Marin Ireland

For her role as a brittle corporate accountant embroiled in a love affair in "28 Hotel Rooms" (2012), Marin Ireland literally and figuratively stripped down; most of her scenes with co-star Chris Messina took place in bed, and the pair's lengthy friendship gave them an intimate chemistry. Such complicated roles were nothing new for Ireland, who landed a Tony nomination for her 2009 Broadway debut in Neil LaBute's "Reasons to be Pretty" and viewed her work as close to a devotional act. By the time she was nominated for theater's most prestigious award, the California-native had already appeared in several episodes of "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" (NBC, 2001-07; USA Network, 2007-2011), the 2004 remake of "The Manchurian Candidate," and the critically-acclaimed 2008 indie "Rachel Getting Married." Her quiet intensity matched co-star Kate Winslet's in both "Revolutionary Road" (2008) and "Mildred Pierce" (HBO, 2011), and held its own against Meryl Streep in "Hope Springs" (2012). Put together with her memorable role as the treasonous Aileen Morgan on "Homeland" (Showtime, 2011- ), along with her well-received theatre performances, and it seemed there was no role Ireland couldn't make her own.