Joseph Gordon-Levitt

THEN: At the young age of 7, Joseph Gordon-Levitt appeared on TV for the first time in the movie "Stranger on My Land." That same year, he scored two guest spots on the Michael J. Fox sitcom "Family Ties." But his big break came in 1996, when he was cast as Tommy Solomon on "3rd Rock From the Sun." He might not have been the only alien posing as a human in the fictional city of Rutherford, Ohio, but he was the only kid on the ... more 

Joseph Gordon-Levitt

THEN: At the young age of 7, Joseph Gordon-Levitt appeared on TV for the first time in the movie "Stranger on My Land." That same year, he scored two guest spots on the Michael J. Fox sitcom "Family Ties." But his big break came in 1996, when he was cast as Tommy Solomon on "3rd Rock From the Sun." He might not have been the only alien posing as a human in the fictional city of Rutherford, Ohio, but he was the only kid on the show. And he held his own against the series' more seasoned stars John Lithgow, Jane Curtin, Kristen Johnston, and French Stewart. When the show wrapped in 2001, he made a graceful transition into the feature film world.

NOW: Since taking the lead role in "(500) Days of Summer" opposite Zooey Deschanel, Joseph Gordon-Levitt has become one of the biggest names in Hollywood. The indie flick certainly put him in the romantic lead category, but it was his turn in Christopher Nolan's sci-fi thriller "Inception" that launched him on his way to action stardom. He reteamed with the director to play John Blake in this year's blockbuster "The Dark Knight Rises." He also co-starred with another adrenaline-fueled-flick legend, Bruce Willis, in the time-travel movie "Looper."

But that doesn't mean that JGL is shying away from more serious fare. He's currently on the big screen in the highly touted Steven Spielberg film "Lincoln." Gordon-Levitt plays Honest Abe's eldest son, who is determined to go to war against his parents' wishes. less