The Most Likely To Succeed

The top up-and-coming 20 who may soon be breaking on through to the other side.

_________________________________________

[The Sizzler]

ENGLISH ACTOR CHARLIE HUNNAM (PICTURED RIGHT), 22, FIRST GAINED NOTICE IN 1999 ON THE ORIGINAL BRIT CHANNEL 4 VERSION OF THE GROUNDBREAKING "QUEER AS FOLK" for his turn as a 15-year-old schoolboy who gets involved with a 29-year-old man. "Folk" developed a rabid cult following in the U.S. and particularly in Hollywood, and Hunnam was seen as a fiery presence--then he registered once again with Hollywood on last year's well-regarded series "Undeclared." On both "Folk" and "Undeclared," Hunnam's wily edge gave credibility to his cocksure creations--in the former he got the men, and in the latter he got the women. That was enough to get him cast as the guy Katie Holmes can't get out of her head in the thriller Abandon, as well as the title role in Emma director Douglas McGrath's film version of Nicholas Nickleby. And he's just received Hollywood's current official seal of approval--being cast by the elegant eye of director Anthony Minghella in the Oscar-baiting Civil War drama Cold Mountain.

• * *

[The Experimenter]

AS WRITER-DIRECTOR OF THIS FALL'S PERSONAL VELOCITY, AN INDIE STARRING PARKER POSEY, KYRA SEDGWICK AND FAIRUZA BALK, Rebecca Miller is making the latest in a series of career changes. Miller has studied painting at Yale, directed theater, acted in films like Regarding Henry and Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle, and written fiction that include the book of short stories on which Velocity is based. None of these accomplishments has so far overshadowed the salient fact about her--she is the daughter of legendary playwright Arthur Miller. Not that she has scrambled to disassociate herself from her father. She directed a revival of one of his plays, After the Fall, and she married the star of the screen adaptation of another (The Crucible)--Daniel Day-Lewis. But early buzz on the Sundance-prizewinning Velocity, proclaiming it a women's picture in the best sense--i.e., that it's inhabited by interestingly flawed heroines-- suggests that Miller might find her own spotlight identity.

• * *

[The Sound Guru]

ALREADY AN ESTABLISHED DESIGNATED TASTEMAKER AFTER HOSTING "METROPOLIS," L.A.'S GROOVY WEEKNIGHT RADIO TECHNOFEST ON KCRW, JASON BENTLEY is credited with helping artists like Portishead and the Chemical Brothers break out. Now he's positioned for greater glory as the music supervisor on major screen projects. As "Metropolis" celebrates its 10th anniversary and Bentley continues popping up around town to DJ at happening clubs and elite parties, his deft touch in the all-important realm of selecting music for commercials and soundtracks is being appreciated by powers whose profits depend on such things. When The Matrix was revealed to be more than a mere sci-fi action flick starring Keanu Reeves, Bentley was justifiably granted a share of the credit. As music supervisor, he'd helped shape a techno-lusty soundtrack that was loud and wild in precisely the right ways. Now here come the much-higher-profile sequels, The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions (as well as the Matrix anime project), to lock in Bentley's reputation.

• * *

[The Stylemaker]

ONCE AN EXECUTIVE AT BOB MACKIE ORIGINALS, THE EMMY-WINNING DANIEL ORLANDI HAS ENJOYED DECADES-LONG SUCCESS AS A COSTUME DESIGNER ON THE SMALL SCREEN. On the big screen his projects have been less attention-getting (Meet the Parents), but it seems moviegoers may soon see more of the talent behind his reputation. For the film Phone Booth, Orlandi worked with stylish director Joel Schumacher to gussy up Colin Farrell in one outfit that the audience would be happy with for the length of the film--Phone Booth takes place in real time. For Farrell's role as a slimy publicist, Orlandi put the actor in a swanky Dolce & Gabbana suit. Next year, Orlandi gets to have a bit more free-roaming fun costuming Down With Love, a tongue-in-cheek takeoff on those Doris Day/Rock Hudson comedies. He couldn't ask for better actors to have fashion fun with--Renee Zellweger and Ewan McGregor--and early shots from the set suggest that Orlandi will finally be strutting his stuff by conjuring up some happily over-the-top '60s regalia.

• * *

[The Soulful One]

SURE, SHE'S ALREADY POP SUPERSTAR OF THE LAND, OR SOMETHING TO THAT EFFECT. But in the era of relentless music-to-film crossovers, Hollywood can't pass up the "built-in audience" dollar signs. With her sultry theatricality and air of young-but-wise self-assurance, Alicia Keys is said to be a prime target of Hollywood's hopeful attention. Can she project on the big screen? Well, the very way her bowed-head self-presentation screams "vanity-free" as one award after another is bestowed on her suggests an interesting quality to bring to a divalicious role like the long-contemplated redo of A Star Is Born, which was still being massaged by Will Smith and Joel Schumacher at last check. If anybody out there could be compared to Whitney Houston at the moment just before tackling The Bodyguard, it would be Alicia Keys. The question is simply, Where's her Bodyguard?

• * *

[The Next Heatwave]

LAST SUMMER'S SURPRISE ART-HOUSE HIT Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN OWED MUCH TO THE ON-SCREEN CAMARADERIE OF ITS STARS, DIEGO LUNA (PICTURED RIGHT) AND GAEL GARCIA BERNAL, who'd been friends in real life for years in their native Mexico. Bernal was already known here for his work in the Pulp Fiction-y triptych Amores Perros, so he got most of the initial attention, but as word of mouth spread on the film, the touching, goofy charm Luna brought to his portrayal of naive hornball Tenoch turned him into a star, too. The 22-year-old Luna will be back in front of American audiences in the Oscar-bait special Frida, which stars Salma Hayek as Frida Kahlo. (También fans will fondly recall that it was Hayek's name Luna screamed out while gleefully taking certain personal matters into his own hands.) Even more convincing evidence that Luna has arrived on Hollywood's radar screen comes with his winning a major role in Kevin Costner's next directorial offering, Open Range, a Wild West yarn that stars Robert Duvall, Annette Bening and Costner himself.

Pages: 1 2 3 4