 series drama Life As We Know It (2004-2005), a critically acclaimed albeit short-lived treatment of high-school social life. Lucas transitioned fluidly to big-screen features in 2006, with supporting roles in dual efforts from that year -- the teen-oriented romantic comedy She's the Man and the supernatural horror outing The Covenant -- and continued her associations with horror material when she played one of the victims of a bizarre rampaging monster in 2008's Cloverfield. She was cast in the 2009 relaunch of Melrose Place, and followed that up with the Nicholas Sparks' adaptation Dear John. In 2011 she appeared in the sequel Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son. She was then tapped to appear in the 2013 remake of Evil Dead.

Trivia: A swarthy, versatile performer possessed of a strong screen presence, British actor James Frain first made an impression on audiences with his portrayal of a rebellious young student opposite Anthony Hopkins in Shadowlands (1993). A graduate of London's Central School of Speech and Drama, he then did strong work in Mike Newell's An Awfully Big Adventure (1994) and Thaddeus O' Sullivan's acclaimed Nothing Personal (1995), the latter of which cast him as the leader of a militant anti-IRA group. Frain's international recognition increased in 1998, thanks to strong performances in two highly acclaimed films, Elizabeth and Hilary and Jackie. The first featured him in a supporting role as Spaniard Alvaro de la Quadra, while in the latter, he played pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim, the husband of musical prodigy Jaqueline DuPre (Emily Watson).Frain's profile was given even greater exposure in 1999, when he appeared in a number of star-studded films. Titus, Julie Taymor's lavish adaptation of Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus cast Frain as Bassianus, while István Szabó's equally lavish epic Sunshine -- a drama chronicling over a century of history in a family of Hungarian Jews -- saw him playing Ralph Fiennes' hot-tempered brother. Vigo: Passion for Life, meanwhile, starred Frain as the title character, a French filmmaker whose movies were as influential as his life was brief. In 2000, John Frankenheimer's Reindeer Games thrust the actor into the more modern milieu of underworld crime alongside the likes of Ben Affleck, Gary Sinise, and Charlize Theron. Later that same year, he displayed his softer side in Where the Heart Is, playing an awkward, kind-hearted small town librarian who falls in love with a young single mother (Natalie Portman). Forliani stayed busy throughout the 2000s, winning praise for her work in the critically acclaimed fantasy drama Northfolk (2003), which also starred James Woods and Nick Nolte. She appeared in director Christopher Guest's playful send-up of Hollywood during awards season, For Your Consideration, in 2006, though she is better known for her portrayal of medical examiner Peyton Driscoll in CSI: NY (2006-2007). In 2008 she joined the cast of the supernatural thriller Not Forgotten to play a supporting role, and returned to the small screen in 2011 to play the part of Igraine in Camelot, a short-lived television series from STARZ. After taking a reoccurring role in 24's fourth season (2005), Frain portrayed Tomas Cromwell, Earl of Essex in season of HBO's period drama The Tudors throughout its three season run (2007-2009). He played a caretaker in Water for Elephants (starring Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson) in 2011, and co-starred with James Caviezel in the crime comedy Transit in 2012.In addition to his screen work, Frain has performed in a number of stage productions. He has worked with such prestigious groups as the Peter Hall Company in London's West End and Stratford-Upon-Avon's Royal Shakespeare Company.

Trivia: Standing merely five feet tall, Jada Pinkett Smith is known for her high-energy charm, receiving attention for the spunky role she played in her friend Keenan Ivory Wayans' Low Down Dirty Shame in 1994. She was born on September 18, 1971, in Baltimore, MD, where she grew up and went on to study dance at Baltimore School for the Arts. She then attended North Carolina School of Arts, but dropped out when Wayans found her an agent to launch her acting career.Real notice came when she worked on Bill Cosby's series A Different World starting in 1991. Thereafter she appeared in several films including her more serious roles as the single mother in Menace II Society and the girlfriend in Jason's Lyric (1994). Eddie Murphy's 1996 rendition of The Nutty Professor brought her back to comedy, and the extensive hype around the film allowed her fame to swell. In 1997, she married fellow actor (and former rap star) Will Smith; the following year, she appeared in Woo and Return to Paradise, and gave birth to son Jadan. Pinkett Smith made a cameo in Spike Lee's Bamboozled in 2000, and then returned to a serious lead role in Doug McHenry's Kingdom Come (2001) with Whoopi Goldberg, which was shot while she was pregnant with daughter Willow.Her film career later ramping up with roles in the two Matrix sequels, the Tom Cruise thriller Collateral, and with vocal work in the Madagascar series, Pinkett Smith made the leap to television as a compassion head of nursing on TNT's Hawthorne, which debuted in 2009 and ran for three seasons. An ardent supporter of Barack Obama, Pinkett Smith also fronts the heavy metal band Wicked Wisdom, which released their first CD in 2006, and performed on the Ozzfest tour in 2009.

Trivia: At 14, developed her acting talents in an eight-week program at Philadelphia's Society Hill Playhouse, where students wrote and performed their own scripts. Was accepted into the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in Manhattan. Discovered while working as a receptionist at a fitness club. Stage work at the Lark Play Development Center in New York includes Andrea Thome's Undone in 2003 and Kristoffer Diaz's Welcome to Arroyo's in 2005.

Trivia: First performed on stage at the age of 5 in a Christmas pageant at his elementary school. Moved to New York City shortly after 9/11 and worked 60 hours a week as a bell hop and door man at W Hotel in Times Square for two years. His first role on Law and Order: SVU involved being in rough water in a kayak for five hours. He didn't tell the director he couldn't swim. Appeared opposite Denzel Washington on Broadway in a 2010 production of August Wilson's Fences. Joined Gotham in season 2, playing Batman's right-hand man Lucius Fox.

Trivia: Moved to New York from London in 1991. Began acting in 2001. Studied acting with Bob Krakower. Taught acting at the Manhattan Film Institute. Taught acting at the Freeman Studio in New York.

Trivia: Set a hospital record when he was born, weighing in at over 11 pounds. Was a Media Fellow while at DePauw University. Played a cadet during the first two seasons of Malcolm in the Middle. Appeared in the 2010 stage production of Pee-Wee's Playhouse in Los Angeles, opposite Paul Reubens; he later transferred with the show to Broadway. Had a recurring guest role on Gotham in season one, before being promoted to a series regular for season two.

Trivia: Her mother, Mary Westbrook-Geha, is a noted American mezzo-soprano and choral director. Named Miss Vermont and participated in the Miss Teen USA pageant in 2004. Selected as a semi-finalist for the Beauty at All Ages shoot with e.l.f. cosmetics. Appeared in a short film for Bionda Castana that featured David Gandy, and modeled for Hanes, Randi Rahm Bridal and Swimco. Featured in Beyonce's music video for "Pretty Hurts" in 2014.

Trivia: Made his professional stage debut in a 2011 adaptation of John Ford's Tis Pity She's a Whore at the Malthouse Theatre in Melbourne. Played Holofernes in a 2011 staging of Judith's Kiss at the Bondi Pavilion at Bondi Beach in Australia. Directed the 2012 short horror film Sanctuary. Was named as an actor to watch by Vogue Australia magazine in 2012.

Trivia: Was recruited to the University of Pennsylvania as a football player. Served in the Vietnam war. Moved to New York from Philadelphia in 1961 to work in advertising. Began acting at 46. Appeared in the 2008 LAByrinth off-Broadway production of Unconditional, opposite Anna Chlumsky. Provided a voice-over for a series of commercials for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2013.

Trivia: At first sight, actor Nicholas D'Agosto may give one the impression of a young Robert De Niro -- confident and charismatic seemingly beyond his years -- and with an impressive list of credits, the frequent television actor may be well on his way to becoming as versatile as the seasoned screen veteran himself. It was through competitive speech tournaments and improv classes in grade school that the Omaha native first discovered his passion for acting, and after winning a role in Alexander Payne's critically acclaimed comedy Election while still a senior at Creighton Preparatory School, D'Agosto knew for certain he had found his calling. But while acting was a top priority, D'Agosto was determined to finish his education before committing himself entirely to the craft. Over the course of the next four years, he studied history and theater at Marquette University in Milwaukee, during which time he performed in numerous plays in addition to helping originate the Milwaukee avant-garde acting troupe Theater X. It was toward the end of D'Agosto's stint at Marquette University that he decided to study poverty and race in the Dominican Republic for a semester, and after graduating cum laude, the aspiring star set his sights on Los Angeles. In the following years, D'Agosto landed roles on some of the small screen's biggest dramas, including ER, Six Feet Under, House, and Without a Trace. In 2007, he could be seen in on the big screen in no less than three films: Rocket Science, Drive-Thru, and LA Blues. And D'Agosto's star was most certainly on the rise when he was cast on the hit series Heroes as a new love interest -- with a superpower of his own -- for indestructible cheerleader Claire (Hayden Panettiere).

Trivia: A San Francisco native, Korean-American actress Jamie Chung landed a shot at celebrity rather capriciously and arbitrarily, when working as a waitress as Riverside, CA's Tremors Bar & Grill. MTV networks spotted the then-unknown and invited her to appear in season 14 of the popular reality series The Real World. She immediately obliged, and in the process jump-started her acting career. Guest spots followed on series programs including Veronica Mars, ER, and CSI: New York. Chung moved into films with a bit role as a Hooters girl in the Adam Sandler/Kevin James comedy I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry (2007) and followed it up with a supporting turn as Chi Chi in the live action fantasy Dragonball (2009), adapted from the mangas of the same name. In 2010 she appeared in the Adam Sandler comedy Grown Ups, and 2011 found her in both Sucker Punch and the massively successful sequel to The Hangover. She then joined ABC's fantasy Once Upon a Time in the recurring role of Mulan and also replaced actress Devon Aoki in the 2013 sequel Sin City: A Dame To Kill For.

Trivia: Born to an English mother and Sudanese father. Uncle Sadiq Al Mahdi was a two-time Prime Minister of Sudan (in the 1960s and '80s). Was bitten by the acting bug as a teenager, when he played Puck in a high-school production of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Initially aspired to be a director, and has directed plays as well as two episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Interests include wine collecting, role-playing games, gardening and home projects.

Trivia: Appeared in a number of local musicals while growing up in Michigan. Was a dance captain in high school. First job was at Baskin Robbins. Dropped out of Wayne State University and moved to Chicago to pursue an acting career, then moved to Hollywood in 2008.

Trivia: For his role in the Broadway production of M. Butterfly, talented stage and screen actor B.D. Wong (born Bradley Darryl Wong) would enter into history as the only actor ever to be honored with a Tony, a Drama Desk Award, an Outer Critics Circle Award, a Clarence Derwent Award, and a Theater World Award for a single performance. Proving equally adept onscreen, Wong's memorable early roles in The Freshman (1990) and Father of the Bride (1991) found him simultaneously attempting to break out of the Asian-American cinema stereotype while seeking out roles that would expand his dramatic capabilities. A native of San Francisco whose musical experimentation during his childhood eventually lead to the discovery of acting, Wong's parents were consistently supportive in nurturing his creative energy. Wong worked his way into Bay Area community theater while still a student at Lincoln High School, and his association with the San Francisco Unified School District proved an essential component in developing his skills as an actor. Following his subsequent graduation from San Francisco State University Wong moved to New York City, where he performed in dinner theater and off-Broadway productions. After making his professional bow in a New York Town Hall production of Androcles and the Lion, Wong began to essay small television roles on such series as Simon & Simon and Sesame Street about the time of his feature debut in The Karate Kid II (1986). Soon thereafter, Wong received coaching from Donald Hotton to prepare for his role in M. Butterfly, and following much critical acclaim, Wong slowly gained onscreen momentum with roles in Jurassic Park (1993) and the HBO AIDS-drama And the Band Played On (both 1993). In his constant search to portray original and diverse characters, Wong had a recurring role as Father Ray Makuda on the HBO series Oz. Subsequent performances included roles in Seven Years in Tibet (1997), voice work in the animated Disney film Mulan (1998), and the crime thriller The Salton Sea (2002). Television viewers became acquainted with Wong through his role on Law and Order: Special Victim's Unit.

Trivia: The sultry Shane West -- a Gemini whose genuine handsomeness is doubly effective in combination with his mesmerizing raspy voice -- made his mark on the Hollywood scene within the realm of teen drama. Beginning with appearances on television shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Picket Fences, West was soon cast as a more permanent staple in teenage tube-life, as well as on the big screen.West was born on June 10, 1978, in Baton Rouge, LA, where he spent his life until he made the decision to pursue an acting career in 1995. Upon moving to L.A., West found much success on dramatic television, landing a starring role on ABC's Once and Again (1999) as Eli Sammler after appearing in the Showtime original movie The Westing Game (1997). A more contemporary rendition of the Cyrano de Bergerac story, Whatever It Takes (2000) featured a book-smart West. He appeared in Dracula in 2000, and made a cameo in the 2001 remake of Ocean's Eleven. Huge publicity surrounding the pop superstar status of Mandy Moore brought West much attention as her love interest in 2002's A Walk to Remember. From the cool crowd, West's character, Landon Carter, learns of matters of a deeper significance during his interaction with Jamie Sullivan (Moore). West's adoring fan base increased in significance as well in his role as sexy and romantic Landon. He joined the cast of ER for that show's final three seasons, and then went on to appear as punk hero Darby Crash in the biopic What We Do Is Secret. He followed that up with The Lodger, Red Sands, and The Presence.