18 Biggest Breakthrough Celebrities Of The Year

2014 has been a GREAT year for some celebrities. Sure some of them have gotten into lift fights, have 'consciously uncoupled' or have been part of an awkward hacked nude photo leak, but others have been having a GREAT time. Here are the big breakthrough celebs of 2014...

Ariana Grande

Where did this tiny little pint-sized person come from? From starring in a naff Nickelodeon kids show, Ariana Grande seems to have grown-up into a fully-fledged pop star QUICKLY. Although she’s had a lot of haters, we have to admit her tunes are catchy. "Head in the cloud got no weight on ma SHOULDERS!"

Zoella

Zoella has been vlogging since 2009 but this year she has taken OFF, appearing on Loose Women, This Morning and Vogue, as well as releasing her first novel Girl Online, a range of beauty products named Zoella Beauty, and joining in with the Band Aid 30 Christmas single. As sweet and down-to-earth as she is, there’s only so much Zozeebo we can take!

Benedict Cumberbatch

Forget the year of the horse – this has been the year of the BENEDICT. From getting engaged, appearing in consistently flawless movies, treating us all to the third season of Sherlock and partaking in a scantily clad ice bucket challenge, it looks like Cumberbatch cumberpeaked this year!

Sia

Despite never showing her face to avoid an unwanted level of fame, Sia has killed it this year, with her hit single Chandelier music video being viewed over 387 MILLION times and hitting the top 100 richest person under the age of 40 list by BRW magazine.

Kit Harington

Kit is best known for his role as the super sulky Jon Snow, and for the great success of his Game of Thrones career, his movie Pompeii and, of course, his tiny man bun at the 2014 Emmy awards, Kit has been one of the most googled celebrities of the year.

Kendall Jenner

Could Kendall Jenner BE any more successful? Branching away from the Kardashian Klan and making a name for herself in the modelling world, Kendall walked in the New York Fashion Week for Tommy Hilfiger and Marc Jacobs, the Paris Fashion Week for Givenchy and Chanel and was selected as a new face of Estee Lauder. Basically, she’s smashing it!

Tom Hiddleston

Appearing in Muppets Most Wanted and, much more importantly, Tumblr, Tom Hiddleston is 2014’s Internet darling due to his innate charm, his enthusiasm towards his fans, and of course, his dashing good looks.

Lorde

For saying she’ll never be Royal, she’s done a really good job getting as close as possible! From becoming BFFs with Taylor Swift, Jennifer Lawrence, and appearing on The Hunger Games: Mockingjay soundtrack, Lorde is keeping up appearances!

However, she’s remaining true to herself, especially when she retweeted a real photo of her side by side with a photoshopped one. You go girl!

Mel B

Mel B has bounced back in a big way this year as a judge on the X Factor, impressing us all with her surprisingly ruthless, to-the-point style. There’s a reason she’s called Scary Spice after all!

Sam Smith

Sam’s sweet, sweet voice came into worldwide recognition this year with his hits Stay With Me and I’m Not The Only One.

Ansel Elgort

After breaking teen hearts in his role in The Fault In Our Stars, Ansel Elgort has been high on our radar of hotties in 2014!

Chris Pratt

The world realised this year what Parks and Recs fans have known for years – Chris Pratt is a loveable, gorgeous puppy who should be universally adored. However, after getting trim for his critically acclaimed movie Guardians of the Galaxy shot him to instant stardom, and we’ve been YouTubing him ever since!

Jamie Dornan

Naturally we’re all a bit curious to see the man who will embody the one and only Christian Grey come February in the 50 Shades of Grey movie, and Jamie is not looking to disappoint.

Rosamund Pike

Landing the role of the ambiguous Amy from one of the year’s biggest movies, Gone Girl, Rosamund Pike has landed in a big way this year, with her performance earning her a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Golden Globe Award.

FKA Twigs

This kooky singer and dancer came to prominence this year with the release of her third album and the revelation that she is dating Twilight star Robert Pattinson because, you know, when someone is dating your crush from afar you need to know EVERYTHING, and turns out Twigs is freaking fabulous.

Emma Watson

We’ve loved Emma as Hermione for years, but this was the year she REALLY came into her own. As well as starring in Noah and winning British Artist of the Year, Emma was also appointed the UN Women Goodwill Ambassador and delivered an acclaimed speech about feminism at the UN Headquarters. Ah-maz-ing.

Shailene Woodley

After appearing in The Fault In Our Stars and the star of the new successful teenage franchise Divergent, Shailene has hit the headlines in a big way! She’s also caused a few raised eyebrows due to her slightly weird yet wonderful lifestyle choices, which includes but is not limited to eating clay.