We recently asked the BuzzFeed Community to tell us which young actors have given award-worthy performances they can't stop thinking about it. They gave us both past and present young actors who absolutely crushed these TV and movie roles. Here are some of the best responses:
Warning: In order to show some of their very best scenes, there are MASSIVE spoilers in the photos below!
1. First, Kit Connor as Nick Nelson in Heartstopper (2022–present):
2. Annarah Cymone as Leeza in Midnight Mass (2021):
3. Milly Alcock as young Rhaenyra Targaryen in House of the Dragon (2022–present):
4. Macaulay Culkin as Henry Evans in The Good Son (1993):
5. Saoirse Ronan as young Briony Tallis in Atonement (2007):
6. Josh Hutcherson as Jess Aaron in Bridge to Terabithia (2007):
7. Sophie Nélisse as young Shauna Shipman in Yellowjackets:
8. Roman Griffin Davis as Johannes "Jojo" Betzler in Jojo Rabbit (2019):
9. Jenna Ortega as Vada Cavell in The Fallout (2021):
10. Kim Su-an as Su-an in Train to Busan (2016):
11. Keisha Castle-Hughes as Paikea Apirana in Whale Rider (2002):
12. Jacob Tremblay as Auggie Pullman in Wonder (2017):
13. Sadie Sink as Max Mayfield in Stranger Things (2016–present):
14. Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair in Stranger Things (2016–present):
15. Gavin McHugh as Christopher Diaz in 9-1-1 (2018–present):
16. Dafne Keen as Laura/X-23 in Logan (2017):
17. Quvenzhané Wallis as Hushpuppy in Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012):
18. Madeleine McGraw as Gwen in The Black Phone (2021):
19. Dakota Fanning as Lucy Diamond Dawson in I Am Sam (2001):
20. Amir Wilson as Will Parry in His Dark Materials (2019–present):
21. Mckenna Grace as young Tonya Harding in I, Tonya (2017):
22. Mckenna Grace as Esther Keyes in The Handmaid's Tale (2017–present):
23. Kyliegh Curran as Abra Stone in Doctor Sleep (2019):
24. Aidan Gallagher as Number Five in The Umbrella Academy (2019–present):
25. Kirsten Dunst as Claudia in Interview With the Vampire (1994):
26. Julian Dennison as Ricky Baker in Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016):
27. Mia Isaac as Rowan in Not Okay (2022):
28. Benjamin Evan Ainsworth as Miles in The Haunting of Bly Manor (2020):
29. Julia Butters as Trudi Fraser in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019):
30. Henry Thomas as Elliott in E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982):
31. Brooklynn Prince as Moonee in The Florida Project (2017):
32. Christian Bale as Jim Graham in Empire of the Sun (1987):
33. And finally, Anna Paquin as Flora McGrath in The Piano (1993):
We can't fit everyone into one post, so which other young actors have given amazing or even underrated performances? Tell us in the comments below!
Note: Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.