2026 actors to watch

For the first time, Film Updates has teamed up with A Shot Magazine to select our 25 Actors to Watch, highlighting the performers who made the biggest impression on us throughout 2026 and the names we expect to hear a lot more from in the years ahead.

Some delivered major breakout performances this year, while others are on the verge of stepping into the biggest roles of their careers. The list spans film, television and theater, bringing together exciting new discoveries, actors already building impressive bodies of work and performers making the leap into projects that could introduce them to an entirely new audience.

From extraordinary first performances and scene-stealing supporting turns to major upcoming roles in some of the most anticipated projects ahead, these are Film Updates and A Shot Magazine’s 25 Actors to Watch for 2026.

25. Benjamin Evan Ainsworth

Benjamin Evan Ainsworth has already packed an impressive amount into his young career, from The Haunting of Bly Manor and Son of a Critch to playing Prince Daeron Targaryen in House of the Dragon. His next role, however, could propel him to an entirely different level: Ainsworth will lead the live-action adaptation of The Legend of Zelda as Link, one of the most recognizable characters in video game history.

24. Lauren Morais

After steadily building her résumé through British television series including The Red King and The Crow Girl, Lauren Morais enters an entirely different world with Marvel’s VisionQuest. Playing streetwise pickpocket Lisa Molinari, Morais is paired closely with Ruaridh Mollica’s Thomas Shepard and brings an appealingly grounded presence to a series otherwise filled with synthezoids, artificial intelligence and returning MCU heavyweights.

23. Emmanuel Macchia & Valentin Campagne

Few actors could ask for a better introduction than Emmanuel Macchia and Valentin Campagne, who shared the Best Actor prize at Cannes for their performances in Lukas Dhont’s Coward. As two Belgian soldiers who find love and moments of freedom behind the front lines of the First World War, Macchia and Campagne give incredibly tender, vulnerable performances, with an intoxicating chemistry that anchors Dhont’s film. For Macchia in particular, who makes his acting debut here, it is an extraordinary arrival.

22. Dylan Michael

In his first acting role, Dylan Michael gives an incredibly assured performance in Rhys Marc Jones’ Black Church Bay. Playing Miles, a teenager unwillingly pulled into the secrets surrounding the disappearance of his friend, Michael brings a hostility and unpredictability to the role that immediately makes him stand out alongside far more experienced actors including Tom Cullen and Joe Locke. For a screen debut, it is remarkably confident work.

21. Zoe Phillips

Few actors on this list have had a busier breakout year than Zoe Phillips. After appearing in My Brilliant Career and starring in Australian drama Dustfall, Phillips joined Netflix’s East of Eden as Abra Bacon, making a strong impression even within a sprawling ensemble led by Florence Pugh, Christopher Abbott and Mike Faist. With three major television credits arriving in the space of a single year, Phillips has quickly become one of the most exciting young names in the industry.

20. Amanda Fix

Amanda Fix has been building an impressive résumé for several years, but her haunting performance as the younger Billy Presley in Jane Schoenbrun’s Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma feels like a genuine turning point. Fix brings a heartbreaking nervousness and vulnerability to the character, making the connection between her and Gillian Anderson’s older Billy immediately believable. She will next step into another major horror role as a young Lorraine Warren in The Conjuring: First Communion.

19. Graham Campbell

Following his Broadway debut in the acclaimed revival of Appropriate and a role in Kent Jones’ Late Fame, Graham Campbell makes his biggest screen impression yet in FX’s The Shards. As Thom, Campbell initially brings an easy likability to Bret’s affluent Los Angeles friend group before allowing something considerably darker to emerge as the series progresses. He next stars in highly anticipated rom-com Fake Skating, an adaptation of the book of the same name.

18. Priyanka Kedia

Priyanka Kedia makes a strong impression opposite Maitreyi Ramakrishnan in Netflix’s Best of the Best, bringing warmth and vulnerability to Anjali while more than holding her own in the film’s elaborate dance sequences.

17. Michelle Mao

Michelle Mao had an incredibly interesting 2026, appearing as Rosamund Li in Bridgerton before taking center stage in Kogonada’s intimate, experimental zi. Shot in Hong Kong over just three weeks without a conventional script, the film places an enormous amount on Mao’s shoulders, and she delivers a quiet, emotionally affecting performance as a young musician experiencing visions of her future self. Mao next stars in season 3 of The Last of Us as Yara.

16. Marcel Ruiz

Marcel Ruiz first became known for his warm, charismatic turn as Alex Alvarez in One Day at a Time, but 2026 has given him a major year of his own. He co-wrote, produced and starred in Summer of Three, sharing the Best Performance prize and winning Best Screenplay at the Tribeca Festival, and will next appear as Tyler Flores in Quinn Shephard’s Netflix series The Body.

15. Ida Brooke

Ida Brooke is about to go from promising young actor to appearing in two of the biggest science-fiction franchises around. After early roles in Silo and The Primrose Railway Children, she joins Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Three as Ghanima, before appearing alongside Sydney Sweeney, Noah Centineo and Jason Isaacs in Netflix and Legendary’s live-action Gundam film, cementing her status as one of the most exciting new names in the film and TV industry.

14. Arty Froushan

Arty Froushan has quietly become one of the most versatile actors working across film, television and theater, with recent roles ranging from Buck Cashman in Daredevil: Born Again to Dr. Thomas Benton in The Love Hypothesis and Patrick Bateman in a stage production of American Psycho. With a major stage role opposite Emma Corrin and Harriet Walter in Suddenly Last Summer also ahead, it’s only upwards from here.

13. Cornell Young IV

A former college football player himself, Cornell Young IV could hardly have found a more fitting breakout role than five-star recruit Shaquille Johnson in Netflix’s A Different World. Young has the charisma and physical confidence the character demands, but his performance becomes much more interesting as Shaquille’s swagger begins to give way to the pressure he feels from his father, football and the expectations placed on him.

12. Abubakr Ali

Abubakr Ali has steadily built an impressive career with roles in Anything’s Possible, Law & Order: Organized Crime and Kathryn Bigelow’s A House of Dynamite, and continues that run with Bassam Tariq’s Your Mother, Your Mother, Your Mother. With a role in Sean Durkin’s upcoming A24 film Deep Cuts, alongside Cailee Spaeny, Drew Starkey and Ariela Barer coming up in 2027, it’s going to be genuinely exciting to see what he decides to do next.

11. Chloe Avakian

After early roles in Locke & Key, Hudson & Rex and Brilliant Minds, Chloe Avakian made a stronger impression this year with This Is Not a Test and Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy. She will next appear as Izzy Miller in Netflix’s upcoming hockey series The Sticks, joining an ensemble led by Michelle Monaghan in what will undoubtedly be her biggest role yet.

10. Clark Backo

Clark Backo has quietly built an incredibly varied résumé across projects including Letterkenny, I Want You Back, The Changeling and Venom: The Last Dance, but Yaga gives her one of her most substantial roles yet. As Carson, a local detective drawn into an increasingly strange missing-person investigation, Backo gets to play in the show’s blend of mystery, dark humor and supernatural horror opposite an excellent ensemble led by Carrie-Anne Moss, Hudson Williams and Noah Reid.

9. Beatrice Kitsos

After roles in Child’s Play, Are You Afraid of the Dark? and Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Beatrice Kitsos is set for her biggest role yet as Liz Buxbaum in Netflix’s adaptation of Lynn Painter’s bestselling novel Better Than the Movies. Kitsos landed the coveted lead role opposite David Iacono following a major casting search, after previously being a popular fan choice for the character.

8. Masali Baduza

After first appearing as Michaela Stirling at the end of Bridgerton’s third season, Masali Baduza was given considerably more room to shine in season four, bringing an infectious warmth and confidence to the character while hinting at a much more vulnerable side underneath. She will take center stage alongside Hannah Dodd as one of the leads of season five, which has just recently wrapped production, making Baduza one of the names we expect to hear a lot more about very soon.

7. Jack Cameron Kay

Jack Cameron Kay made a major impression as Jones in Netflix’s Boots before taking on Jack Twist in the North American stage premiere of Brokeback Mountain and appearing in Jordan Firstman’s Club Kid. 2027 will undoubtedly be his biggest year yet, with a lead role in Daniel Talbott’s upcoming queer romance Until the Time We Die on the horizon.

6. Kara Young & Mallori Johnson

Kara Young and Mallori Johnson give two of the year’s most memorable performances in Aleshea Harris’ wildly inventive Is God Is. Playing twin sisters Racine and Anaia, the pair manage to feel completely inseparable while creating two distinctly different women, with Young bringing a ferocious intensity to Racine and Johnson finding enormous vulnerability in the more conflicted Anaia. Their chemistry is extraordinary, grounding the film even at its most surreal and violent. It’ll undoubtedly be exciting to see what they do next.

5. Costa D’Angelo

Costa D’Angelo makes a striking impression as the younger Adam Trask in Netflix’s ambitious adaptation of East of Eden. Tasked with establishing the emotional foundation for a character later played by Christopher Abbott, D’Angelo brings a vulnerability and earnestness to Adam, delivering one of the best performances in a show stacked with major talent and incredible performances.

4. Maleah Joi Moon

Maleah Joi Moon was already a major stage talent, winning the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her Broadway debut in Hell’s Kitchen, but A Different World proves she is just as magnetic on screen. As Deborah Wayne, the daughter of beloved original characters Dwayne and Whitley, Moon carries Netflix’s sequel series with charisma, warmth and a wonderfully natural screen presence that should open the door to much more from her in the very near future.

3. Guitarricadelafuente

Already one of Spain’s most distinctive musicians, Guitarricadelafuente makes an extraordinary acting debut in Los Javis’ La Bola Negra as Sebastián, a young musician forced into the National Army during the Spanish Civil War who finds an unexpected connection with Rafael. It is a deeply vulnerable, beautifully restrained performance that feels remarkably assured for a first role, marking the beginning of what could be an equally exciting career on screen.

2. Maya Boyd

After making her mark on Broadway with roles in Merrily We Roll Along, & Juliet and Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, Maya Boyd is set to make a huge leap onto the big screen as Storm in Marvel Studios’ upcoming X-Men film, taking on one of the franchise’s most iconic characters in what will be her biggest role yet.

1. Sara Boustany & Kristina Bogic

Sara Boustany and Kristina Bogic are both fantastic in Quinn Shephard’s upcoming Netflix series The Body, giving two of the show’s best performances as Elise Zakaria and Anya Butler. Boustany is especially moving in the quieter, more emotional moments, while Bogic brings a sharper, more unpredictable energy to Anya. The Body feels like a genuine breakout for both of them, and with performances this strong, it is hard to imagine either staying under the radar for much longer.