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. Noah Centineo – Noah got his start in several episodes of Austin & Ally and later took over the role of Jesus Adams Foster on the recently cancelled Freeform drama The Fosters. It was this summer that put him even more on the radar by his role of Peter Kavinsky in the widely popular Netflix film To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before. He also appeared in the other Netflix summer film Sierra Burgess Is a Loser. Next up is his role in the box office remake of Charlie’s Angels.

2. Kelly Marie Tran – While Kelly has been a working actress since 2011, it was her turn as Rose Tico in 2017 Star Wars: The Last Jedi that garnered her a lot of attention. She also appeared alongside Elizabeth Olson in the Facebook drama Sorry For Your Loss. Kelly will also reprise her role in the next Star Wars movie that is current in production. She also had a moving op-ed piece in The New York Times, speaking out about online bullying.

3. Tiffany Haddish – It’s been a big year for Tiffany after her head-turning role in the box office comedy Girls Trip in 2017. Throughout this year, she has appeared in Tracy Morgan led comedy The Last O.G. and the box office films Uncle Drew, Night School and Nobody’s Fool. She also has a very busy year to come with voice roles in the box office films The Secret Life of Pets 2 and The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part and comedy The Kitchen that will also star Melissa McCartney, Elizabeth Moss, Common and Domhnall Gleason.

4. Timothee Chalamet – Timothee appeared in a several episodes of Royal Pains and had a recurring role in the second season of Homeland in 2012, but it was his role in the independent hit Call Me By Your Name that garnered him a lot of attention and awards. He has also appeared in the box office films Lady Bird with Saoirse Ronan, Hostiles with Christian Bale and Rosamund Pike and Beautiful Boy with Steve Carell. Among his upcoming film work includes Woody Allen’s A Rainy Day in New York, a new adaptation of Little Women, The King, a new adaptation of Dune and a sequel to Call Me By Your Name.

5-6 and 7. Hannah Zeile, Niles Fitch and Logan Shroyer – This talented trio portray Randall, Kate and Kevin in the hit NBC series This Is Us. For Hannah, this is her first big role; Niles has appeared in episode of Army Wives and Mistresses as well as the box office films St. Vincent with Melissa McCartney and Bill Murray and Roman J. Israel, Esq. with Denzel Washington; and Logan who has appeared in a couple episodes of the Nickelodeon series The Thundermans and an episode of the comedy Speechless.

8. Awkwafina – The actress born Nora Lum, appeared in the 2016 Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising and a few episodes of the streaming series Future Man, but it’s been her roles in the box office hits Ocean’s 8 and Crazy Rich Asians that really catapulted her to the top. She will appear in next year’s box film Paradise Hills alongside Emma Roberts, Eiza Gonzalez and Milla Jovovich and she is one of the many voice actors to be featured in the next animated movie The Angry Birds Movie 2.

9. Gemma Chan – Gemma got her start in episodes of Doctor Who, Sherlock, Secret Diary of a Call Girl and Bedlam before landing a leading role in the British series Humans that aired on AMC in the States. She has appeared in the box office films Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, Transformers: The Last Knight and a little movie called Crazy Rich Asians. She can currently be seen in the box office film Mary Queen of Scots alongside Saoirse Ronan and Margot Robbie as well as the much anticipated 2019 film Captain Marvel.

10. William Catlett – William has an impressive resume of roles in video shorts, short films and TV shows, but it has been his roles in the popular new series Black Lightning – where he plays Lala – and the OWN drama Love Is __ that have garnered him a lot of attention. He is also currently working on a feature film adaptation of the documentary 12 O’Clock Boys.

11. Lucas Hedges – Lucas got a lot of attention from his role in the Oscar-winning film Manchester By the Sea back in 2016, following that up with roles in the 2017 films Lady Bird and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. This year he has had three big roles in the box office films Boy Erased with Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe, Ben Is Back with Julia Roberts and the Jonah Hill written and directed film Mid90s. He also has two projects underway: Honey Boy with Shia LaBeouf and Laura San Giacomo and Waves with Sterling K. Brown.

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 2019