Cameron Diaz

Perhaps no actress had a faster ride to the top than Cameron Diaz, who was launched into stardom with "The Mask" (1994), her first-ever onscreen performance. Though originally slated for a minor role, Diaz won over the movie's producers with her unique charm and looks, and took on the lead actress role with verve. Though she followed up her success with a string of mediocre independent features like "Feeling Minnesota" (1996) and "A Life Less Ordinary" (1997), Diaz firmly established her bona fides with an exuberant co-starring role in "My Best Friend's Wedding" (1997) that managed to pull the rug out from under the feet of star Julia Roberts. But it was "There's Something About Mary" (1998), the Farrelly Brothers' wildly successful gross out comedy, that cemented her status atop the A-list. Despite success in mainstream features, she did broaden her horizons with challenging performances in "Being John Malkovich" (1999) and "Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her" (2000), two critically-lauded indies that allowed Diaz to display her strong acting chops. Easily fluctuating between the worlds of small-budge indies and major Hollywood blockbusters like "Charlie's Angels" (2001) and "Shrek 2" (2004), Diaz demonstrated that she was so much more than a pretty face.