10. Natalie Portman - The Professional
Natalie Portman's breakthrough performance in Luc Besson's 1994 thriller The Professional (also released as Leon) bears more than a passing resemblance to Jodie Foster's similar breakout in Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver - both actors were in their early teens, and both films stirred up some controversy over perceived sexual undertones. Portman's bright career as a movie star was all but guaranteed from her performance in The Professional, and before long she was to star in the hugely profitable (although admittedly dreadful) Star Wars prequels as Padmé Amidala. Other blockbusters and franchises followed but Portman's real achievement came in 2010 with Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan, a performance which earned her the first Academy Award for Best Actress nomination of her career. The same can't be said for the star of The Professional, Jean Reno - following on from the success of this film he sank into relative obscurity, his career trajectory leading to a string of smaller parts in films like Godzilla, Mission: Impossible and The Da Vinci Code.