4. Michael Peña
Like a lot of you, the first thing I saw Michael Peña in, that made me sit back and take notice of his power as an actor, was Crash. While the movie was a pile of crap, and further proof that the Oscars have off years more often than I like to admit, Peña gave a great performance as a father of a child who accidentally gets shot, on their front lawn. He followed that up with a series of roles that expanded his range, including World Trade Center, Shooter, a stint on The Shield, Babel, the recently released End of Watch, and next years Gangter Squad. Hes a damn fine actor and hed do Desmond justice, while bringing in a little name recognition, to make the suits feel better.