Trivia: British director Guy Ritchie frequently attributes the success of his unorthodox crime films -- 1998's Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, 2000's Snatch -- to the fact that his offbeat miscreants are more than believable, they are real. Preferring to cast for authenticity rather than resumé, Ritchie handpicks many of his actors from the true-life cult figures and rascals of London's underbelly. Actor Jason Statham is among the best of them.A one-time Olympic diver, fashion model, and black-market salesman, Statham came to acting by way of commercials and "street theater" -- a euphemism for hustling tourists on London's Oxford Street. Raised in Syndenham, London, he was the second son of a lounge singer and a dressmaker turned dancer. Although Statham had the familial background to go immediately into entertainment, he excelled first on the high dive. He was a member of the 1988 British Olympic Team in Seoul, Korea, and remained on the National Diving Squad for ten years. In the late '90s, a talent agent specializing in athletes landed Statham a gig in an ad campaign for the European clothing retailer French Connection. This led to an appearance in a Levi's Jeans commercial and a fledgling modeling career. Meanwhile, Statham had also earned local fame as a street corner con man, selling stolen jewelry and counterfeit perfume out of a briefcase. Thus, when French Connection's owner became one of the biggest investors in Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, he naturally introduced the diver/model/hustler to knave-hunting Ritchie.Intrigued by Statham's past and impressed by his modeling work, Ritchie invited him to audition for a part in the film. The director challenged Statham to impersonate an illegal street vendor and convince him to purchase a piece of imitation gold jewelry. Statham was evidently so persuasive that Ritchie bought four sets. When the director attempted to return his worthless acquisition -- pretending that the gold had turned to stainless steel -- Statham was so graciously inflexible that Ritchie hired him.This unorthodox audition resulted in Statham's big screen debut as Bacon, one of Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels' four primary characters engaged in a risky get-rich-quick scheme to repay a massive gambling debt. Bacon supplies a streetwise discipline and restraint that the other characters lack and a sense of humility crucial to Ritchie's film. In the director's follow-up crime comedy, Snatch, Ritchie rehired Statham to play Turkish, a smalltime hood vainly trying to break into the world of underground boxing. As this amateur but respectable hoodlum, Statham is attractive, urbane, immaculate, and smart enough to be bewildered by even his own laughable criminal ineptitude. The role began as a small supporting part in Snatch's star-filled ensemble cast but expanded throughout shooting. By the time of the film's theatrical release, Statham received top billing as its narrator and chief anti-hero.The Guy Ritchie oeuvre that supplied his breakthrough performances is not Statham's only acting arena. In 2000, he made his American film debut as a British drug dealer in Robert Adetuyi's Turn It Up starring Pras Michel. By 2001, he had finished shooting John Carpenter's sci-fi thriller Ghosts of Mars and joined Delroy Lindo in the cast of the Jet Li vehicle The One. A chance to reteam with former Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrel co-star Vinnie Jones proved too fun an opportunity to resist, and Stratham would round out a particularly busy 2001 with his role in the prison-bound sports remake Mean Machine. Just as audiences were finally standing up to take notice of the amiable tough-guy, Stratham stepped into his own as the action lead of the explosive 2002 adrenaline ride The Transporter. A sizable hit that would earn Statham increasingly prominent roles in such high profile pics as The Italian Job, and Cellular, The Transporter established Stratham as a bankable international action star and was eventually followed by a 2005 sequel that miraculously managed the improbable feat of upping the ante of the previous installment's over-the-top cartoon violence. A starring role in Ritchie's 2005 crime thriller Revolver found Stratham re-teaming with the director who launched his career with decidedly mixed results, and the following year it was off to race the clock and rescue the girl as a reformed assassin looking to make good in the hyper-intense action entry Crank. The positively outrageous Crank: High Voltage upped the ante (and the ampage) in every possible way in 2009, but not before Statham got behind the wheel for Resident Evil director Paul W.A. Anderson for the 2008 remake Death Race, discovered just how far a foolproof heist could go awry in The Bank Job, and once again put the pedal to the metal in The Transporter 3. All of this left little doubt that Statham had quickly become one of the most bankable action stars of his generation, and in 2010 he teamed with none other than Sylvester Stallone for the all-star action flick The Expendables. The action just kept coming in The Mechanic, Blitz, Killer Elite (which paired him with screen legend Robert DeNiro), Safe, and the super-sized The Expendables 2 in 2012. Statham next joined another franchise, making a cameo appearance in Fast & Furious 6. He also reprised his role in The Expendables 3. In 2015, Statham appeared in Furious 7 and flexed his comedy chops in Spy, opposite Melissa McCarthy, earning favorable reviews and opening him to another genre.

Trivia: Wanted to pursue a career as a music teacher when she was young.Was encouraged by a friend to pursue a career as an actress after finishing high school.Was supported by her parents to enroll in the Shanghai Drama Institute.Is a global ambassador for the World Wildlife Fund, an organization committed to wildlife conservation and endangered species.Is a global ambassador for the United Nations Environment Program.Is a co-founder of the One Million-Tree Forest project, aimed to improve the ecological environment in China.

Trivia: Born January 26th, 1966, Rainn Wilson is best known for playing über-nerd Dwight Schrute on the NBC comedy The Office, actor Rainn Wilson parlayed a Broadway career into screen work that began with a role on the daytime soap One Life to Live. Bit parts in features such as Galaxy Quest and Almost Famous soon followed before Wilson landed the part of apprentice mortician Arthur on HBO's Six Feet Under during the show's third season. After Six Feet Under bowed in 2005, Wilson was cast in his most prominent role to date, the aforementioned Dwight Schrute, the resident oddball on the critically acclaimed U.S. version of The Office. Wilson so embraced the part that he even personally penned a weblog by the character on the NBC website. In 2006, Wilson was the fourth lead in Ivan Reitman's fantasy romantic comedy My Super Ex-Girlfriend, and a year later he scored his first starring feature role in the children's sci-fi adventure The Last Mimzy.

Trivia: Found fame after coming second in an Australian magazine's model search in 2002. Chose as one of 25 Most Influential Gay and Lesbian Australians in 2008 and 2009, by the online community Same Same. Collaborated with fashion label Milk & Honey in 2010, released a personalized footwear line with Gallaz and has worked with Phoebe Dahl on her Faircloth & Supply label. Became an ambassador for Maybelline New York Australia in 2001; has the Maybelline slogan "Maybe she's born with it" tattooed on her collarbone. Wrote, produced and starred in a gender awareness short film Break Free in 2014, which recevied over 10 million views. Ambassador for youth services foundation Headspace, after suffering from severe bullying herself as a child. Took part in the Rhino Saverz campaign 2015, which aims to save African rhinoceroses from poachers.

Trivia: Is of Chinese descent.Worked as an airline steward for many years.Was cast for his first movie with no previous acting experience.His father studied in the Huangpu Military Academy, founded by Yat-sen Sun.Has provided support to the China Soong Ching Ling Foundation for many years, and provided help to many other causes.

Trivia: Emmy-nominated Heroes star Masi Oka got his start in the entertainment industry as a special-effects artist at Industrial Light and Magic before segueing into acting with appearances on Dharma & Greg, Gilmore Girls, and Sabrina the Teenage Witch. Though his behind-the-scenes work on such major motion pictures as the new Star Wars trilogy, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, War of the Worlds, and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest found the Tokyo native helping to breathe life into some of the most ambitious fantasy films ever to hit the silver screen, it was Oka's role as the teleporting and time-traveling computer wiz Hiro Nakamura on the hit NBC series Heroes that ultimately brought him world-wide stardom among fantasy fans.A Brown University graduate who studied mathematics, computer science, and theater art, Oka got into acting right around the time he was hired as an effects artist at ILM, and he has performed improvisational comedy at such well-known venues as Second City and The Groundlings. Since Oka had lived in Los Angeles since the age of six, it seemed only natural that he would become involved in the entertainment industry in some capacity, though few would have anticipated the remarkable success he came to experience on both sides of the screen. By the time he appeared in his breakthrough role on Heroes, Oka had already racked up an impressive array of film and television credits that included a recurring role on Scrubs and bit parts in such features as Austin Powers in Goldmember, Along Came Polly, and House of the Dead 2. In 2007, Oka could be seen in the comedy features Balls of Fury and Quebec, with a role in the big-screen adaptation of Get Smart following in 2008. In 2011 he had a small part in the romantic comedy Friends With Benefits.

Trivia: Grew up performing in local musical theatre productions with her siblings. Decided to pursue acting after taking a drama class in her final year of high school. Competed on season 9 of the Australian Dancing with the Stars. Became an ambassador for The Fred Hollows Foundation in 2010.

Trivia: Made his on-screen debut on The Kennedys in 2001. Was replaced on Desperate Housewives by NaShawn Kearse after only a few episodes. Released a free mix tape on his website called Chronicles of U-Turn, named after his character on Weeds.