At a time when the film industry faces full-force digital change, several Hollywood players emerge as harbingers, while others relish their secure footing in established traditions. In our 18th annual Power List, Premiere presents 50 of film's most influential actors, directors, producers, studio execs, and agents.

Getting a movie into theaters today takes more than "lights, camera, action" — especially in the era of rampant downloads and viral video. Now, it takes having the right numbers on your iPhone, the right projects in your Outlook calendar, and the right people watching your back — literally.

In other words, it takes power.

This all-new all-digital Premiere Power List shows that the trends that have ruled Hollywood have recently sharpened. Studios are desperately trying to contain costs, and "profit" is the golden word — total dollars may look good, but working cheap and scoring big is key. Just ask current Hollywood golden boy Judd Apatow, who leaps into our ranking from previous Power List obscurity with low-budget hits Knocked Up and Superbad. International box office is gaining importance, as well — as Fox's ascension attests.

Meanwhile, reaching audiences online has added a new dimension to the process; as reigning icons age, a new generation of moviegoers is creating a cadre of stars in a new medium that twentysomethings alone can claim to have grown up with. And as movies become a less dominant part of the media conglomerates that own them, studios have to manage up as well as down — while the corporate titans that rule over them sometimes make damaging mistakes.

Questions abound: Will 2006 top actor Tom Cruise regain his standing after a bout of frequently self-destructive publicity? What about gaff-magnet Mel Gibson? Will newbie Shia LaBeouf be able to fulfill the promise of his recent casting coups? When will an actress achieve the power and reach that Julia Roberts once had? And will the stars of Indiewood, such as Peter Rice of Fox Searchlight, usher in a new dawn for the industry?

Read on, and make your own predictions. >>

Edited by Howard Karren
Project managed by Laura Hertzfeld