Romain Duris

Multiple César Award nominee Romain Duris got his big break in such French films as Jan Kounen's over-the-top action thriller Dobermann before gaining notable stateside exposure in such arthouse hits as CQ and Le Divorce. While some may have suspected that the broodingly handsome rising star was setting his sights on Hollywood in the early 2000s, subsequent roles in such French-language hits as L' Auberge Espagnole (opposite Amélie star Audrey Tautou), Osmose, and Exils proved that he was still very much a fixture of French cinema. In 2005, Duris captivated cinemaphiles as a talented young pianist wrestling with the temptation to follow in the footsteps of his brutish father in director/co-writer Jacques Audiard's stylish drama The Beat That My Heart Skipped. On the heels of Most Promising Actor César nominations for such previous efforts as Gadjo Dilo and Peut-Être, it seemed that Duris had finally graduated to full-fledged star when he was nominated simply as Best Actor for his role in the film. The following year, Duris would impress as the dramatic lead in The Russian Dolls, and in 2007 he would portray 17th century playwright Jean-Baptiste Poquelin dit Molière in the Laurent Tirard comedy drama Molière.