2008's Sexiest Men Alive

posted on 19 Nov 2008 20:31 by starworld

HUGH JACKMAN

He's a triple threat: a star who can sing, dance and wield a weapon. At 6 ft. 2 in., all scruff and biceps, Jackman, 40, looms large in the epic Australia, and left people stammering, "Oh ... my ... God," according to costar Nicole Kidman. Jackman's wife of 12 years, Deborra-Lee Furness, calls his perfect form "the Body of Doom – but I like what's inside": a romantic who sings ballads at home and makes pancakes for kids Oscar, 8, and Ava, 3.

DANIEL CRAIG

So who is his favorite Bond girl? The "one on my arm," says Craig, 40, who brought longtime girlfriend Satsuki Mitchell to his London premiere of the latest 007 film, Quantum of Solace. But the British actor's current onscreen Bond girl, Olga Kurylenko, isn't so shy about 'fessing up to playing favorites, saying of Craig, "He suits the part of James Bond perfectly."

JON HAMM

"I try to be a good person. I'm loyal and I'm trustworthy. I'm kind," says the Mad Men star, 37, who has been in a 10-year relationship with actress Jennifer Westfeldt. "And I'm a really good driver."

ROBERT BUCKLEY

What keeps this former economic consultant in the gym? "Being half-naked in front of millions of strangers," says Buckley, 27, of his work on Lipstick Jungle. Next up: Lifetime's Flirting with Forty, with Heather Locklear.

ROBERT BUCKLEY

ZAC EFRON

As he gets older, the High School Musical 3 star finds himself graduating from a "jeans and sandals" wardrobe to a more sophisticated look. "There's something timeless about suits," says the 18-year-old. "A few years ago I didn't own a single one. Now I've got a small collection going."

BLAIR UNDERWOOD

A star since his L.A. Law days, the Dirty Sexy Money actor, 44, is still surprised by his effect on women. Once at school drop-off, "a mother came up and grabbed my butt cheeks! And I'm like, 'How is that okay?' I was so caught off-guard that I couldn't help but laugh," says the married dad of three. He's shocked, but his kids "find it entertaining."

MICHAEL PHELPS

What do you do after winning eight gold medals and shattering world records at the Beijing Olympics? If you're Phelps, 23, you enjoy "being lazy." As for the overnight female attention, the Baltimore native says, "I don’t really notice it. ... I don't think of myself as a sex symbol. My mom is by far the most important woman in my life."

BLAKE SHELTON

His appeal? A well-worn truck, says country singer Shelton, 32, who dates songstress Miranda Lambert and has a new CD, Startin' Fires. "The wussiest thing a guy can do is drive a clean truck. Dents, scratches and mud – that's manly."

LANG LANG

"When you play the piano, you feel your blood pressure go up," says the single Chinese-born virtuoso, 26, who performed in the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony. "You become part of it. It's a very sexy instrument."

MARK-PAUL GOSSELAAR

The star once known as Saved By the Bell's Zack has been married for 12 years, has two kids and plays an ace lawyer in Raising the Bar. "My legal education comes from watching Law & Order and NYPD Blue." Fans still love his hair – so much so that TNT created an online game about it. As for him, he says, "I'm a guy. I don't get my hair cut unless I need to."

JAVIER BARDEM

His girlfriend Penélope Cruz raves, "He's an amazing actor!" His Oscar-winning performance in No Country for Old Men certainly proved that, though Bardem, 39, once joked that it would take three months for him to get laid thanks to his haircut in the movie.

ROBERT PATTINSON

"Last year all I was trying to do was get a girlfriend," says Pattinson, 22, Twilight's resident vampire and previously Harry Potter's Quidditch foil, Cedric. "What happened? It's like the face of what is attractive has changed. Girls used to want to see guys take their shirts off. Now it's, 'I want you to bite me.' It's bizarre."

JOSHUA JACKSON

What's changed since he was a Dawson's Creek pinup? "I'm not nearly as embarrassed being called attractive at 30. At 18, you're tall, gawky, bad haircut. Somebody tells you you're a heartthrob and you feel like a fraud. At 30, I'm happy, I'm in love," says Jackson, who dates actress Diane Kruger and stars on FOX's paranormal drama Fringe. "I can take it all with a grain of salt."

DAVID BECKHAM

The soccer star, 33, made a lot of women happy when he posed in just his underwear for Emporio Armani (country singer Miranda Lambert, whose boyfriend Blake Shelton is among PEOPLE's Sexiest Men, says, "That Armani ad sort of changed my life"). Alas, except one: his mum. "When the photos came out," Beckham says, "she was the first one to call me and say, 'What are you doing?' "