Alan Cumming

It used to be that one could scarcely imagine anyone other than Joel Grey as the emcee in "Cabaret" -- but then came Alan Cumming. Putting a seedier spin on the famously perverse character, Cumming won a Tony for his 1998 performance and found his film career reinvigorated with roles in Eyes Wide Shut and Titus (both 1999).

Born Jan. 27, 1965, in Aberfeldy, Scotland, Cumming studied at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama and worked steadily in theater before making his film debut in 1992's Prague. Supporting roles in films such as Circle of Friends and Emma (opposite Gwyneth Paltrow) followed.

In 2001, Cumming received critical acclaim for The Anniversary Party, a film he co-directed and wrote (with Jennifer Jason Leigh) as well as starred in. Recent films include Spy Kids (and its sequels) and Sweet Land. In 2006, he landed a regular guest spot on the TV series "The L Word."

X2: X-Men United

2003 PG-13

Professor Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) and his team of genetically gifted superheroes face a rising tide of anti-mutant sentiment led by Col. William Stryker (Brian Cox) in this sequel to the Marvel Comics-based blockbuster X-Men. Storm (Halle Berry), Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) and Jean Grey (Famke Janssen) must join their usual nemeses Magneto (Ian McKellen) and Mystique (Rebecca Romijn) to unhinge Stryker's scheme to exterminate all mutants.