Entertainment Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers  

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List Rules Vote up the B-listers with the most potential to become A-listers.

If pop culture has room enough for multiple A-list Jennifers and Chrises, it has enough time to make some space for certain celebrities who should be more famous. For example, think back to the start of 2014. In early 2014, most people would respond to the name "Chris Pratt" with "who?" Those who were familiar with his work probably knew him as the chubby bumbling Andy Dwyer from Parks and Recreation. Two years after Parks... finished, Chris Pratt starred in Guardians of the Galaxy and joined the rest of the A-list Chrises - and became one of the sexiest men alive. Truly what a difference a year makes.

You may wonder what makes a celebrity an A-lister, and which actors are considered B-list celebs. Although Game of Thrones stars Kit Harington and Emilia Clarke star in one of the most popular shows of all time, most commoners know them as their character names Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen, respectively. B-list actors thrive in supporting roles, yet these are the roles which fully highlight their unique talents and acting styles. 

Below includes a collection of all the celebrities who will soon be A-listers. By A-listers, it means actors and actresses at the height of fame, names and faces any bystander could instantly recognize. This list advocates for B-list actors who deserve the A-list treatment. Although these up and coming celebs boast millions of fans, they are still considered B-list (or below) by Hollywood standards. So no, this list is not for your friend who just got a guest role on the Disney Channel.

Feel free to add your favorites soon to be famous celebrities, but only if you think they'll be so famous your grandmother will know their name. Everyone loves Alexander Skarsgard, but love isn't what transformed Andy Dwyer into Star-Lord. Then, check out who deserves to be a household name in 2019.

list ordered by

1
1,909 853
Chadwick Boseman is listed (or ranked) 1 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 36

Best Known Roles:
T'Challa/Black Panther in Marvel Cinematic Universe
James Brown in Get on Up
Jackie Robinson in 42

Upcoming Roles:
T'Challa in an untitled Avengers project

2
1,495 663
Liam Hemsworth is listed (or ranked) 2 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 28

Best Known Roles:
Gale Hawthorne in The Hunger Games series
Jake Morrison in Independence Day: Resurgence
Josh Taylor on Neighbours

Upcoming Roles:
Blake in Isn't It Romantic

3
1,883 1,305
Emilia Clarke is listed (or ranked) 3 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 30

Best Known Roles:
Daenerys Targaryen on Game of Thrones
Sarah Connor in Terminator Genisys
Luisa Clark in Me Before You
Kira in Solo: A Star Wars Story

Upcoming Roles:
Susan Smith in Above Suspicion

4
271 123
James McAvoy is listed (or ranked) 4 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
Karen Addie Adelson added age 38

Best Known Roles:
Professor Charles Xavier in X-Men franchise (X-Men: Apocalypse, X-Men: First Class, X-Men: Days of Future Past)
David Percival in Atomic Blonde
Mr. Tumnus in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

Upcoming Roles:
Lord Asriel in His Dark Materials
Hazel in Watership Down

5
836 587
Jason Bateman is listed (or ranked) 5 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 49

Best Known Roles:
Michael Bluth in Arrested Development
Nick Hendricks in the Horrible Bosses series
Nick Wilde (voice of) in Zootopia
Martin 'Marty' Byrde in Ozark

Upcoming Roles:
Opposite Jennifer Aniston in Significant Other

6
850 641
Jason Momoa is listed (or ranked) 6 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 38

Best Known Roles:
Khal Drogo on Game of Thrones
Declan Harp on Frontier
Aquaman in Justice League

Upcoming Roles:
Aquaman in Aquaman

7
876 670
Sebastian Stan is listed (or ranked) 7 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 35

Best Known Roles:
Jeff Gillooly in I, Tonya
Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier in the Captain America series
T.J. Hammond in Political Animals
Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier in Avengers: Infinity War

Upcoming Roles:
Scott Huffman in The Last Full Measure
Mickey in Monday

8
886 689
Cole Sprouse is listed (or ranked) 8 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
DuttaDUtta added age 23

Best Known Roles:
Cody Martin in The Suite Life of Zack and Cody
Jughead Jones in Riverdale

Upcoming Roles:
Will in Five Feet Apart

9
1,645 1,387
Cara Delevingne is listed (or ranked) 9 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 25

Best Known Roles:
Enchantress in Suicide Squad
Laureline in Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets
Margo Roth Spiegelman in Paper Towns

Upcoming Roles:
Vignette Stonemoss in Carnival Row

10
698 571
Kit Harington is listed (or ranked) 10 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 29

Best Known Roles:
Jon Snow in Game of Thrones
Robert Catesby in Gunpowder

Upcoming Roles:
Eret (voice) in How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World

11
620 502
Andrew Garfield is listed (or ranked) 11 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
akr2907 added age 34

Best Known Roles:
Spider-Man/Peter Parker in The Amazing Spider-Man and The Amazing Spider-Man 2
Eduardo Saverin in The Social Network
Desmond Doss in Hacksaw Ridge

Upcoming Roles:
Carlos Mavroleon in Black Lion

12
956 878
John Boyega is listed (or ranked) 12 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 26

Best Known Roles:
Finn in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Moses in Attack the Block
Melvin Dismukes in Detroit
Jake Pentecost in Pacific Rim: Uprising

Upcoming Roles:
Bigwig in Watership Down

13
321 253
Jensen Ackles is listed (or ranked) 13 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
Jhantara Decker added age 40

Best Known Roles:
Dean Winchester in Supernatural

Upcoming Roles:
Opposite Olivia Munn in The Buddy Games

14
413 351
Karen Gillan is listed (or ranked) 14 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 30

Best Known Roles:
Amy Pond in Doctor Who (2010-2014)
Nebula in Guardians of the Galaxy and the MCU
Ruby Roundhouse/Martha in Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle
Nebula in Avengers: Infinity War

Upcoming Roles:
Nebula in an untitled Avengers project
Mercedes in Call of the Wild

15
944 912
Anthony Mackie is listed (or ranked) 15 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
LaChance added age 39

Best Known Roles:
Sam Wilson in Marvel Cinematic Universe (Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain America: Civil War)
Sergeant J. T. Sanborn in The Hurt Locker
Papa Doc in 8 Mile

Upcoming Roles:
Takeshi Kovacs in Altered Carbon
Johnnie Cochran in Signal HIll

16
520 483
Natalie Dormer is listed (or ranked) 16 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 36

Best Known Roles:
Margaery Tyrell in Game of Thrones
Anne Boleyn in The Tudors
Cressida in Mockingjay: Part I & II

Upcoming Roles:
Eliza Merrett in The Professor and the Madman

17
633 615
Lily James is listed (or ranked) 17 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 28

Best Known Roles:
Ella in Cinderella
Debora in Baby Driver 
Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies
Young Donna Sheridan in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again

Upcoming Roles:
Opposite Ana de Armas and Kate McKinnon in an untitled Danny Boyle/Richard Curtis project

18
434 404
Michael Peña is listed (or ranked) 18 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 42

Best Known Roles:
Sal Castro in The Walkout
Paco Hernandez in American Hustle
Red in A Wrinkle in Time (2018)
César Chávez in César Chávez

Upcoming Roles:
Enforcer in The Mule
Dora's father in Dora the Explorer
 

19
290 251
Evangeline Lilly is listed (or ranked) 19 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 38

Best Known Roles:
Kate Austen in Lost
Tauriel in the Hobbit series
Hope van Dyne/Wasp in Ant-Man and Ant-Man and the Wasp

Upcoming Roles:
Hope van Dyne/Wasp in an untitled Avengers project

20
300 262
John Cho is listed (or ranked) 20 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 43

Best Known Roles:
Harold Lee in the Harold and Kumar series
Hikaru Sulu in Star Trek (2009)
John/MILF Guy #2 in American Pie 2
David Kim in Searching

Upcoming Roles:
Hikaru Sulu in an untitled Star Wars project
Grover in Tigertail

21
385 354
Janelle Monae is listed (or ranked) 21 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 32

Best Known Roles:
Mary Jackson in Hidden Figures
Teresa in Moonlight

Upcoming Roles:
GI Julie in Welcome to Marwen

22
753 756
Alexander Skarsgård is listed (or ranked) 22 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 41

Best Known Roles:
Eric Northman in True Blood
Perry Wright in Big Little Lies 
Tarzan in The Legend of Tarzan

Upcoming Roles:
Sefan Lubert in The Aftermath

23
719 742
Adam Driver is listed (or ranked) 23 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 34

Best Known Roles:
Kylo Ren in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Adam Sackler in Girls
Father Francisco Garupe in Silence
Flip Zimmerman in BlacKkKlansman

Upcoming Roles:
Ronald Peterson in The Dead Don't Die
Kylo Ren in Star Wars: Episode IX

24
338 319
Dave Bautista is listed (or ranked) 24 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 49

Best Known Roles:
Batista in WWE
Drax in Guardians of the Galaxy and Avengers: Infinity War

Upcoming Roles:
Trent DeRosa in Escape Plan 3: Devil's Station
Owen Davidson in Master Z: Ip Man Legacy

25
372 357
Cobie Smulders is listed (or ranked) 25 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 35

Best Known Roles:
Robin Scherbatsky on How I Met Your Mother
Maria Hill in the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Upcoming Roles:
Sophie in Cicada

26
315 296
Lena Headey is listed (or ranked) 26 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 42

Best Known Roles:
Cersie Lannister in Game of Thrones
Sarah Connor in Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
Queen Gorgo in 300

Upcoming Roles:
Julia "Sweet Saraya" Bevis in Fighting with My Family

27
555 566
Liev Schreiber is listed (or ranked) 27 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
joel-micah-harris added age 50

Best Known Roles:
Ray Donovan in Ray Donovan
Ross "The Boss" Rhea in Goon
Victor Creed/Sabretooth in X-Men Origins: Wolverine

Upcoming Roles:
"Unknown Role" in A Rainy Day in New York

28
380 371
Maisie Williams is listed (or ranked) 28 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 20

Best Known Roles:
Arya Stark in Game of Thrones
Lydia Lamont in The Falling
 

Upcoming Roles:
Rahne Sinclair/Wolfsbane in The New Mutants

29
878 939
Elle Fanning is listed (or ranked) 29 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 19

Best Known Roles:
Alice Dainard in Super 8
Jesse in The Neon Demon
Aurora in Maleficent
Mary Shelley in Mary Shelley

Upcoming Roles:
Princess Aurora in Maleficent 2

30
753 798
Mindy Kaling is listed (or ranked) 30 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
chantellebelle added age 38

Best Known Roles:
Kelly Kapoor in The Office
Dr. Mindy Lahiri in The Mindy Project
Disgust in Inside Out
Amita in Ocean's 8

Upcoming Roles:
Molly Patel in Late Night

31
712 765
Zoë Kravitz is listed (or ranked) 31 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 29

Best Known Roles:
Bonnie Carlson on Big Little Lies
Christina in The Divergent Series 
Angel Salvadore in X-Men: First Class

Upcoming Roles:
Leta Lestrange in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
As the lead in High Fidelity (2019)

32
323 319
Thomas Sangster is listed (or ranked) 32 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
Isa Ip added age 27

Best Known Roles:
Newt in The Maze Runner series
Jojen Reed on Game of Thrones
Simon on Nanny McPhee
Sam on Love Actually

Upcoming Roles:
A voice in Dragon Rider

 

33
379 394
Sophie Turner is listed (or ranked) 33 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 19

Best Known Roles:
Sansa Stark in Game of Thrones
Jean Grey/Phoenix in X-Men: Apocalypse

Upcoming Roles:
Koepcke in Girl Who Fell From the Sky
Jean Grey/Dark Phoenix in X-Men: Dark Phoenix

34
236 244
Olivia Munn is listed (or ranked) 34 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 37

Best Known Roles:
Elizabeth Braddock/Psylocke in X-Men: Apocalypse and X-Men: Dark Phoenix
Sloan Sabbith in The Newsroom

Upcoming Roles:
Tiffany in The Buddy Games
Barbie in Die in a Gunfight

35
612 713
Chiwetel Ejiofor is listed (or ranked) 35 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
LaChance added age 40

Best Known Roles:
Solomon Northup in 12 Years a Slave
Karl Mondo in Doctor Strange
Okwe in Dirty Pretty Things

Upcoming Roles:
Scar in The Lion King

36
182 182
Djimon Hounsou is listed (or ranked) 36 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 53

Best Known Roles:
Cinqué in Amistad
Mateo in In America
Solomon Vandy in Blood Diamond

Upcoming Roles:
Korath in Captain Marvel

37
624 743
Wentworth Miller is listed (or ranked) 37 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
zoe-krainik added age 45

Best Known Roles:
Michael Scofield on Prison Break
Leonard Snart on Legends of Tomorrow
Chris Redfield in Resident Evil: Afterlife

 

38
190 196
Karl Urban is listed (or ranked) 38 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 45

Best Known Roles:
Éomer in Lord of the Rings II & III
Skurge in Thor: Ragnarok
Leonard McCoy in Star Trek (2009)
Judge Dredd in Dredd

Upcoming Roles:
Leonard McCoy in untitled Star Trek project

39
518 613
Dakota Johnson is listed (or ranked) 39 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 28

Best Known Roles:
Anastasia Steele in Fifty Shades of Grey franchise
Alice Kepley in How to Be Single
Kate Fox on Ben and Kate
Susie Bannion in Suspiria

Upcoming Roles:
Eleanor in The Peanut Butter Falcon

40
562 673
Jamie Dornan is listed (or ranked) 40 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 35

Best Known Roles:
Christian Grey in Fifty Shades of Grey series
Paul Spector in The Fall
Jan Kubiš in Anthropoid

Upcoming Roles:
Will Scarlet in Robin Hood

41
685 831
Stephen Amell is listed (or ranked) 41 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 36

Best Known Roles:
Oliver Queen on Arrow
Casey Jones in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows 
Jason on Hung

Upcoming Roles:
Garrett in Code 8

42
188 197
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau is listed (or ranked) 42 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 45

Best Known Roles:
Jaime Lannister in Game of Thrones
Clas Greve in Headhunters
Martin Bork in Nightwatch

Upcoming Roles:
Christian in Domino

43
449 544
Felicity Jones is listed (or ranked) 43 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
ChloeFletcher added age 34

Best Known Roles:
Jyn Erso in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Jane Wilde Hawking in The Theory of Everything 
Anna Gardner in Like Crazy

Upcoming Roles:
Ruth Bader Ginsburg in On the Basis of Sex

44
455 556
Robert Pattinson is listed (or ranked) 44 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
ChloeFletcher added age 31

Best Known Roles:
Edward Cullen in The Twilight Saga
Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Eric Packer in Cosmopolis

Upcoming Roles:
Roy Laferty in The Devil All The Time

45
218 252
Zachary Quinto is listed (or ranked) 45 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 40

Best Known Roles:
Sylar in Heroes
Spock in Star Trek (2009)
Dr. Oliver Thredson in American Horror Story: Asylum
Crosby Franklin in Hotel Artemis

Upcoming Roles:
Spock in an untitled Star Trek project

46
493 624
Hayley Atwell is listed (or ranked) 46 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 35

Best Known Roles:
Peggy Carter on Agent Carter and in Captain America: The First Avenger
Hayes Morrison on Conviction
Kathy Etchingham in Jimi: All Is by My Side

Upcoming Roles:
Caroline Mortimer in The Long Song

47
443 571
Ellie Kemper is listed (or ranked) 47 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 37

Best Known Roles:
Kimmy Schmidt on Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Erin Hannon on The Office
Becca in Bridesmaids

Upcoming Roles:
Katie in The Secret Life of Pets 2

48
411 532
Jake Johnson is listed (or ranked) 48 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 37

Best Known Roles:
Nick Miller on New Girl
Lowery Cruthers in Jurassic World
Eddie Garrett in Win It All
Randy 'Chilli' Cillano in Tag

Upcoming Roles:
Peter Parker/Spider-Man in Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse

49
138 158
Judy Greer is listed (or ranked) 49 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 42

Best Known Roles:
Lucy Wyman in 13 Going on 30
Cheryl Tunt in Archer
Julie Speer in The Descendants
Karen Strode in Halloween (2018)

Upcoming Roles:
Dr. Kurtz in Where'd You Go, Bernadette

 

50
150 185
Michael C. Hall is listed (or ranked) 50 on the list Celebrities Who Should Be A-Listers
age 47

Best Known Roles:
Dexter Morgan in Dexter
David Fisher in Six Feet Under

Upcoming Roles:
Leonard Swett in The Gettysburg Address