Career: Clint was signed by Universal Studios, but was dropped after making his debut in 1955's Revenge of the Creature - however, TV series Rawhide made him a star. His three spaghetti Westerns for Sergio Leone proved his worth on the big screen. Since then, he's become a movie icon thanks to hit films such as Dirty Harry, Every Which Way But Loose, and In the Line of Fire. He's also an acclaimed director, making his debut with 1971's Play Misty for Me, and winning Oscars for Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby. His most recent projects are Gran Torino, Invictus, Hereafter, and J Edgar. Even though he is into his ninth decade, he still continues to work on major projects.

Career: After making the decision to get into acting in 1956, Hackman joined the Pasadena Playhouse in California (where incidentally, he struck up a friendship with Dustin Hoffman). After performances in several off-Broadway plays, Hackman's first movie was Lilith alongside Warren Beatty, who then cast him in his breakthrough film, Bonnie and Clyde. Hackman was soon in demand, showcasing his talents in everything from comedy (in Young Frankenstein) to villainy (as Lex Luthor in Superman). He's also won two Oscars - Best Actor for The French Connection, and Best Supporting Actor for Unforgiven. He retired from acting in 2004 to concentrate on writing novels.

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: Harris made his film debut in the 1958 British comedy Alive and Kicking. Other roles followed in The Guns of Navarone and Mutiny on the Bounty before his first lead role came in 1963's This Sporting Life. Other movies followed, including The Heroes of Telemark, Major Dundee, Camelot, A Man Called Horse, The Cassandra Crossing and The Wild Geese. He appeared in a number of forgettable productions during the 1980s but returned to form in the 1990s with The Field, Patriot Games and Unforgiven. His later films included Gladiator and two Harry Potter films. He died in London on October 25, 2002, at the age of 72, following a battle with Hodgkin's disease.

Career: Fisher's first professional roles came on the stage. In 1976 she made her TV debut in The Edge of the Night, and stayed with the long-running series for 1981. She also had a spell in soap opera Guiding Light before appearing in her first movie, Heart, in 1997. The films Pink Cadillac, Patty Hearst, and LA Story followed. She also played Lucille Ball in biopic Lucy and Desi: Before the Laughter. Unforgiven was a massive critical and commercial success in 1992, and introduced her to a new set of fans. Since then she's appeared in Titanic, The Lyon's Den, House of Sand and Fog, and Laws of Attraction.