While the likes of Colin Firth, Jeff Bridges and Annette Bening were all Oscar nominees, and in one case winner, this year it's fair to say that there were many strong performances from younger actors over the past twelve months.
And while all eyes may be one the more established talent of Colin Firth it looks like the movie world could be in very good hands.
The likes of Natalie Portman, Jennifer Lawrence and James Franco have all turned in excellent performances and have long careers ahead of them.
It seems that Hollywood is an exciting time for the next generation and there are plenty making a name for themselves.
Natalie Portman - 2011 is also set to be a great year for Natalie Portman, not only is she pregnant with her first child but she has just bagged an Oscar.
Her performance as Nina in Black Swan is the role that everyone seems to be talking about at the moment as it was a role that really showed off just how great an actress Portman is.
Portman is truly sublime in this movie giving a very powerful and emotional performance as Nina's world slowly starts to unravel.
And she has a whole sting of projects in the pipeline, she can currently be seen in No Strings Attached, before she stays with comedy for Your Highness.
This summer will see her step into the big budget blockbuster as Thor comes to the big screen.
James Franco - It sees that the thirty two year can do a little bit of everything, actor, writer, painter, director as well as an English student.
2011 has already been a great year for Franco as he picked up his first Oscar nomination for his role in Danny Boyle's 127 Hours.
It's a tour de force performance by Franco in this movie as he holds the audiences attention, despite being the only actor on screen for most of the movie.
He turns his hand to comedy next with Your Highness before moving onto science fiction with Rise of the Apes.
Jesse Eisenberg - While Eisenberg has starred in the likes of Zombieland and Adventureland in recent years The Social Network allowed him to flex his acting muscles.
He took on the role of Mark Zuckerberg as David Fincher brought the story of how Facebook was created to the big screen.
It's a mature performance from the actor - who is helped by a superbly written and witty script.
The actor will be back on our screens later this year with Holy Rollers and he has lent his voice to animation flick Rio.
Hailee Steinfeld - The fourteen year old made her big screen debut this year with Joel and Ethan Coen's movie True Grit.
She has proved to be one of the breakthrough stars of 2011 as she went on to pick up a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nod for her performance.
Steinfeld is a young talent that we should all be getting very excited about as this is a bold and ballsy debut performance.
She commands the screen and your attention with every scene and she holds her ground well with her more established co-stars Jeff Bridges and Matt Damon.
The role of Mattie Ross has caught everyone's attention and it will be interesting to see what she does next.
Jennifer Lawrence - While Lawrence made her big screen debut some years ago 2010 provided the twenty year old with her breakthrough role as she starred in Winter's Bone.
The movie was critically acclaimed upon release and went on to pick up a Best Picture Oscar nod while Lawrence picked up a nod for Best Actress.
And it hasn't taken long for Hollywood to realise what a talent she it as she will be back on the big scree this summer as she steps into blockbuster X-Men: First Class.
She will also appear in The Beaver as well as House at the End of the Street she has also been linked to Savages and The Seventh Son.
Emma Stone - Easy A proved to be a winning performance for Emma Stone last year as she took on the role of Olive in the Will Gluck directed movie.
Stone really is turning into a great comedic actress and all of that talent was on show in Easy A - a performance which earnt her a Golden Globe nomination.
And she is set to mix and match her roles this year as she has already completed work on Movie 43, Crazy, Stupid Love and Friends With Benefits.
She is currently filming The Amazing Spider-Man, in which she takes on the role of Gwen Stacy, as she steps into the big budget blockbuster.
Andrew Garfield - The last twelve months for Andrew Garfield have seen his star rise pretty rapidly.
He was universally praised for his role in The Social Network before going on to team up with Keira Knightley and Carey Mulligan in Never Let Me Go.
The actor is set to lead a blockbuster for the very first time next year after landing the role of Peter Parker in the Amazing Spider-Man, a re-boot to the popular franchise.
So there are a whole host of talented youngsters that are making some really great movies - throw into the mix the likes of Knightley, Mulligan, Chloe Moretz, Gemma Arterton, Mia Wasikowska and Ellen Page and Daniel Radcliffe and thing look mighty rosy.
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw
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