I usually tell one Hollywood story at a time, but this post is breaking tradition a little. Working in show business for as long as I have, I’ve run across some amazing actors. You’ve heard me tell stories about many of them.

One of the things that’s fun for me is when I work with someone who I know is going to hit it big. Granted, it’s hard to tell in this town where one false move (or movie!) can set a career back decades. But still, with the right project and right timing, just about anything is possible if the actor has talent.

Two people come to mind initially as I talk about this. But let me tell you the stories first. (I can group them together since I told both of the them almost the exact same thing.)

Both of these actors had been feeling a ton of self-doubt about their careers and if, when and where they might work again. They are both handsome, funny and extremely talented. It amazed me that they could worry about their careers at all. But twice in two years as I sat down with both of them, I gave the same advice. And it went a little something like this:

“Trust me. You have nothing to worry about. You are not only going to work again, but you’re going to be huge. Giant. You’re going to own this town.”

Interestingly enough, they both gave me close to the same look. The you-know-this-is-Hollywood-and-you-can’t-predict-shit look. True, this town is one gigantic crap shoot, but these guys had the world at their feet (and pretty much still do).

So, who am I talking about? You’ve probably already guessed by now. The first guy to get my speech was seventeen year old Matthew Perry. The second, was a twenty-something George Clooney.

In recent years, I’ve been working with a ton of child actors and again I’ve run across a couple that stand out. And, yes, I gave them my you’re-going-to-make-it-after-all-Mary-Tyler-Moore speech. But, I’m going out on a limb and I’m going to publicly tell you the next two guys who I think are going to hit it big.

The first is Robbie Amell. In fact, I think he’s staring in a new show this fall, but I’m not sure of the network or the name of the show. I worked with Robbie on True Jackson, V.P. for Nickelodeon and I can tell you this young man is the whole package. Next (and another actor I met on the same series) is Matt Shively. Matt is one of the best physical actors I’ve ever worked with (although Robbie’s no slouch in that area either). He’s funny and cute and he has an energy about him that’s irresistible. I know he’s shooting a movie now in Canada with a couple other actors I love.

That’s my prediction and I’m sticking to it. Check out these boys. They are fun to watch.

What about you? Has any actor caught your eye from a movie or television program and you just knew they were going to hit it big? Spill! I want to know!