Maya Jama, Jenna Ortega, Ambika Mod and Leo Woodall listed in Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe 2024

'Love Island' host Maya Jama, 'Wednesday' actress Jenna Ortega, and ‘One Day’ co-stars Ambika Mod and Leo Woodall have all been listed in Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe 2024.

Acclaimed publication Forbes is known for publishing its ‘30 Under 30’ list every year, which seeks to highlight “inspiring and aspiring young movers and makers out to change the world” - all of whom are under the age of 30. This year’s list was announced yesterday (April 9), a day after Jama teased her Instagram followers and told them that “something exciting” was coming. Jama, aged 29, has made a name for herself as a television host on popular reality TV shows like ‘Love Island’ and ‘The Circle’.  Returning to Instagram to share the news of her inclusion on the coveted list, Jama wrote: “Extremely proud to have made the Forbes 30 under 30 list this year. I was fortunate to know what I wanted to do from young which meant that I started as a teenager when most people thought I was crazy to move away.

“[I] stayed true to myself despite the no’s and set backs which came often, the rejections were always redirections & after 10 years working in the industry I can say I’ve achieved more than I could ever imagine before 30. 1 time for the young dreamers.”

Also on the Media and Marketing section of the list alongside Jama is 26-year-old radio host, TV presenter and creative director Daisy Maskell. She was nominated for a National Television Award for her BBC documentary, "Daisy Maskell: Insomnia and Me," which tackles her journey with chronic insomnia.

Over in the Entertainment section, many well-known faces have made this list including many members of the cast from Netflix hit drama ‘Sex Education’, as well as Phoebe Dynevor who plays Daphne Bridgerton in another successful Netflix drama, ‘Bridgerton’.

Her role in ‘Bridgerton’ earned Dynevor, 28, a BAFTA "Rising Star" nomination in 2024. Away from acting, she is an ambassador for the ActionAid UK, which helps impoverished girls and women.

Several ‘Sex Education’ cast members made the list, including lead Asa Butterfield, 27, ‘Barbie’ star Emma Mackey, 28, Mimi Keene, 25, Sami Outalbali, 25, and Connor Swindells, 27, who most recently appeared in Netflix true life drama ‘Scoop’ as paparazzi photographer Jae Donnelly. Their co-star, Ncuti Gatwa, now 31, previously made the list in 2020.

Those who appear on the list is decided by a number of factos, including the social impact people have. The other factors include their revenue, scale of reach and potential. Forbes usually receives more than 200,000 submissions to the list every year. These are sorted into a shortlist by writers and editors of the magazine, based on recommendations from industry experts and list alumni.

The shortlist is then assessed by an independent panel, which this year, included singer Rina Sawayama, The White Lotus star Simona Tabasco and Olympic athlete Sir Mo Farah, before the final list is revealed.

Also making the list under the entertainment category is 23-year-old musician Cat Burns, who went viral on TikTok for her song “Go”. The song remained in the top 10 for 17 weeks and attained double platinum status. The upcoming debut album from the three time Brit nominee, "Early Twenties," is due for release in July.

There’s also another musician, Tom Grennan. Grennan, 28, quickly brought home the award for "Best UK Act" at the 2023 MTV EMAs, as well as two Brit Award nominations in 2022, among other accolades. Grennan collaborated with Calvin Harris on the top 10 single "By Your Side" in 2021, and has amassed more than 1.3 billion streams and 9 million monthly listeners on Spotify alone.

Appearing side-by-side on the list are ‘One Day’ leads Ambika Mod and Leo Woodall, who first came to public attention earlier this year for their roles as Emma and Dexter in the Netflix series adaptation of the book of the same name. Mod is 29 while Woodall is 27.

Mod is a vocal advocate for industry representation, standing out as one of a handful of South Asian women to be cast in a romantic lead in "One Day." Woodall, meanwhile, will star in upcoming film “Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy," alongside Renée Zellweger and also earned a SAG Award and Screen International's "Stars of Tomorrow" honour in 2023 for his role as Jack in the second season of “The White Lotus."

Also listed in the category are “The Last Of Us” non-binary actor Bella Ramsey, 20, and “Doctor Who’s” Yasmin Finney, 20. Also in the same section is the youngest person to make the 2024 list; 14-year-old Alisha Weir. She is best known for “Matilda: The Musical” and will play a vampire ballerina in “Abigail”, which is in cinemas next week.

‘Wednesday’ actress Jenna Ortega was also celebrated in the Hollywood and Entertainment section of the list. Ortega has been acting since she was a child. She got her breakthrough role as young Jane in the hit telenovela "Jane the Virgin”, which is currently airing on Netflix. Many viewers, however, will know her from Netflix "Addams Family" spinoff "Wednesday", which has become the streamer's most-watched English language series.

Read the full Forbes 30 Under 30 2024 list online now.