Jason Statham Pictures

Born in 1972, Jason Statham has done quite a lot in a short time. He has been an Olympic Diver on the British National Diving Team and finished 12th in the World Championships in 1992. He has also been a fashion model, black market salesman and finally of course, actor. He got the audition for his debut role as Bacon in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) through French Connection, for whom he was modeling. They became a major investor in the film and introduced Jason to Guy Ritchie, who invited him to audition for a part in the film by challenging him to impersonate an illegal street vendor and convince him to purchase fake jewelery. Jason must have been doing something right because after the success of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) he teamed up again with Guy Ritchie for Snatch. (2000), with co-stars including Brad Pitt, Dennis Farina and Benicio Del Toro. After Snatch. (2000) came Turn It Up (2000) with US music star Ja Rule, followed by a supporting actor role in the Sci-Fi film Ghosts of Mars (2001), Jet Li's The One (2001) and another screen partnership with Vinnie Jones in Mean Machine (2001) under Guy Ritchie's and Matthew Vaughn's SKA Films. Finally in 2002 he was cast as the lead role of Frank Martin in The Transporter (2002). Jason is also in the summer 2003 blockbuster remake of The Italian Job (1969), The Italian Job (2003), playing Handsome Rob.

Did nearly all of his own stunts in The Transporter (2002), including car chase sequences, scuba diving sequences and fight sequences.

His break into the entertainment business came when an agent put him on an advertisement for the French Connection clothing company.

Prior to The Transporter (2002) he already had a background in martial arts which enabled him to perform his own fight sequences.

Was originally set play Private Cooper in Dog Soldiers (2002), but dropped out to star in Ghosts of Mars (2001).

Offered the role of Agent 47 in Hitman (2007/I) after Vin Diesel was dropped from the project. Timothy Olyphant eventually took the role.

Well trained in Mixed Martial Arts and is an expert in Kickboxing.

Has appeared in three different films in which his character gets attacked with an axe, The Transporter (2002), Transporter 2 (2005) and War (2007).

Has appeared twice in two different movies in a scene involving his character talking to himself in an elevator, during what appears to be a hallucination. Once in Revolver (2005/I) and once in Crank (2006).

Has appeared in two films with Ray Liotta, Revolver (2005/I) and In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale (2007), both in which he is the protagonist and Liotta is the antagonist.

Was in a relationship with English model and actress Kelly Brook for several years.

Paid $10,625,000 to purchase a 3,355-square-foot oceanfront house in the Malibu Colony in Malibu, California. In addition, since mid-2005 has owned a 2,281-square-foot house in Los Angeles' Hollywood Hills, which he purchased for $2.4 million. [2009]

Is in a relationship with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley.

Has appeared in two films which include the song 'I Wanna Be Your Dog' by 'The Stooges'; Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) and Transporter 3 (2008).

Vin Diesel Pictures

Vin Diesel was raised by his astrologer/psychologist mother and adoptive father in an artist's housing project in New York's Greenwich Village, never knowing his biological father. His first break in acting happened by chance, when at the age of seven he and his friends broke into a theatre to vandalize it. A woman stopped them and offered them each a script and $20, on the condition that they would attend everyday after school. From there, Vin's fledgling career progressed from the New York repertory company run by his father, to the Off-Off-Broadway circuit. At 17 and already sporting a well-honed physique, he became a bouncer at some of New York's hippest clubs to earn himself some extra cash. It was at this time that he changed his name to Vin Diesel.

Following high school, Vin enrolled as an English major at Hunter College, but dropped out after three years to go to Hollywood to further his acting career. Being an experienced theatre actor did not make any impression in Hollywood and after a year of struggling to make his mark, he returned to New York. His mother then gave him a book called "Feature Films at used Car Prices" by Rick Schmidt. The book showed him that he could take control of his career and make his own movies. He wrote a short film based on his own experiences as an actor, called Multi-Facial (1995), which was shot in less than three days at a cost of $3,000. Multi-Facial (1995) was eventually accepted for the 1995 Cannes Film Festival where it got a tumultuous reception.

Afterwards, Vin returned to Los Angeles and raised almost $50,000 through telemarketing to fund the making of his first feature, Strays (1997). Six months after shooting, the film was accepted for the 1997 Sundance Film Festival, and although it received a good reception, it didn't sell as well as hoped. Yet again Vin returned disappointed to New York only to receive a dream phone call. Steven Spielberg was impressed by Multi-Facial (1995) and wanted to meet Vin, leading him to be cast in Saving Private Ryan (1998). Multi-Facial (1995) earned Vin more work, when the director of The Iron Giant (1999) saw it and decided to cast Vin in the title role. From there, Vin's career has steadily grown, with him securing his first lead role as 'Richard B Riddick' in the sci-fi film Pitch Black (2000). That role has earned him a legion of devoted fans and the public recognition he deserves.