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Next Stop, Hollywood

Roll up, roll up for the list of up-and-coming stars of Irish screen (and stage) you won’t be able to avoid in the 12 months ahead. They’re smart, they’re cute, they’re quirky – and it looks like they’re about to take over the world.

Roe McDermott, 17 Jan 2012

Peter Coonan

Ah, you know the guy we mean! He’s yer man, you know. From that ad? The insurance one? With the bad suit? Who breaks up with yer one… Ah, what’s his name? Ummm, it’s... Peter Coonan!

Yeah, well, you’d better remember it this time, because you’re going to be hearing it a lot more often. Apart from being on your telly every ad break, the UCD graduate has appeared in some of the most exciting Irish dramas of recent years. Last year Coonan played a manic inner-city headcase in Mark O’Connor’s impressively gritty crime film Between The Canals, a low-budget debut that impressed critics hugely. Slightly terrifying characters are Coonan’s forte – 2011 saw him taking on another intimidating role as gangster Fran in RTÉ’s best show in years, the hard-hitting drama Love/Hate. Holding his own against brilliant Irish actors Aiden Gillen and Robert Sheehan, Coonan’s performance was widely acclaimed. He’s now set to again work with Mark O’Connor in The King Of The Travellers, where he plays a rough-and-ready character, the gold-toothed Micky ‘The Bags’. He’d better be careful with all these bullying roles. People might start giving him a wide berth him down the pub – except that he is known to be certifiably lovely into the bargain. Swoon!

Killian Scott

Proving RTÉ really got it right with Love/Hate, our next hot tip for 2012 is another alumnus of the gritty series. Playing the endearingly vulnerable yet stoic Tommya, Scott’s charisma managed to shine through; even more impressively, his handsome leading-man looks also managed to shine through that, umm, very odd haircut. Give the man his dues! He’s been keeping busy since series two of Love/Hate ended, and is currently working on the second of the popular Jack Taylor movies, which will be aired on TV3 this year. He’s also set to star alongside Raw’s Marcella Plunkett in the upcoming feature The Rafters. Not to put too fine a point on it, his blend of good looks and damn fine acting skills look set to see him follow in the footsteps of The Rite’s Colin O’Donoghue by heading for Hollywood. Where, of course, he’ll put us all up when we come to visit.



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