Forbes Highest-Paid Actor: The Rock Nearly Doubles 2017 Earnings

• Posted on August 24, 2018
• by Ellsamwise King
• Comment

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has nearly doubled his 2017 earnings, making $119m (£92m) in the past 12 months, according to Forbes highest paid actor list.

The top spot was awarded to George Clooney, whose $239m (£180m) was already disclosed in last month’s celebrity rich list.

Scarlett Johannson was revealed as the highest paid actress last week, earning $40.5m (£31.9m).

That would have placed the Black Widow star as seventh in the male rankings.

This is a departure from last year’s Forbes list, which saw highest paid actress Emma Stone fail to score in the top 10 male earnings.

Actors Robert Downey Jr, Chris Hemsworth, Jackie Chan and Will Smith were all in the top tier – earning more than Johannson, with seventh place Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar matching the actress’s income.

Completing the top 10 were Adam Sandler, US actor Chris Evans and Salman Khan.

While last year’s best paid actors list mainly features the same names as last year, 2017’s top earner Mark Wahlberg, who made $68m (£52.5m), was missing entirely.

George Clooney returns to this year’s list, thanks to the sale of his Casamigos tequila company to drinks giant Diageo in a deal worth $1bn (£753m).

Dwayne Johnson’s $119m (£92m) earnings are down to a number of box office successes, including Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, Skyscraper, Baywatch and Fast & Furious 8.

Another actor returning to this year’s list is Will Smith, whose $42m (£32.5m) income puts him in sixth place.

Smith starred in Netflix film Bright, which came out in December and is working on a number of upcoming projects including Disney’s The Genie and Spies in Disguise.

Forbes list of the world’s best-paid male actors 2018

1. George Clooney – $239m
2. Dwayne Johnson – $119m
3. Robert Downey Jr – $79m
4. Chris Hemsworth – $64.5m
5. Jackie Chan -$45.5m
6. Will Smith – $42m
7. Akshay Kumar -$40.5m
8. Adam Sandler – $39.5m
9. Chris Evans – $34m
10. Salman Khan – $33.5m

Forbes list of the world’s best-paid actresses 2018

1. Scarlett Johansson – $40.5m
2. Angelina Jolie – $28m
3. Jennifer Aniston – $19.5m
4. Jennifer Lawrence – $18m
5. Reese Witherspoon – $16.5m
6. Mila Kunis – $16m
7. Julia Roberts – $13m
8. Cate Blanchett – $12.5m
9. Melissa McCarthy – $12m
10. Gal Gadot – $10m

Source: BBC