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Tomorrow's Stars Today

The Rise Of Hollywood’s Newest Faces

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While many of us know of Hollywood’s elite, a new wave of actors is tirelessly working to join their ranks. We’ve spotlighted several emerging talents who are quickly making their mark across the globe on the big screen and across streaming services.

Kingsley Ben-Adir

Ever wonder how versatile actor Kingsley Ben-Adir is? All you need to know is that he prepped for his role as the revolutionary Bob Marley for the film “Bob Marley: One Love” while playing one of the whimsical Kens in the film “Barbie” in 2023.

Ben-Adir, 38, was born in London, England, and graduated from the prestigious Guildhall School of Music and Drama. He played Malcolm X in the 2020 movie “One Night in Miami.” The movie, directed by Regina King, was nominated for three Oscars. The same year, he portrayed President Barack Obama on Showtime’s “The Comey Rule” and in 2023 he was the villain in the Disney+ Marvel miniseries “Secret Invasion.”

Just this year, Ben-Adir became the face of Gucci for the Horsebit 1953 loafer. He also attended his first Academy Awards this past March — but not as an audience member. Instead, he joined actor Ryan Gosling and the other Kens in their “I’m Just Ken” musical number, which was the talk of the town the next day on social media and morning shows across the country. According to critics, Hollywood has welcomed Ben-Adir with open arms and fans are excited to see what’s next for this rising star.

Maya Erskine

Many may know Maya Erskine from Hulu’s Emmy-nominated “Pen15,” where she plays herself as an awkward teenager. It’s attracted a cult-like following and garnered plenty of positive reviews, but now Erskine is setting herself up for a different type of series.

The 37-year-old is co-starring with Donald Glover as a spy in the series “Mr. and Mrs. Smith” on Amazon Prime Video, which was released earlier this year. She’s considered by many a rising star, a goal that seemed far away when she was a young actor whose first audition was for a role as a Chinese waitress (Erskine is half-Japanese). She wanted to avoid stereotypes and work her way into important roles, and thanks to many years of determination and hard work, she did just that.

Erskine, who grew up in Los Angeles and graduated from Crossroads School for Arts & Sciences in Santa Monica, Calif., now lives in LA with her husband, actor Michael Angarano, and their son.

Mia McKenna-Bruce

Mia McKenna-Bruce had trouble sleeping the night after she first watched “Titanic” at age 6. So, her grandfather pretended to be the movie’s director, James Cameron, and he explained how the movie process worked. That not only calmed her fears, but it put her on a path to wanting to become an actor.

She made her film debut with the sci-fi thriller “The Fourth Kind” in 2009 and has since had many roles, including in the Netflix adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel “Persuasion.”

Glowing reviews from her performance in the British film “How to Have Sex” helped her snag the 2024 British Academy of Film and Television Arts EE Rising Star Award.

McKenna-Bruce, who grew up in Kent, England, is also busy at home, caring for her son, Leo, whom she shares with her fiancé, actor Tom Leach. At just 26 years old, she has said that her own life feels like a movie because she is living her dream.

Paul Mescal

Irish actor Paul Mescal is making a name for himself by following in the footsteps of Russell Crowe as the lead in “Gladiator 2.” The original “Gladiator” turned Crowe into a sought-after star when it was released 20 years ago, earning him an Oscar. Now, it’s Mescal’s turn.

Some may say that the 28-year-old has proven his acting ability already. He’s starred in a slew of productions, including films such as “Aftersun,” “God’s Creatures” and “The Lost Daughter” and in Hulu’s miniseries “Normal People,” which landed him a British Academy Television Award in 2021 for Best Actor.

Mescal is in such demand that he has several projects planned, including one with a release date in 2039.

He’s said to media outlets that he would rather his stardom not explode to the point where he can’t walk the streets without being noticed. But it sounds like if that hasn’t happened yet, it will very soon.

Josh O’Connor

Josh O’Connor has been honing his craft for years, but it was the Netflix drama “The Crown” that catapulted him to stardom. His role as Charles, Prince of Wales, in seasons three and four earned him an Emmy and a Golden Globe for Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama Series and Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series - Drama, respectively. The British actor, 34, has jokingly said that his prominent ears were what landed him the gig.

O’Connor’s past work includes “Peaky Blinders,” “God’s Own Country,” “Les Miserables” and an adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel “Emma.” The tennis-pro movie “Challengers,” in which he stars opposite actress Zendaya, was released in April, and another movie, “The History of Sound,” a romance between two men during World War I, is set to be released next year.

O’Connor has described himself as a happy-go-lucky person who likes to unwind by traveling in his yellow camper van named Winnie.

Aaron Pierre

Another British actor, Aaron Pierre, first turned the heads of industry executives as a teenager in his local theater performances. He studied at the acclaimed Royal Central School of Speech & Drama, an experience that helped him secure a role in the 2016 hit television series “Tennison,” which garnered him critical acclaim.

The 30-year-old has been rumored to be the next Denzel Washington after notable reviews of performances such as when he played Caesar in Amazon’s limited series “The Underground Railroad,” as well as Malcolm X in “Genius: MLK/X.” For that role, he spent six months on the StairMaster trying to keep his body long and lean to mirror the appearance of the civil rights leader.

His next big gig? The lead role as Mufasa in Disney’s “Mufasa: The Lion King,” expected to be released in December. It’s ironic, he has said, because Pierre was born in 1994, the year the original Disney movie was released, and James Earl Jones, then the voice of Mufasa, remains one of Pierre’s idols.

Margaret Qualley

At the age of 16, Margaret Qualley was already making a name for herself as a model for Italian fashion designer Alberta Ferretti while simultaneously pursuing her love of ballet at the American Ballet Theatre.

Qualley, of Kalispell, Mont., eventually left the modeling and dance world for acting. She attended London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and has since appeared in a string of successful movies, just as her mother, celebrity Andie MacDowell, has.

The 30-year-old, who is married to music producer Jack Antonoff, has starred in “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” “Palo Alto” and “Kenzo World.” She is also known for her lead role in the Netflix series “Maid,” in which Qualley was able to work with MacDowell, who was also cast as her mother. When Qualley isn’t performing, you can almost always find her wearing Chanel, as she is a Chanel ambassador.

Cailee Spaeny

When Cailee Spaeny was a teenager, she joined her local theater in Springfield, Mo., and learned everything she could — about dancing, acting and singing. She fell so in love with the arts that she wanted to share her talent with the world, which is why, every summer, her mother would drive 25 hours to Los Angeles so Spaeny could make casting calls with hopes that one day she would land a role.

Her dream came true when she was 18 years old and was cast in “Pacific Rim: Uprising,” which took her from her Midwest home to Australia.

Spaeny played opposite Kate Winslet in the HBO drama miniseries “Mare of Easttown” and was the lead protagonist in the supernatural horror film “The Craft: Legacy.” Viewers may recognize her from her most recent film, “Priscilla,” a biopic of the portrayal of Priscilla Presley. She has also been cast in the lead of the sci-fi horror film, “Alien: Romulus,” which will be in movie theaters this August.

Today, the 25-year-old resides in LA but has chosen to live on the outskirts of the city because, she has said, she feels more comfortable there.