This year saw the reunion of two members of the modern-day movie world’s pantheon of greats, aka Timothée Chalamet and director Luca Guadagnino. After permeating every corner of our hearts with his performance in 2017 Italian gay romance Call Me By Your Name, Chalamet once again found himself under the direction of Guadagnino, this time alongside Lost In Space star Taylor Russell in November’s Bones and All. The tortured love story of *checks notes* cannibals Lee (Chalamet) and Maren (Russell) was gripping, gory and utterly dazzling, and left us only wanting more from the pair. Handy really, as we’ll be seeing a lot more of Chalamet in 2023, namely in the much-anticipated Wonka and Dune: Part Two.

This really is Florence Pugh’s world and we’re just living in it, right? Pugh certainly had a busy 2022 but that only meant more of her outstanding acting chops were available for us to devour. From sharing the screen with Mr. Harry Styles in perhaps the most talked-about film of the year Don’t Worry Darling, to entering 1850s Ireland as the lead in Sebastián Lelio’s adaptation of Emma Donoghue’s novel The Wonder, plus lending her voice to the character of Goldilocks in Puss In Boots: The Last Wish, it’s safe to say Pugh had range as well as a busy diary. With 2023 promising a turn alongside Chalamet in Dune: Part Two and a part in Christopher Nolan’s star-studded historical epic Oppenheimer, Pugh’s ascent to the highest echelons of the acting world is only set to continue.

In 2022, anyone not already mesmerised by the acting brilliance of Top Boy’s Micheal Ward was inducted into his ever-growing fan club thanks to his breathtaking appearance alongside Oscar winner Olivia Colman in Empire of Light. Ward spoke to Colman as he covered our Winter 2022 issue: “I just wanted to learn from you guys so much,” he said. “It’s rare you get these opportunities, especially as a young Black actor, our stories don’t really get told like that.” There’s few in the current acting sphere that we would want to learn from more than Colman and thankfully it’s not long until we see more evidence of any hacks he picked up with Ward set to star in The Beautiful Game based on the Homeless World Cup, in 2023.

Wednesday officially became our new favourite day of the week thanks to Jenna Ortega’s spellbinding performance as the titular character in this ‘Addams Family spin-off. The Tim Burton-directed comedy horror saw Ortega’s Wednesday Addams navigating life at Nevermore Academy, whilst also acquainting herself with her idiosyncratic abilities. The horror genre treated Ortega well this year as she also assumed the role of Tara Carpenter in the latest installment of the slasher film franchise Scream in January. A sixth film is on its way in 2023, with Ortega also tied to an array of further projects currently in post-production, so it looks like another busy year is on the cards for our new queen of horror.

From Kenneth Brannagh’s murder mystery Death on the Nile to an enigmatic performance in biographical drama The Silent Twins, and appearing alongside Josh O’Connor in Irish drama Aisha, Wonderland Winter 2022 cover star Letitia Wright was booked and busy this year. However, most notable was her standout performance in the sequel to superhero blockbuster Black Panther, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever in November. Wright told us that her character Shuri “taught me to be brave and have courage. She helped me grow into a woman.” We can’t wait to see how the woman she’s become proceeds in the new year, and with appearances in anticipated releases Surrounded and Possum Trot in the pipeline, we hopefully won’t have to hold off too long until she’s back on our screens.

The ascent of Kit Connor was sharp and fast in 2022 as he entranced hoards of fans with his performance in Netflix teen romance Heartstopper. Whilst we had seen the still only 18-year-old star in childhood roles in the likes of Rocketman and Mr. Holmes, few could have imagined the place he would carve in our hearts via his appearance in the joyous queer love story alongside Joe Locke. A second season is officially on the way and rumoured for release in 2023. We can guarantee our eyes will be glued to the TV when our favourite couple returns, let’s just hope we don’t have to wait too long.

We couldn’t mention one half of a TV power couple phenomenon and not the other and thankfully Joe Locke’s exquisite portrayal of unassuming school student Charlie in Heartstopper gave him an undisputed place on this list. A true breakthrough star, Locke was an entirely new face to our screens this year with no previous TV credits. However, here to stay he most certainly is, as not only will we see him re-joining Connor in Heartstopper Season 2 (hopefully in the coming months) but also starring in Marvel’s Agatha: Coven of Chaos before next year’s out. Get you a boy who can do it all, right?

The whole Heartstopper cast commanded our hearts when the series dropped on Netflix this month, but supporting cast member Yasmin Finney was truly impossible to ignore. The 19-year-old’s performance as the creative Elle Argent, a linchpin of Charlie’s blissful queer friendship group, saw Finney establish herself as an unmistakable force in the acting world. The Wonderland Spring 2022 star even bagged herself a role in the next series of Doctor Who, alongside Sex Education star Ncuti Gatwa, slated for release in late 2023. Also returning to Heartstopper for season 2, it’s safe to say we’ll be seeing a lot more of Finney in the next 12 months, and we certainly aren’t complaining.

Starring alongside an acting titan like Timothée Chalamet could be a tall order but Taylor Russell was most certainly up to the task in Luca Guadagnino’s Bones and All. The Lost In Space star took on the role of cannibal lover Maren with aplomb in the gruesome romance, so much so, it garnered her coveted accolades including the Marcello Mastroianni Award at the Venice Film Festival, honouring emerging talent and won in the past by the likes of Jennifer Lawrence. Emerged she most certainly has this year and 2023 looks set to see her place in acting’s royal family become ever-more solidified.

Anyone who saw The Triangle of Sadness will have left the cinema pondering many features of society – money, class structures, the role of the super-rich, plus exactly what happens when a whole cruise worth of passengers collectively experience the worst bout of sea sickness perhaps ever seen in history. And, all the above themes penetrated audience members quite so strongly thanks to the performance of Harris Dickinson, as well as the outstanding contributions of the late Charlbi Dean Kriek. Dickinson, known previously for Eliza Hittman’s 2017 heady Beach Rats and more recently for appearances in Where The Crawdads Sing and The King’s Man demonstrated his prowess as a leading man in undeniable style in The Triangle of Sadness. We wait eagerly to see the stratospheric heights he’ll climb to in the near future.