How the 15 Richest Actors in the World Built Their Astonishing Net Worths
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Although they built their fame onscreen, many of the world’s richest actors have built their financial empires away from the cameras.
In addition to multimillion-dollar movie salaries, they profit from their endorsement deals, real estate collections, consumer brands, and—in some unique cases—their personal relationships. Some have even started their own production companies. In the end, these 15 actors have emerged as the biggest moneymakers on the planet.
Keep in mind this list is based on celebrities’ current estimated net worth, and to be eligible, a substantial amount of their star power must be associated with acting (sorry, Oprah). Because of several ties, these 15 stars account for the top 10 wealthiest actors in the world. With that out of the way, here’s which actors of the big and small screen have made the big bucks.
10. Jackie Chan (and Many More)
Estimated Net Worth: $400 million
Celebrity Net Worth’s valuation of Jackie Chan puts him equal with a host of other stars including Brad Pitt, Jack Nicholson, Bill Cosby, Jennifer Lopez, Mark Wahlberg, Sylvester Stallone, and Tom Hanks. But the 69-year-old martial arts legend was the second highest-paid actor in the world as recently as seven years ago.
Chan is best known in the U.S. for his roles in comedic action films like the Rush Hour series and Shanghai Noon (2000). He also owns a chain of cinemas in China and has launched his own clothing line and food products.
9. Mel Gibson
Estimated Net Worth: $425 million
Mel Gibson, 67, made $25 million for each of his roles in Lethal Weapon 4 (1998), The Patriot (2000), Signs (2002), and We Were Soldiers (2002). But those totals pale in comparison to his profits from the 2004 biblical film The Passion of the Christ, which Gibson produced and directed.
With Gibson receiving half the film’s profits, he took home $300 million from ticket sales alone. Merchandise and DVD sales bumped the total up at least another $100 million.
If not for a $425 million divorce settlement with ex-wife Robyn Moore in 2011, he’d be much higher on the list.
8. Adam Sandler
Estimated Net Worth: $440 million
Adam Sandler, 56, is one of the most successful comedians of all time, parlaying a spot on Saturday Night Live into a lucrative movie career. According to Celebrity Net Worth, he has earned at least $20 million from 20 of the major studio films he has appeared in. His production company, Happy Madison, has also made a number of highly profitable movies.
Netflix and Sandler have agreed to two separate deals, in 2014 and 2020, covering four films each for the streaming service, with the second contract worth around $275 million.
7. Kevin Hart (tied)
Estimated Net Worth: $450 million
In addition to acting or voicing characters in hit films like Ride Along (2014), The Secret Life of Pets (2016), and Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017), Kevin Hart remains busy as a touring stand-up comedian and businessman.
The 44-year-old has endorsements with companies like Samsung, Wrangler, AT&T, and Mountain Dew, and in April 2022, received a $100 million investment from a private equity firm into his media company HartBeat. With the added money, his stake in the company became valued at more than $550 million.
7. Arnold Schwarzenegger (tied)
Estimated Net Worth: $450 million
Arnold Schwarzenegger, 75, was once the most in-demand action star in Hollywood, appearing in films like the Terminator franchise, Predator (1987), and Total Recall (1990). At his peak, the Austrian bodybuilder-turned–movie star earned $20 million to $30 million per movie.
The former governor of California and one-time member of the Kennedy family has extensive commercial and personal real estate portfolios that are believed to be worth more than $100 million, as well.
Learn More about Arnold Schwarzenegger
6. George Clooney (tied)
Estimated Net Worth: $500 million
George Clooney has earned plenty of money through alcohol sales. In 2017, the actor and partners Rande Gerber and Michael Meldman sold their tequila brand Casamigos to Diageo for $700 million up front and as much as $300 million more based on future performance.
According to Celebrity Net Worth, the 62-year-old has also made $40 million through a partnership with Nespresso and earned movie salaries worth as high as $20 million, like in the 2001 film Ocean’s Eleven.
Learn More about George Clooney
6. Robert De Niro (tied)
Estimated Net Worth: $500 million
The star of classic films such as Taxi Driver (1976), Raging Bull (1980), and Goodfellas (1990), Robert De Niro is still a presence on the big screen with 2023 roles in About My Father and Killers of the Flower Moon.
But you might not know the 79-year-old is a successful restaurateur, too. In 1994, he co-founded the first Nobu with celebrity chef Nobuyuki Matsuhisa. Today, they have more than 50 restaurants located around the world that make hundreds of millions of dollars each year.
Learn More about Robert De Niro
6. Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen (tied)
Estimated Net Worth: $500 million
They haven’t appeared onscreen together since 2004’s New York Minute and are retired from acting, but the Olsen twins, 37, were just about everywhere growing up.
While Ashley and Mary-Kate were acting on the TV sitcom Full House, production company Dualstar Entertainment Group was founded in their name in 1993. The pair began starring in a series of direct-to-video and TV movies and the occasional big-screen project. They became presidents of Dualstar upon turning 18.
They’re also successful fashion moguls, with their brand, The Row, sold in luxury department stores like Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, and Bergdorf Goodman.
Learn More about Mary-Kate Olsen
6. Ellen DeGeneres (tied)
Estimated Net Worth: $500 million
Ellen DeGeneres built her bankroll with the success of her daily talk show The Ellen Degeneres Show, which ran from 2003 through 2022. According to In Touch, she earned $60 million per year off the program during its later seasons.
The 65-year-old comedian has also made millions flipping houses with wife Portia de Rossi.
As for comedy, her 2018 Netflix special, Ellen Degeneres: Relatable, banked $20 million. Add in earnings from her early TV projects and acting roles in films like Finding Nemo (2003) and Finding Dory (2016), and Ellen has had quite the lucrative career.
Learn More about Ellen DeGeneres
5. Tom Cruise (tied)
Estimated Net Worth: $600 million
Tom Cruise, 61, has come a long way from early film roles like 1983’s Risky Business, for which he earned only $75,000.
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Cruise earned $100 million for each of his roles in Mission: Impossible 2 (2000) and the sci-fi thriller War of the Worlds (2005).
Although he took a much lower paycheck for his latest film, Mission: Impossible—Dead Reckoning Part One, Variety reported that Cruise will earn a significant percentage of its first-dollar gross. That means his net worth should get a nice boost from the summer blockbuster.
5. Shah Rukh Khan (tied)
Estimated Net Worth: $600 Million
Shah Rukh Khan, 57, is one of the most successful Indian actors of all time, appearing in more than 80 Bollywood films. His most recent is the 2023 thriller Pathaan.
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Khan, who has more than 39 million Instagram followers, makes anywhere from $50 million to $80 million per year and earns as much as $35 million per film.
4. Dwayne Johnson
Estimated Net Worth: $800 million
While The Rock commands a hefty salary for his film roles, earning a reported $22.5 million for 2022’s Black Adam and $50 million for the upcoming Amazon Studios movie Red One, Dwayne Johnson greatly profits through other business ventures.
According to Celebrity Net Worth, the 51-year-old has a 30- to 40-percent stake in Teremana Tequila, the brand he launched in 2020 with ex-wife Dany Garcia and other partners. It’s estimated he could earn as much as $1 billion pre-tax from the product.
Johnson also has valuable endorsements with companies like Under Armour, Ford, and Apple.
Learn More about Dwayne Johnson
3. Jerry Seinfeld
Estimated Net Worth: $950 million
Despite being a “show about nothing,” Jerry Seinfeld’s eponymous sitcom continues to be a huge moneymaker for the actor and comedian.
After going off the air in 1998, Seinfeld generated as much as $400 million each syndication cycle for its co-creator and writer. Then in 2019, Netflix reportedly paid more than $500 million in a five-year deal for the rights to the show.
Seinfeld has profited from his stand-up as well, with the 69-year-old still touring and Netflix paying $20 million for his 2020 special 23 Hours to Kill.
Learn More about Jerry Seinfeld
2. Tyler Perry
Estimated Net Worth: $1 billion
Although other estimates are around $800 million, Forbes has listed 53-year-old Tyler Perry among the world’s billionaires for the past three years.
Perry is best known for creating the Madea franchise, which has grossed more than $660 million according to Forbes. Starting in 2019, he began producing content for BET under a deal with the network’s parent company ViacomCBS. He reportedly earns $150 million annually and has a 25-percent stake in the BET+ streaming service.
1. Jami Gertz
Estimated Net Worth: $8 billion
Jami Gertz appeared in ’80s films like Crossroads, The Lost Boys, Less Than Zero, and Quicksilver, as well as the 1996 disaster movie Twister and the TV series Still Standing. But you can probably guess that isn’t how the 57-year-old became a multibillionaire.
In 1989, Gertz married businessman Antony Ressler, who co-founded the Apollo Global Management and Ares Management investment firms in 1990 and 1997, respectively. Today, the companies have a combined market cap of $73 billion—with Ressler and Gertz greatly benefitting.
The couple are also sports owners. In 2015, Ressler and Gertz became majority owners of the Atlanta Hawks NBA team, and they have a minority stake in the Milwaukee Brewers MLB franchise.
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