Robert Downey Jr. leads Forbes’ highest-paid actors list again
It’s good to be Iron Man — Robert Downey Jr. once again leads Forbes’ list of top-earning actors.
The movie star came in first for the second year in a row, the financial mag said, raking in an additional $75 million between June 2013 and June 2014.
The magazine touted the 49-year-old as “indisposable†to the Disney-owned Marvel franchise, with Mickey Mouse willing to pay Downey Jr. “whatever he demands†to ensure his involvement in the high-earning films.
The actor, expecting a third child, his second with wife Susan, has appeared in three “Iron Man†movies as billionaire playboy-turned-superhero Tony Stark and reprised his role in the 2012 blockbuster “The Avengers, “ the third-highest-grossing film of all time.
Downey Jr. is filming “Avengers: Age of Ultron,†slated for release in 2015. He “held out†during contract negotiations for that film, Forbes reported.
Compared with Angelina Jolie’s $33 million in earnings for the year that ended in June 2013, there’s a stark male-female pay gap that has not gone unnoticed. The “Maleficent†star topped the magazine’s list of highest-paid actresses last year with that figure; this year’s actress list has yet to be released.
Incidentally, when Downey Jr. made the pregnancy announcement this month, he said he didn’t “know if it’s a ‘man’s world’†but was “certain women run it.â€
He and “The Hunger Games†star Jennifer Lawrence were the top actors on the magazine’s Celebrity 100, its list of most-powerful celebrities, which crowned singer Beyonce as 2014’s most famous of them all. Downey Jr. came in at No. 10, and 23-year-old Lawrence locked in the No. 12 spot.
Coming in second — and $23 million lower — on the list of 10 actors is “The Fast & the Furious†star Dwayne “The Rock†Johnson, who earned $52 million. The former WWE star will next appear in the Grecian epic “Hercules,†which will be released on July 25.
“American Hustle†star and Oscar nominee Bradley Cooper came in at No. 3 with an estimated $46 million for the year. Behind him was “The Wolf of Wall Street†and “The Great Gatsby†star and one-time list leader Leonardo DiCaprio. Downey Jr.’s “Avengers†costar Chris Hemsworth, who plays the demigod Thor in the franchise, came in at No. 5, earning $37 million thanks in part to his 2013 sequel, “Thor: The Dark World.â€
In years past, blockbuster-franchise actors have often topped the list: “Mission Impossible’s†Tom Cruise with $75 million in 2012, “Pirates of the Caribbean’s†Johnny Depp with $75 million in 2010 and “Indiana Jones’†Harrison Ford with $65 million in 2009. Only DiCaprio — whose five collaborations with Martin Scorsese represent a different sort of franchise — managed to stay in the top 10 this year after leading the 2011 list with $77 million.
To calculate income, the mag consults agents, producers, lawyers and other “in-the-know folks†to calculate how much celebrities earned from entertainment-related work. The final figure doesn’t deduct taxes, agent fees or the sundry costs of being a celebrity.
There’s a reason there’s no top-earning celebrity blogger list, but follow me on Twitter @NardineSaad anyway.
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