Career: After minor roles in Steven Spielberg's film 1941 (1979) and a number of TV movies, Rourke first made an impact as an actor in Body Heat (1981). He went on to star in Diner (1982), Rumble Fish (1983), Nine ½ Weeks (1986), Angel Heart (1987) and Wild Orchid (1989). After falling out of favour in Hollywood, he became a professional boxer in 1991at the age of 39 and retired undefeated after eight fights in 1995. He went back to acting but starred in a number of largely forgettable movies. He returned to the spotlight in 2008 when he won a Golden Globe for his role in The Wrestler. Since then, he has appeared in Iron Man 2 (2010) and The Expendables (2010).

Career: Whitaker made his screen debut in Fast Times at Ridgemont High alongside Judge Reinhold, Nicolas Cage and Phoebe Cates. Roles on TV followed, in such shows as Diff'rent Strokes and Cagney & Lacey, before an excellent scene in The Colour of Money opposite Paul Newman showcased his talents to a wider audience and led to further film roles in the likes of Platoon and Good Morning Vietnam. He starred in the 1988 Charlie Parker biopic Bird, and has since put together an impressive body of work, including The Crying Game, Ghost Dog, The Last King of Scotland, Vantage Point and two seasons of The Shield. He always has a number of films and TV work in the pipeline.

Career: Freeman's first credited big-screen appearance was in 1971's Who Says I Can't Ride a Rainbow?, before he landed a regular role on children's show The Electric Company. In the mid-1980s, Freeman started getting more prominent roles in movies. Among his biggest hits have been Driving Miss Daisy, The Shawshank Redemption, Se7en, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Glory, Amistad, Deep Impact and Bruce Almighty. He is also an in-demand voice-over artist, lending his dulcet tones to sci-fi blockbuster War of the Worlds and the Oscar-winning documentary March of the Penguins. Freeman received an Academy Award of his own for his supporting role in Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby. A prolific actor, he has more recently appeared in Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy and always has several films in pre-production.

Career: McGovern's first film was Robert Redford's Oscar-winning directorial debut Ordinary People in 1980. She followed that with an Academy Award nomination in 1981's Ragtime. She also appeared in Sergio Leone's acclaimed Once Upon a Time in America in 1984. Despite this early promise, her career faltered. Her most memorable film roles since have come in She's Having a Baby, The Handmaid's Tale, A Shock to the System, The Wings of the Dove and The House of Mirth; she also starred in the first series of the BBC's 1999 adaptation of The Scarlet Pimpernel. She returned to the spotlight in 2010 when she starred in the hugely popular ITV drama Downton Abbey, playing Cora, Countess of Grantham. Away from acting, McGovern is the frontwoman of the band Sadie and the Hotheads.