Highest Paid Actresses, 2015 Edition
Thursday, August 20, 2015 at 1:11PM Forbes annual Highest Paid Actress list arrived this morning. It tracks income from films and merchandising and endorsement deals and so on and prints the (estimated conjecture) total before management fees and taxes are removed. The endorsements is why household name celebrities, like Gwyneth Paltrow and Julia Roberts, stay on the list for years and years after their peak bankable actressing. Here's the list if you don't want to have to click through the 19 page gallery. But you will have to click through 19 pages if you want to know just how each of these women is making so much bank.
The list with our commentary after the jump
how well do you suppose she tips waiters?
01. Jennifer Lawrence $52 million
02. Scarlett Johansson $35.5 million
03. Melissa McCarthy $23 million
04. Bingbing Fan $21 million
05. Jennifer Aniston $16.5 million
06. Julia Roberts $16 million
07. Angelina Jolie $15 million
08. Reese Witherspoon $15 million
09. Anne Hathaway $12 million
10. Kristen Stewart $12 million
11. Cameron Diaz $11 million
12. Gwyneth Paltrow $9 million
13. Meryl Streep $8 million
14. Amanda Seyfried $8 million
15. Sandra Bullock $8 million
16. Emma Stone $6.5 million
17. Mila Kunis $6.5 million
18. Natalie Portman $6 million
Why they stopped at 18 is a mystery. If you're going that far why not a top 20? If you missed the Actors list they also did that and unsurprisingly if you have been paying any attention to Hollywood the past 40 years, the men make a lot more.
BIGGEST SURPRISE: Fan Bingbing (who played "Blink" in X-Men Days of Future Past but earns her money from Chinese films and endorsement deals) and now we know how she can afford those trunks and trunks of awesome gowns she brings to Cannes each year! Forbes doesn't go into details about how they "expanded" their survey this year but perhaps we'll see more foreign actresses showing up in the future now that they're thinking globally.
SHE'S ONLY AT #8?: I expected Reese Witherspoon to place higher, especially since she's producing big hits, too, like Gone Girl.
SHE EARNED IT: Scarlett Johansson. Yes, she got on the list with a combo of two action films (Age of Ultron & Lucy) and endorsement deals but she's also the only one of these 18 ladies that won a Tony, was feted in France (where she now lives) and made a film as daring and great as Under the Skin recently. So she wins. Her $10 million-ish salary recently jumped to $17.5 for her next film, the live action adaptation of Ghost in the Shell.
(FWIW Jennifer Lawrence has earned her money, too. Clearly she never sleeps or has dozens of assistants as she is always at events, filming something major, or promoting her movies. Her salary recently jumped to $20 million for the forthcoming sci-fi drama Passengers)
MOST ANNOYING: Jennifer Aniston is always on TV shilling something. How much money exactly does one previously single actor need? Where does the money go? I hope she's running thousands of charities or something, especially after multiple decades of making more than this as a single lady. Shouldn't she maybe lay a little low like maybe once every 3 years? How about right now to soak in her newly wedded bliss with Justin Theroux? Her ubiquity is oppressive. Especially since she never makes good movies.
FALLING OFF THE LIST: Previous editions of this list included Sarah Jessica Parker, Charlize Theron, Kristen Wiig and Katharine Heigl (remember her?). Here's our coverage of the lists from 2013, 2012, and 2011. Oops... I guess we didn't report on the list in 2014.
WHERE IS: Amy Adams? For some reason I thought she'd be here. But I guess Big Eyes didn't exactly print money.
WHO DO YOU THINK WILL HIT THIS LIST WITHIN THE NEXT FEW YEARS: Shailene Woodley? Jessica Chastain? Cate Blanchett? Emily Blunt? June Squibb*? Alicia Vikander? Chloe Moretz?
*just wanted to see if you were actually paying attention. xo, thanks for reading!
Reader Comments (50)
It's weird that they left TV actresses out because there's way more money in TV than what Natalie Portman's making. Kaley Cuoco (of all people) is salaried at $23 million per year and that's just for new episodes. And Kerry Washington's gotta be doing pretty well, too.
Also, what about Amy Poehler? She had a popular network comedy AND a blockbuster animated movie; I remember when they padded this list to reflect Cameron Diaz's Shrek re-treads.
I love movies, but why do these actors get so much money. It's actually obscene and asinine. This is not hard work. Most of the time.
I agree, Hayden W. I saw a news report which stated that Sofia Vergara somewhere between 2013 and 2014 had raked in over $30 million, making her the highest paid TV actress for that year.
Happy for Melissa McCarthy! But a little more SPY and a little less TAMMY, ok?
I'm always surprised to see Jennifer Aniston on these lists. She's just so...not a movie start to me. And I wasn't really a "Friends" guy, so maybe that accounts for my blind spot where she's concerned. I just don't get it. Her film career, both during and post "Friends" has been so unremarkable. She seemed like a prime candidate for fading into obscurity after a long running TV show just because her instincts as an actress, both in terms of the projects she chooses and her acting, frankly, are pretty poor. Has she been in a great film? Ever? I am baffled by her continued bankability as a movie actress. It literally makes zero sense to me.
It's a shame really that we believe certain people are huge stars without them having starred in any classics or with great directos or anchoring various films in various genres solely on their own name and be a popular sustained star over time rather than in the "social media" world and also be houshold name whom the generations know through your films and earn it.
How 'bout Julia Roberts? Why is nobody ever complaining about her? She is one of the biggest Hollywood mystery to me (and I don't mean this in a good way)...
Who or what is BINGBING FAN?
The biggest shock to me is Amanda Seyfried. Why is she here? Talk about an unremarkable career. And she especially didn't have anything big in the last few years to justify popping up now. Is it endorsements?
Although hey, she has a movie coming up with June Squibb, so maybe Squibb will make her way to the list after all!
Give June Squibb a franchise of her own and we'll see who's in on top next year!
Jennifer Aniston was in "Office Space." That is a very good movie. (It was also 20 years ago.) She did voice work in "Iron Giant," which is a great movie. (It is also 16 years old.) And she was in "Friends With Money," which was an interesting, if flawed, movie. I have seen nothing else in her filmography, mostly because those films don't interest me.
She was good in "Friends," though she had arguably the least interesting role.
I don't dislike her, but I am certain the general public finds her much more likable/fascinating than I do. And how can I fault her for trying to make the most out of her career?
JULIA has charisma and taste and can act and made lots of dollar and proved herself over 20 odd yrs and shuns most of hollywood life plus she has worked with some gr8 directors Spielberg,Nichols,Soderbergh to name a few.
I love the shady rejection of CAKE as a thing that ever happened. Have we determined if that was even a real movie?
you'll be surprised how much cake never happened
I mean, if I was married to Justin Theroux I would never leave my house, but I say go for it-I rather enjoyed her work in Cake and Cameron Diaz seems more eyebrow-raising on this list for the past year at least.
Milan Kunis, Emma Stone and Amands Seyfried all make THAT much. Insane. Most others on here I understand from a fame or former blockbuster star viewpoint, but those three make absolutely no sense to me.
I swear, this website has mastered the art of dishing out backhanded compliments to Jennifer Lawrence
No one is denying that Cake happened, but that's even more to the point. I don't think that anyone, even people who liked her in it (and I thought she was fine in it) would call that movie a great or even a competent movie.
Wow, that is some expensive tofu. And Jennifer Lawrence making $52 million in a single year is kind of obscene. She could use half that salary to support every young Katniss in a small, poor and underprivileged state.
I am sorry but I don't take the following seriously anymore as actresses: Julia Roberts, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Aniston, Kristen Stewart, Amanda Seyfried, or Mila Kunis. They are boring and seem bored. I would give Meryl an extra $12 million for being nice and reliable.
great! since Fan Bingbing is so bankable, why not build a real Hollywood blockbuster with an Asian heroine at the center? Asian ladies are so underrepresented in Hollywood.
Not surprising but sad that there are no women of colour (besides Bingbing Fan) on this list :(
Barbara -- i love your redistribution of wealth idea but I'd rather be Robin Hood about it. Streep got her plenty already. The next time an expensive actor seems bored onscreen (too often!) we will all demand that their salary go to some non-household name who gives 150% every time onscreen. :)
Rami -- maybe there would be if they included TV actors? I mean i have no idea how much Kerry Washington makes but by now she's surely renegotiated her initial surely non-gonzo Scandal salary.
spring chicken -- we try to be good at things.
Yea the lack of WOC is not suprising but dissapointing all the same.
How is Cate Blanchett not on this list with SKII, Armani and IWC Schaffhausen endorsement deals. All high end brands, are they not paying her enough?
Scar-Jo definitely deserves her money. She's Scar-Jo bitches!
Blanchett's endorsements deals are not comparable to Gwyneth or Portman. Blanchett is a great actress but not a household name. I would not be surprised Megan Fox's Armani deal years ago was worth more than Blanchett's.
If Jessica Chastain could not make it on this year's list, she would not be on next year's list. She doesn't have a huge endorsement (only YSL) and no franchise. Hathaway is the only actress got most money from Interstellar, not Chastain. If Blake Lively can score some 2, or 3 more endorsement deals she will be on the list soon.
Meryl Streep is probably the only working movie star without any kind of endorsement deal ever. Even Blanchett, Moore, Keaton aren't immune to it. I bet cosmetic companies would be willing to pay Streep top dollar.
So glad to see Melissa McCarthy so high on the list.
Jennifer Aniston must really really love money. Between Friends, movies, and a myriad of endrosments, she's had a very financially rewarding career that should allow her to take chances. Yet she has only shown the slightest interest in challenging herself as an actress.
I totally agree with Barbara Ravioli...
Barbara, you've given up on Kristen Stewart NOW? She has literally never been in a more artistically impressive position.
"Who or what is BINGBING FAN?"
Feigning cultural ignorance isn't an attractive trait. And if you genuinely don't know who she is (as in, didn't read the rest of the article), then look her up. Calling anybody - not least of which the only non-white woman on a list like this - a "what" is crass.
Of the 18, I love 6 of them and would go see any movie they're in. There's another 6 that I like well enough but will only go see their movies if the movie sounds interesting. Then there's the last 6 whose movies I avoid.
High money makers on next year's list? I'd like to see Gugu Mbatha-Raw.
peggy sue -- thanks for reading the whole article. i love you! And i love June Squibb.
dela -- does sandra bullock do endorsements? I can't recall. but yeah, i dont remember streep doing any. a lot of stars only do them in foreign markets though so that they don't look greedy at home.
Clearly I don't understand how this list is compiled... How is Paltrow on the list, but not Winslet, Blanchett, etc.? I can't remember the last movie Paltrow was in (and probably would prefer not to)
"Clearly I don't understand how this list is compiled... How is Paltrow on the list, but not Winslet, Blanchett, etc.?"
Bryan, this list is BS! they are considering what these women make in endorsements, not how much they are paid for movies. Yet I don't know why Kate Winslet is not listed since she is the face of Lancome + the Divergent franchise + Steve Jobs movie, or Marion Cotillard (Dior handbags and short films + Chopard jewellery) besides 3 films last year: Macbeth and voice work for The Little Prince and April and the Extraordinary World + Assassin's Creed this year or Charlize Theron (Dior perfurme + films).
Forbes is PR-driven, their lists are always ridiculous and don't represent the reality. Sorry but Fan Bingbing is only in this list because her PR paid Forbes! (just like all the others did, lol), she doesn't even work in Hollywood to justify her being ranked so high in this list, people only know her for her appearances in red carpets, not for her films, good for her if she really earns all that money, but it doesn't come from movies. Same goes for Mila Kunis and Amanda Seyfried... why are they in this list?
Nat: Sandra Bullock is Michelle Pfeiffer!
Watch out, JLaw, June's out to get ya! #TeamSquibb
Bryan & Sarah -- but the list is not about acting. it is about money. So it doesn't matter that Gwyneth is hardly an actress anymore. She is a household name for acting so she has a very lucrative career even if its difficult to think of her as an actress these days since she seems to have so little interest in it.
Fame is so weird.
that said, it would be more interesting to see a list that's acting fee based.
I love that Wiig used to be on that list. I also love that Winslet didn't make choices that would put her there. Amy Schumer might end upe there after a few years. I hope Elle Fanning will not, because she is too talented to be wasted on money-grabbing projects.
Some mega famous people could make ten movies a year and still not make it on the list. Nicole Kidman has worked for scale on most of her recent small films, for instance. Marion Cotillard is surely not getting millions for Macbeth. Likewise Blanchett for Carol. Maybe Winslet's endorsements aren't worth as much as one might assume.
I'd be curious to look back 40 years, and compare the inflation adjusted salaries of the women of 1975 to the figures in this article. I doubt that Fonda, Minnelli, Streisand, and Christie made anywhere near the same amount. I even once read that Glenda Jackson didn't have enough money to fly to the New York Film Critics ceremony to accept her award.
I'm pro-Aniston, obviously, but don't really understand the remarks here about her earnings as "a single lady". What difference does, or should, that make? Also, I know you're writing in jest, but are you really saying a successful professional woman should stand back and just enjoy being a wife for a while? That's beneath you, Nathaniel.
Melissa McCarthy, help June Squibb out by casting her as your sassy grandma or as a future version of yourself.
Santy, you are a genius!
Meryl could make a mint off an endorsement deal from a major fashion house with eyewear. It would be golden, but I don't think she wants to be known as a shallow magazine advertising selling a product (Julia, Natalie, Nicole, Jennifer, Cate, Kate, etc.). She did do one commercial years ago, for American Express, because they gave a lot of money to her brother's school?
As much as this seems like a waste of money, the men who are far less talented make more money than all of these women, and there are more of them that make higher salaries -- largely because they are men. TGIF.
Guy Lodge -- now that you say that i realize it reads regressive. oopsie. I only meant "single" as in she only has herself to support. Obviously, you know, Julianne Moore supports 4 people. Meryl Streep used to support 5. Angelina & Brad have several children plus charitable impulses that require big bank accounts. it definitely costs more to run a family than run one person's life. So yes, i firmly believe that how many people you support matters when it comes to the drive to have more money than anyone could possibly need.
but in general I think it's wise for celebrities to take breaks from the spotlight every few years. Stars used to understand this and disappear between projects but sis seems like fewere and fewer of them are doing it, with the 24/7 media frenzy... I find it disheartening. And sometimes endorsement deals can reallly poison people against you. Remember when Catherine Zeta Jones was at the peak of her career and then was suddenly only thought of as a telephone saleswoman from ubiquitous cel phone commercials for years?
"Marion Cotillard is surely not getting millions for Macbeth."
But she did other films (The Little Prince's budget was $80 million, which is A LOT for a French film) and also has endorsement deals... if these things were considered for actresses like Paltrow and Fan Bingbing (when was the last time that you saw her in a movie instead of a red carpet? and let's be honest, how many people here have heard of her before this list? her fame is not a major factor for her to be included in this list!), so why Cotillard wasn't included? nor Blanchett? I'm sure that she was paid a good amount for Cinderella, probably more than Mila Kunis earned in a year to be included in this list.
There's nothing better than a good publicist!
Fan Bingbing belongs to the "highest-paid models" list! she has zillion contracts with fashion and cosmetic brands, her money comes from them. If Forbes wanted to include foreign actresses, so where are the Bollywood actresses? This list is so ridiculous that I don't know why they didn't include Cara Delevingne, since she is an "actress" now and the most popular model out there these days.
K & Tom -- to be fair we've written about Fan Bingbing several times before so she isn't exactly a new face or an unknown. She does work a lot in China but most of the posts about her are fashion related so she's definitely most famous for that at least in terms of international appeal.
but it could be the problem that her films just don't travel like some chinese actresses films do. We actually get Zhang Ziyi and Gong Li's films here sometimes but not hers. Not sure why that is... maybe they're more mainstream than artsy (it's a weird truth that arthouse films are more likely to come to America than mainstream action filmsor such -- probably because we have enough of our own in those departments) but she's definitley making headway into other markets. She's got a key role in Pierce Brosnan's new film The Moon and the Sun and she's also in X-Men of course.
Basically, the answer to everybody's "why isn't so and so on the list?" question is "we don't know how much money they made!" Who knows how or when certain actors get paid for certain work, you know?