2. Jessica Chastain
Rhetorical question: did anyone have a better 2011 than Jessica Chastain? In that calendar year, Jessica went from a complete unknown to having five significant releases and an Oscar nomination. The two most notable of these were Terrence Malicks odd, divisive, and inspiring film The Tree of Life and the crowd pleasing adaptation of a bestseller, The Help. While it was for the latter that Jessica was nominated, an argument could have been made in support of her performance in either. Not to be outdone, 2012 turned out to be a very good year for Ms. Chastain as well. She lent her voice to the strangely successful animated film Madagascar 3: Europes Most Wanted. She provided just enough of a female touch to the prohibition era film Lawless. And then, of course, she helped take down Osama bin Laden in her currently nominated role in Zero Dark Thirty. She is one of two frontrunners for the statuette this year, and whether or not she earns it, there seems little doubt that she will one day soon be thanking the Academy in front of a huge television audience. Jessicas next few projects are certainly intriguing (the two part film The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: His and Hers and Miss Julie) and any could lead to another nomination for her. Shes new enough on the scene that there is no risk of overexposure at this point (despite a workaholics schedule the last few years), and talented enough to earn praise for anything she signs on to.