This summer’s big movies are as starry as ever, with marquee actors such as Angelina Jolie, Channing Tatum and Tom Cruise leading the pack. But these blockbusters also pave the way for some of the year’s big breakthroughs.
Here are seven up-and-comers to watch out for this summer.
Nicola Peltz
The movie: “Transformers: Age of Extinction” (6/27)
Why we care: As Mark Wahlberg’s daughter in the fourth “Transformers” film, she’s filling the role of “pretty young thing” that catapulted the careers of Megan Fox and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley.
She currently appears on TV’s “Bates Motel” and will be in the upcoming indie “Affluenza,” about rich kids coming of age in Long Island before the recession (7/11).
Brenton Thwaites
The movie: “Maleficent” (5/30)
Why we care: The latest import from Down Under is everywhere this year, first as Sleeping Beauty’s prince in the Angelina Jolie-led “Maleficent.”
In June, he stars in the sci-fi thriller “The Signal” as a college kid who awakes to a nightmare after being isolated in the desert by a hacker (6/13).
Then he’ll lead the long-awaited adaptation of the classic kids book “The Giver” (8/15). He has at least three more flicks in the works.
Jillian Bell
The movie: “22 Jump Street” (6/13)
Why we care: We don’t know much about whom Bell plays in the sequel to 2012’s “21 Jump Street,” but she has had two of the best moments in the trailers so far — calling Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum “old as s - - t” in one and getting in some sort of awkward fistfight with Hill in another.
Best known for her work on “Workaholics,” she’ll next be in Paul Thomas Anderson’s likely awards bait, “Inherent Vice,” come December.
She’s also going to be a part of the 2016 big-screen adaptation of “Goosebumps.”
Nat Wolff
The movie: “The Fault in Our Stars” (6/6)
Why we care: Appearing opposite rising stars Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort, Wolff plays Isaac, a teenager who is blinded by eye cancer.
Gia Coppola also chose the former Nickelodeon star as one of the leads in her directorial debut, “Palo Alto” (5/9).
He’ll also appear in the next adaptation of one of John Green’s books, “Paper Towns,” and will star this August opposite Selena Gomez in the teen comedy “Behaving Badly.”
Ingrid Bolsø Berdal
The movie: “Hercules” (7/25)
Why we care: The Norwegian beauty got her creepy on in “Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters” and “Chernobyl Diaries.”
In “Hercules,” starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, she will battle it out with the Greek hero as Atalanta, according to Variety.
Dave Bautista
The movie: “Guardians of the Galaxy” (8/1)
Why we care: While by no means a fresh face in the literal sense — the dude’s 45 — Bautista has just landed his first real notable acting role.
The WWE star is well-known in the wrestling world, but so far his film résumé doesn’t feature much more than small roles in movies such as “Riddick” and an episode of “Smallville.”
But as one of the titular guardians in Marvel’s new franchise starter alongside heavyweights Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel, we’re going to be hearing a lot more from him.
Fan Bing Bing
The movie: “X-Men: Days of Futures Past” (5/23)
Why we care: The latest “X-Men” is full of familiar faces from “X-Men” eras past (Halle Berry and company) and present (Jennifer Lawrence and company).
But among the fresh faces is Fan, who plays Blink, a new mutant who can open teleportation portals.
Fan is already an established star in her native China, recently being added into the Chinese version of “Iron Man 3” for China-specific scenes.
Her Western Hemisphere career has just begun, with a role as the mermaid in an upcoming fantasy film about King Louis XIV (Pierce Brosnan) called “The Moon and the Sun.”