Career: A spell in musical theatre led to Crowe's first major big-screen role in 1990 film The Crossing, followed by Proof, for which he won an Australian Film Institute Award. A second gong came for the controversial Romper Stomper, prompting Sharon Stone to headhunt him for The Quick And The Dead in 1995. He followed that with major movies such as LA Confidential, The Insider, and Gladiator, for which he won the 2001 Best Actor award at the Oscars. Since then, he's starred in A Beautiful Mind and Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. Recent hits have included 3.10 to Yuma, American Gangster, State of Play, and Robin Hood. His recent credits include Les Miserables, Man of Steel, Winter's Tale and Noah.

Career: Blanchett started out on the Sydney stage, in both straight dramas and musicals. She made her TV debut in Police Rescue in 1993. Other brief small-screen roles followed, until two miniseries, Heartland and Bordertown, got her noticed. The movies Oscar and Lucinda, and Thank God He Met Lizzie were well-received, but it was 1998's Elizabeth, for which she received an Academy Award nomination, that made her a star. She reprised the role in sequel Elizabeth: The Golden Age. Other notable projects include The Talented Mr Ripley, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, The Aviator (for which she won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar), Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Robin Hood. In 2013, she won an Oscar for Blue Jasmine in the Best Actress category.

Career: Strong made his TV debut in a 1989 episode of After Henry and followed this up with a number of guest roles in the likes of The Bill, Inspector Morse, Prime Suspect 3 and Kavanagh QC. In 1996, he had a starring role in acclaimed BBC miniseries Our Friends in the North. Since then he has appeared in dozens of TV shows and featured in a number of films, including Revolver (2005), Syriana (2005), RocknRolla (2008), Kick-Ass (2010), Robin Hood (2010), Green Lantern (2011), Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011), John Carter (2012) and Zero Dark Thirty (2012). In 2013, Strong played a detective in short-lived AMC crime drama Low Winter Sun, reprising the lead role he played in the original 2006 British miniseries.

Career: Isaac's early TV and film appearances were in crime drama Illtown (1998), action comedy All About the Benjamins (2002) and Law and Order: Criminal Intent. His first major film role was as Joseph in The Nativity Story (2006). He played lead roles in Inside Llewyn Davis (2013), A Most Violent Year (2014) and Ex Machina (2015). Isaac played X-wing pilot Poe Dameron in Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) and, more recently, he appeared in X-Men: Apocalypse as the titular supervillain.

Career: Hurt spent the early years of his acting career on the stage and his first major film role was in science fiction-horror Altered States (1980). His big break came a year later when he starred alongside Richard Crenna, Ted Danson and Kathleen Turner in Body Heat. He won an Academy Award for Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985) and picked up further nominations for Children of a Lesser God (1986), Broadcast News (1987) and A History of Violence (2005). His other film credits include The Big Chill (1983), The Accidental Tourist (1988), I Love You to Death (1990), Lost in Space (1998), Syriana (2005) and The Incredible Hulk (2008). On the small screen, he had a regular role in Damages and starred as Captain Ahab in a 2011 TV adaptation of Moby Dick. More recently, he has starred in miniseries Bonnie and Clyde and the film Winter's Tale (2014).

Career: In 1973, von Sydow was cast in The Exorcist, which became one of his biggest hits to date. He didn't land another career-defining role until 1980 when he played Ming the Merciless in a much loved version of Flash Gordon. A string of hit-and-miss movies followed, including Conan the Barbarian, Never Say Never Again, Dune and Hannah and Her Sisters. He also turned his hand to directing in 1988 with the movie Ved vejen. In recent years he made a return to the world of blockbusters with Minority Report and Rush Hour 3, and also added dramatic weight to TV series The Tudors. His recent work includes Shutter Island, Robin Hood, and Truth & Treason.

Career: Atkins' post-Guildhall career began on the stage, but for nine years she struggled to gain decent roles. She's now one of the theatre's most in-demand actresses, having appeared in numerous acclaimed productions. On TV she has appeared in the likes of Smiley's People, Cold Comfort Farm, Wit, Bertie and Elizabeth, Psychoville and Cranford, as well as co-creating (with Jean Marsh) both The House of Eliott and Upstairs Downstairs (she appeared in the latter when it returned to TV in 2010). Her films include Gosford Park, Cold Mountain and Robin Hood. She was made a Dame in 2001.

Career: Huston got his start in the film industry directing Mr North (1988), which was produced by his father and starred his half-sister. In Leaving Las Vegas (1995), he turned to acting. He directed The Maddening in the same year. His breakthrough acting performance was in Ivans Xtc (2001) and he then went on to appear in The Aviator (2004), 30 Days of Night (2007), How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (2008), X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009) and Clash of the Titans (2010). Huston joined the cast of the TV series American Horror Story in 2013 and has since appeared in Big Eyes (2014) and Wonder Woman (2017).

Career: Scott worked as a designer, then as a director, on TV shows Z Cars, Softly Softly and Adam Adamant Lives. He set up his own company in the 1960s, which made classic adverts for Hovis and Guinness. His first film was 1977's The Duellists. Two years later he made Alien, which was a blockbuster. He's since directed a number of hugely successful movies including Blade Runner, Thelma and Louise, GI Jane, Gladiator, Hannibal, Black Hawk Down and Matchstick Men. The success of these projects made him Britain's most lucrative film-maker. His most recent work includes Kingdom Of Heaven, American Gangster, Robin Hood and Prometheus. He always has several films in various stages of production.