James Marsden

Handsome leading man and former Versace model James Marsden emerged as one of a batch of attractive young actors in the late-1990s that surprised both critics and audiences with a string of diverse, comedic performances a decade later. After appearing in a production of "Bye Bye Birdie" in college, Marsden began making guest appearances on popular series that included "The Nanny" (CBS, 1993-2000), "Blossom" (NBC, 1990-95) and "Party of Five" (Fox, 1994-2000). He soon made the jump to leading man status with his role as a teen father on the short-lived family drama series "Second Noah" (ABC, 1996-97). He followed with strong performances in "young Hollywood" ensemble projects like "Disturbing Behavior" (1998), before receiving his breakthrough as the mutant superhero Cyclops in the hotly anticipated film version of the Marvel comic, "X-Men" (2000). He revived the character for "X2: X-Men United" (2003) and "X-Men: Days of Future Past" (2014), although it would be his turns in "Hairspray" (2007) and "Enchanted" (2007) that demonstrated Marsden's previously unknown musical and comedic abilities. And while not as successful as the "X-Men" films or the Disney hit "Enchanted," Marsden's work in projects like "The Box" (2009), "The Butler" (2013), Nicholas Sparks romance "The Best of Me" (2014) and the sci-fi TV series "Westworld" (HBO 2016- ) gave further proof that the talented actor was more than just another pretty face.