Fall TV Breakout Stars: Actors To Watch In The 2019-2020 Season

After perusing Fall TV season screeners and comparing lists, the TVLine staff has come up with a group of performers who repeatedly caught our eye — no small task, given the the myriad screeners we watched. Here are our picks for the breakout stars of the 2019-2020 season.

Folake Olowofoyeku

Bob Hearts Abishola, CBS (premiering Monday, Sept. 23)

We heart Olowofoyeku. The Nigerian actress, whose previous TV credits include Transparent and The Gifted, brings a freshness and warm sincerity to her role as a nurse who is clumsily wooed by a patient. Olowofoyeku shines brightest, though, in scenes between Abishola and her family, or with bus pal Kemi (played by series co-creator Gina Yashere).

Katja Herbers

Evil, CBS (premiering Thursday, Sept. 26)

As Kristen Bouchard, a psychologist presented with the possibility that the mentally ill are in fact literally possessed, Herbers communicates both the immediately expected disbelief and, eventually, that eerie feeling that demonic things ARE among us — especially when Kristen's bedroom receives a most uninvited guest. 

Rhys Wakefield

Reprisal, Hulu (premiering Friday, Dec. 6)

In this hyper-noir drama, the Aussie True Detective alum is entertainingly manic as Matty, the leader of a gang-within-a-gang known as (yes) The 3 River Phoenixes. Matty may not be the brawniest of the Brawlers, but he makes up for that with his big mouth, which at one point in the pilot winningly delivers to us all kinds of fourth wall-breaking exposition. 

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Tom Payne

Prodigal Son, Fox (premiering Monday, Sept. 23)

You may remember this English actor as The Walking Dead's Jesus, but in this Fox thriller he gets and seizes a primo showcase as the profiler son of Michael Sheen's notorious serial killer. Like Hugh Dancy in the similarly themed Hannibal, his textured performance will make you wonder how susceptible Malcolm Bright is to oft-deranged parental guidance. 

Caitlin McGee

Bluff City Law, NBC (premiering Monday, Sept. 23)

You might recognize this fresh-faced actress from small parts on Grey's Anatomy and You're the Worst, but she gets her first big starring role opposite Jimmy Smits as a crusading young lawyer who joins her famous father at his Memphis law firm. 
 

Kennedy McMann

Nancy Drew, The CW (premiering Wednesday, Oct. 9)

The recent Carnegie Mellon graduate had only a couple of guest roles on Law & Order: SVU and Gone under her belt before she booked the title role in The CW's moody reboot of the iconic young sleuth.  

Michelle Buteau

First Wives Club, BET+ (now streaming)

The comedic actress (Enlisted, Key and Peele) brings exactly the right blend of sass and swerve to the reboot's take on the well-known film's Bette Midler role.  

MYKAL-MICHELLE HARRIS

mixed-ish, ABC (premiering Tuesday, Sept. 24) 

She was Big Little Lies' Bonnie in fleeting flashbacks, but now a front-and-center Harris steals ABC's hippies-off-the-commune comedy with her portrayal of Bow's outspoken little sister, Santamonica.

Rosa Salazar

Undone, Amazon Prime (now streaming)

Yes, Salazar is acting through a layer of rotoscope animation, and yes, she's done bigger projects, such as playing the titular badass in Alita: Battle Angel — but the trippy, new half-hour series feels like the kind of thing that could make her a star.

Simone Missick

All Rise, CBS (premiering Monday, Sept. 23)

Missick is no stranger to television, with recent roles in Altered Carbon and Marvel's Luke Cage. But as All Rise's newly appointed Judge Lola Carmichael, the actress is finally leading her own series — with confidence and charm, to boot.

Joel Kim Booster and Poppy Liu

Sunnyside, NBC (premiering Thursday, Sept. 26)

He's a popular stand-up comic, she's a theater veteran with appearances on New Amsterdam and Law & Order: SVU, and together, they're hysterical as Jun Ho and Mei Lin, the painfully privileged kids of a very wealthy Asian family. 

Kristine Froseth

Looking for Alaska, Hulu (premiering Friday, Oct. 18)

Casting a mysterious It Girl is no easy task. Thankfully, the Hulu adaptation found Froseth (The Society), who has an effortlessly cool vibe while also imbuing Alaska with hidden pain.