Evangeline Lilly

Actor

Name at birth: Nicole Evangeline Lilly

Evangeline Lilly was an unknown, part-time actress before skyrocketing to fame in 2004 for her role on the TV series Lost (with Matthew Fox). Lilly was a college student in British Columbia, supporting herself with odd jobs and keeping one foot in the entertainment industry, when she was cast in Lost as Kate, the rough-and-tumble brunette with a shady past. By the end of the show's first season, Lilly was gracing magazine covers as one of TV's hottest stars.

Extra credit: Made up of mostly little-known actors, the cast of Lost includes MIchelle Rodriguez of The Fast and the Furious (2001) and Naveen Andrews, who appeared in the motion picture The English Patient (1996).