James Gandolfini

Biography: It's rare that someone with character-actor looks becomes a bona fide leading man, but Gandolfini's career has been anything but ordinary. In 1992, the New Jersey-born thespian made his debuts on both Broadway (A Streetcar Named Desire) and the big screen (A Stranger Among Us). He played a mobster in the latter, which turned out to be prophetic casting. Throughout the '90s, Gandolfini carved out a solid career as a supporting player, until he became a megastar overnight as gangster Tony Soprano on HBO's The Sopranos. Along with the accolades and awards came media scrutiny of his personal life, culminating in an acrimonious divorce from Marcy Wudarski, his wife of three years. After The Sopranos wrapped in 2007, Gandolfini stayed busy with film work, appearing in the acclaimed political comedy In the Loop (2009) and lending his voice to Spike Jonze's adaptation of Where the Wild Things Are.