The who's who list of hotness in 2005 is a bit like a bride on her wedding day: It has something old, something new ...
OK maybe nobody was borrowed. But one A-lister started the year blue and ended up on top of her game: that would be Jennifer Aniston. The "Friends" star corralled more fans than ever during her divorce from Brad Pitt, is looking great and has a ton of new movies coming out. Sure, her first post-Brad film, "Derailed," was something of a flop, but 2006 looks bright for Rachel Green.
• Interactive: 2005 Timeline.
Which brings us to our other undeniably hot star of the year: Jen's rival Angelina Jolie. From landing the "sexiest man alive" in Jen's ex to her hit movie "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" to her gorgeous looks to her charity work to her adorable kids to her devil-may-care attitude, Angelina is every girl's idol.
Young Hollywood
2005 was a big year for a growing group of gals known as Young Hollywood. Last year's queen of this kingdom, Paris Hilton, was dethroned in '05 by her former best friend Nicole Richie. While disturbingly thin, Richie scores consistent raves for her trend-setting fashions -- and she even has a best-selling "novel," "The Truth About Diamonds."
Lindsay Lohan (also disturbingly thin), Mischa Barton and Mary-Kate Olsen also rule over this fashion-forward group.
Daisy Does America
Jessica Simpson may be in divorce court, but that only helped to make her hotter than ever in 2005. Her first feature film, "The Dukes of Hazzard," was a box-office hit (although her short shorts can take partial credit for that). Fans are already asking: Nick who?
Unexpected Winners
Who would have guessed that Mr. Peterman from "Seinfeld" would become a big star in his own right? John O'Hurley made a name for himself twirling the night away on the surprise summer smash "Dancing With the Stars" -- and his rival, Kelly Monaco, also put her name on the nap.
"March of the Penguins": This sleeper hit had moviegoers spending their summer in Antarctica. The lesson of the movie? Penguins are a lot like us -- only even more loyal to their spouses.
Kelly Clarkson: Sure, a lot of people liked that song "A Moment Like This," but nobody ever expected the "American Idol" star to actually become cool. Clarkson had the No. 1 single of the year with "Since U Been Gone" -- a "You Oughtta Know"-style breakup song that even guys admitted liking.
Steve Carell: "The Daily Show" actor Steve Carell officially joined the Frat Pack of actors with his hit summer flick, "The 40 Year-Old Virgin." The moral of that story? Never wax your chest hair.
The other boys of summer were Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn, who starred in the even-bigger sex comedy "Wedding Crashers."
Comeback Kids
Mariah Carey had pretty much hit rock bottom with "Glitter," but her new album, "Emancipation of Mimi," is winning every award in sight and proving that hip-hop's love-song crooner can still touch fans' hearts -- and hit that high note.
Madonna too was on the decline with "American Life" and her other recent endeavors, but she came back this year to top the charts with "Confessions on a Dance Floor." Her amazingly toned 47-year-old body was also the talk of the town.
Demi Moore also came back from Oblivion with her new boyfriend (now husband) Ashton Kutcher. She's looking great, has a movie in the works and is more evidence that women can really date just like men do: older, younger and in between.
Year of the Baby
Britney Spears didn't release an album of new material this year, but the birth of her son, Sean Preston Federline, put her at No. 1 on Yahoo's annual list of the most-searched for terms on the Internet. Her allegedly rocky relationship with husband Kevin Federline also kept people "Curious." Could K-Fed be a Kanye West/Jamie Foxx-style "Gold Digger"?
And not being married didn't stop the stars from getting pregnant. Heath Ledger and Michelle Williams got engaged after getting in the family way, but are still not married (little Matilda was recently born); Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes are rumored to have done the same. Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck were married when she gave birth to baby Violet earlier this month, but the pregnancy came before the marriage; ditto for supermodel Heidi Klum and Seal.
Rising Stars
Touted as "the next Julia Roberts," "The Notebook" star Rachel McAdams had a hit with "Red Eye" and "Wedding Crashers" and is winning raves for her performance in "The Family Stone." Fans have big hopes for this up-and-comer.
We don't love her new haircut, but British beauty Sienna Miller was a major trend-setter this year, with or without Jude Law. She also has a new movie, "Casanova," coming out with "Brokeback Mountain"'s Heath Ledger -- himself another star in the making.
And model-cheekboned star Keira Knightley was a critical hit in "Pride & Prejudice" -- and many say she's just getting started.
Watch out for this crew in '06!
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