Career: While appearing in the award-winning play The House of Blue Leaves in 1989, he made a spoof version of The Color of Money. It was so funny that US satire revue Saturday Night Live bought it and offered Stiller a regular spot. But when he was given his own show it flopped. He then made ends meet with a series of guest roles on TV and saved enough money to make the film Reality Bites, which he both directed and starred in. He also directed Jim Carrey in The Cable Guy, but got his big acting break in 1998's There's Something About Mary. Since then, he's starred in films such as Meet the Parents, The Royal Tenenbaums, Zoolander and Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story. He has also appeared in Night at the Museum, its sequels and seemingly endless comedy hits.

Career: On graduating, she appeared off-Broadway in various productions. In 1990 she made her TV debut in Molloy, following it up with a part in movie spin-off Ferris Bueller. Neither show, nor her first movie, Leprechaun, had much of an impact. She made various guest appearances in TV series until landing the part of poor little rich girl Rachel Green in Friends in 1994. The sitcom made her a household name across the globe. Since then, she's made several films, including The Good Girl, Bruce Almighty, and Along Came Polly. Other hits include Derailed, Rumor Has It, Horrible Bosses and Wanderlust.

Career: Philip's TV debut came in an episode of Law & Order and early films included Scent of a Woman. By the late 1990s, he started to make critics take notice with indie hits Boogie Nights, The Big Lebowski, Happiness, Flawless and Magnolia. On stage he also impressed critics with True West. During the last 10 years of his life, Philip had become one of Hollywood's most reliable character actors, adding depth to projects such as Cold Mountain, Capote (for which he won an Oscar), and Mission: Impossible III. Other projects include The Savages, Charlie Wilson's War, Synecdoche, New York, Doubt, The Invention of Lying, Moneyball, The Master and The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. He died in New York on February 2, 2014, at the age of 46.

Career: Messing appeared in various stage productions before landing a role in NYPD Blue in 1994. A year later, she made her movie debut alongside Keanu Reeves in A Walk in the Clouds and starred in short-lived sitcom Ned and Stacy. Sci-fi drama Prey failed to get her noticed, but she hit the big time in 1998 when she landed a lead role in sitcom Will & Grace. She won an Emmy in 2003 for her portrayal of Grace. Messing has also starred on the big screen in The Mothman Prophecies, Hollywood Ending and Along Came Polly. Most recently she starred in comedy drama The Starter Wife, which started out as a miniseries and ran for 10 episodes when it was turned into a series. Her recent work includes the musical TV drama Smash and comedy drama The Mysteries of Laura.

Career: A few bit parts in comedy series were to be Hank's first roles, but it was his voice that earned him the attention of The Simpsons' bosses; he has provided his vocal talents for the iconic show since its launch in 1989. Azaria's comedy credentials earned him roles in Pretty Woman and Point Blank. He would give a memorable performance in Robin Williams' The Birdcage, playing a Guatemalan cleaner named Agador Spartacus. He also had a small cameo in Along Came Polly in 2004, guested on Friends and was seen in British comedy Run Fat Boy Run, as well as Mystery Men, Godzilla and Night at the Museum 2. Azaria has four Emmys to his name and a reputation as being one of the most talented and versatile actors in the business.

Career: Alongside theatre roles, Baldwin's early career included parts in TV series The Doctors, Cutter to Houston and Knots Landing. His first film was Forever, Lulu in 1987. A year later he starred in Beetlejuice (1988), and had smaller roles in Married to the Mob (1988), Working Girl (1988), Talk Radio (1988), and She's Having a Baby (1988). The Hunt for Red October in 1990 saw him take the lead alongside screen icon Sean Connery. He went on to appear in Glengarry Glen Ross (1992), The Getaway (1994), Pearl Harbor (2001), The Cooler (2003), The Departed (2006), The Good Shepherd (2006), Brooklyn Rules (2007), It's Complicated (2009) and Blue Jasmine (2013). He won a number of awards for his portrayal of Jack Donaghy in NBC sitcom 30 Rock between 2006 and 2013, was the host of a short-lived chat show called Up Late with Alec Baldwin and co-hosted the Oscars with Steve Martin in 2010. More recently, he has appeared in Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015), voiced lead character Timothy Templeton in The Boss Baby (2017) and appeared in an episode of Law and Order: Special Victims Unit. He also played Donald Trump on Saturday Night Live and received a Critics Choice Television Award for Best Guest Performer in a Comedy Series.