Rueben's Ramblings

The following list highlights the actors and actresses on television and on the big screen who really caught viewers’ attention throughout this year. They appear in no particular order:

1. Fionn Whitehead – Fionn is the 20-year-old UK native whose first major role was as the protagonist in Christopher Nolan’s box office movie Dunkirk. He will next be seen in the box office film The Children Act alongside Emma Thompson and Stanley Tucci.

2. Katherine Waterston – She has been a working actress since 2004, but it was her role in this year’s Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them followed by the lead role in Alien: Covenant that put her on the map. Her next films will be The Current War with Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Holland and Michael Shannon as well as the sequel Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.

3. Pearl Mackie – Landing the role as companion to the Doctor on Doctor Who is quite an accomplishment for any actor so we Pearl was chosen to play Bill Potts alongside Peter Capaldi she got the plum role.

4. Dafne Keen – This 12-year-old powerhouse made quite the impression appearing as the mutant Laura Kinney, starring alongside Hugh Jackman and Sir Patrick Stewart in the box office film Logan. She will next be seen opposite Andy Garcia in the film Ana.

5. Florence Pugh – Her big break came in the lead role of the box office film Lady MacBeth that garnered her rave reviews. She is currently filming the Netflix movie Outlaw King that will also star Chris Pine, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Tony Curran. And she’ll appear in the upcoming films The Commuter with Liam Neeson and Fighting with My Family with Dwayne Johnson

6. Zoey Deutch – Zoey’s parents are actress Lea Thompson and director Howard Deutch, and she got her big break in the film Vampire Academy; but it was her turns in the films Why Him? and Before I Fall this year that got her attention. She will next appear alongside Johnny Depp and Rosemarie DeWitt in the box office film Richard Says Goodbye.

7. Katherine Langford – This Australian actress made quite the impression on viewers in the extremely moving streaming series 13 Reasons Why that debuted on Netflix this past spring. She will next be seen in the box office film Love, Simon, starring Nick Robinson and Jennifer Garner.

8. Mckenna Grace – At the ripe age of 11, Mckenna has quite the resume, including a recurring role on the soap The Young and the Restless; playing young Emma Swan on Once Upon a Time and appearing in last year’s box office film Independence Day: Resurgence. It was this year that catapulted the youngster into the limelight, starring alongside Chris Evans and Octavia Spencer in the moving film Gifted and appearing as Kiefer Sutherland’s daughter in the TV series Designated Survivor.

9. Sofia Boutella – She made heads turn two years ago, starring in Kingsman: The Secret Service [she was the one with the running blade prosthetic legs], but she really made it big this year appearing in The Mummy alongside Tom Cruise and starring in Atomic Blonde alongside Charlize Theron. She will next be seen in Fahrenheit 451 with Michael B. Jordan and Michael Shannon.

10. Lola Flanery – Another young actress who has been getting a lot of attention, Lola made her debut appearance in 2015 holiday movie Last Chance for Christmas with Hilarie Burton. This year she has appeared as Caroline Dhavernas’s daughter in the TV series Mary Kills People; as the doomed Lila DeWitt in the short-lived series The Mist and as the younger version of the Seelie Queen in the Freeform series Shadowhunters. She also played the older daughter of Reese Witherspoon in the box office film Home Again. She will next be seen in the upcoming new season of The CW series The 100.

11. Kumail Nanjiani – The only other male actor on this list, Kumail has a lengthy resume, including roles on the TV shows Franklin & Bash, the comedy series Portlandia and the HBO series Silicon Valley. But it was the heavily-autobiographical film The Big Sick, for which he starred and co-wrote with his wife Emily V. Gordon, which took the country by storm. He also provided his voice to the animated film The LEGO Ninjago Movie.

Who are some of the faces from this year who caught your attention either on television, in music or in film? Please share.

TOMORROW: New Faces of 2018