Robert Downey, Jr. and Sandra Bullock Top FORBES' Highest Paid Actors (2014)

[JamesG]

Hollywood's Highest Paid Actors 2014


Our list looks at estimated earnings between June 2013 and June 2014.

We talk to producers, lawyers, agents and other in-the-know folks to compile our earnings which account for entertain-related income. We do not deduct for taxes, agent fees or the other costs of being a celebrity.







Robert Downey, Jr.
$75 Million


Marvel has been accused of being stingy when it comes to paying the stars of its blockbuster superhero movies. But the studio (owned by Disney) is plenty generous when it comes to Downey.

As Iron Man, he's been the driving force behind four of Marvel's biggest hits, including The Avengers which is the third highest-grossing movie of all time. He played hard to get with the upcoming Avengers: Age of Ultron and was rewarded with a big pay hike.

Most of Downey's money this year comes from the backend of Iron Man 3 which was the highest-grossing movie of 2013 with $1.2 billion in box office revenue.







Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson
$52 Million


With ensemble movies like G.I. Joe and Fast and Furious, Johnson has transcended his wrestling days to become a true movie star. Now he's graduated to leading man.

With Hercules and 2015's earthquake disaster film San Andreas, The Rock is carrying movies on his sizable shoulders. A smart businessman, he's also branching out into TV. "The Hero" was his first stab at reality TV.

Now he's moving up to the big leagues with the HBO comedy "Ballers". Johnson is executive producing and starring in the comedy about a group of football players.







Bradley Cooper
$46 Million


Cooper's ability to balance large and small movies lands him on our Celebrity 100 for the first time this year.

His work in the lucrative Hangover franchise has given him the ability to take risks with smaller films like Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle. Both movies earned him Oscar nominations (though he has yet to win a gold statue) and plenty of money with their healthy profit margins.

Cooper also lent his voice to Rocket Raccoon for the Marvel movie Guardians of the Galaxy.







Leonardo DiCaprio
$39 Million


It's hard to imagine now, but The Wolf of Wall Street was a risk for DiCaprio. The actor had to agree to cut his upfront fee in order to get the Martin Scorsese film made.

Five Oscar nominations (including for Best Actor) and $395 million later, it looks like Wolf was yet another good bet for the actor. DiCaprio excels at turning adult movies into box office hits.

His other triumph this year was The Great Gatsby. A surprise hit, Gatsby earned $351 million at the global box office.







Chris Hemsworth
$37 Million


The actor category is one of the toughest on the Celebrity 100 and despite earning millions, Hemsworth just failed to make the cut.

The Thor star isn't resting on his Marvel laurels. Look for him in movies like the upcoming Cyber about high-level hacking.







Liam Neeson
$36 Million


When Hollywood needs an actor with a certain set of skills, they turn to Neeson.

With Taken 3 on the horizon, Neeson still makes plenty of money. He just didn't have the fame numbers to rank on our Celebrity 100 this year.







Ben Affleck
$35 Million


Poor Ben Affleck. When Warner Bros. announced that the actor would be stepping into Batman's famous shoes, the Internet turned against him heckling the actor as completely unworthy of the role most lately made famous by Christian Bale.

But Affleck might have the last laugh. He's collected a huge paycheck for the upcoming movie and could have steady work for years to come as Warner Bros. gives D.C. Comics the Marvel treatment with multiple movies lined up over the next five years.







Christian Bale
$35 Million


Bale has successfully moved on from playing Batman.

He earned his second Oscar nomination this year for American Hustle and up next he's playing Moses in a big-budget version of the Bible tale -- Exodus from director Ridley Scott.







Will Smith
$32 Million


Studios still pay Will Smith top dollar to star in their blockbusters because even when he misfires, he still brings in a huge fan base. Smith's latest film, After Earth, barely registered in the U.S. earning only $60 million. But it did better overseas bringing in $183 million or 75% of its total global box office.

Smith's most recent passion project is a new big-screen version of Annie starring African-American actors in many of the key roles. He produced the film with Jay-Z.







Mark Wahlberg
$32 Million


Wahlberg is still collecting money from 2012's Ted. The raunchy comedy earned $550 million in theaters on a $50 million budget.

This year he showed his more serious side with Lone Survivor. The $40 million movie brought in a healthy $150 million at the global box office.

In addition to his movie work, Wahlberg has a thriving career as a TV producer. His company produced "Entourage" (soon to hit the big screen) and "Boardwalk Empire" on HBO.

Now he's backing his Pain and Gain costar Dwayne Johnson with the football comedy "Ballers".

http://www.forbes.com/pictures/mfl45...t-paid-actors/

[Tubehead]

looks like I might have to start acting in movies. im pretty sure its harder then it looks.

[isiahthomas]

Ben Affleck makes more money than Will Smith? LOL. That's surprising. Liam Neeson is doing another Taken sequel? Oh no LOL. I didn't like the second one but the first one is very good.

[JamesG]

Hollywood's Highest Paid Actresses 2014


Sandra Bullock
$51 Million


Movies based on original ideas, as opposed to comic books or young adult novels, are rare these days in Hollywood. Movies based on original ideas that cost $100 million to produce and feature one actress for the majority of the screen time are even rarer but director Alfonso Cuaron and Warner Bros. had a huge hit with Gravity.

Much of that success can be chalked up to Sandra Bullock's gripping performance as Ryan Stone. Not only did the film win seven Oscars but it also helped Bullock become this year's highest-paid actress.









Jennifer Lawrence
$34 Million


Who says women can't be action heroes? Just 23 years old, Lawrence is proving that women can be as big a draw for blockbusters as men.

The Hunger Games is the most successful young adult franchise since Twilight and her recent turn as Mystique in X-Men: Days of Future Past helped make the movie the highest-grossing of the franchise.

Combine that box office prowess with three Oscar nominations and one win and you have the most powerful actresses in Hollywood.









Jennifer Aniston
$31 Million


Now in her 40s, Aniston is enjoying the kind of success most actresses her age only dream about. Thanks to mid-budget comedies like Horrible Bosses and We're the Millers, Aniston is earning millions on the backend of some very profitable movies.

Aniston still earns money from endless reruns of "Friends" and she's an in-demand spokesperson. Aniston shills for brands like Aveeno and Vitamin Water.









Gwyneth Paltrow
$19 Million


When Paltrow announced that she was consciously uncoupling from her husband, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, she earned as many jeers as she did sympathetic words.

But Paltrow has never been bothered by her haters. Her weekly newsletter, Goop, offers reader suggestion on everything from making fried chicken to breaking bad habits.

Paltrow's real money comes from films like this year's Iron Man 3 where she returned as Tony Stark's girlfriend Pepper Potts. Paltrow also earns big from endorsement for brands like Max Factor and Hugo Boss.









Angelina Jolie
$18 Million


After taking some time out of the spotlight to undergo a preventative mastectomy, Jolie is back. In Disney's hit movie Maleficent, she managed to make Disney's classic Sleeping Beauty villain sympathetic, brave and campy.

While earning one of the biggest paychecks in Hollywood, Jolie still finds time to advocate for human rights. Most recently she's turned her activist attention to encouraging governments to investigating and prosecuting war rape.









Cameron Diaz
$18 Million


Never underestimate Cameron Diaz. Her recent movie The Other Woman looked like it was going to be a real stinker. Critics savaged it and Sony barely marketed it. But women came in droves. The film, which was made for $40 million, earned $190 million at the global box office.

Diaz has pulled this trick before. Her 2011 film Bad Teacher didn't seem to have much promise but the $20 million film earned an amazing $216 globally reaping huge profits for Diaz and a TV spin-off (which was quickly canceled this year).









Scarlett Johansson
$17 Million


Johansson has been in the public eye since 1998's The Horse Whisperer but this is the first time she's ranked on our Celebrity 100 list. As Black Widow in the Marvel movies, she doesn't earn as much as someone like Robert Downey, Jr. But combine that paycheck with her lucrative endorsement gigs and you get a very rich, and very powerful actress.

Johansson courted controversy this year by shilling for Soda Stream, which is manufactured in the West Bank. As a result, she parted ways with Oxfam where she had been a Global Ambassador.









Amy Adams
$13 Million


Adams shifts effortlessly between comedies, like Julie and Julia and Leap Year and independent dramas like The Master. But it took until 2013 for Adams to embrace the comic book life.

This year she co-starred in the Superman reboot, Man of Steel as Superman's love interest Lois Lane. With Warner Bros. lining up a slew of D.C. Comic movies, she'll have the chance to appear in plenty more blockbusters.

In the meantime, Adams earned her fifth Oscar nomination for her Best Supporting Actress turn in American Hustle.









Natalie Portman
$13 Million


Like Amy Adams and Gwyneth Paltrow, Portman lands on our list mostly thanks to playing second fiddle to a guy in a silly costume. This year's Thor: The Dark World was a bigger hit than the first Thor movie earning $645 million at the global box office.

That kind of money gives Portman room to pursue passion projects like an adaptation of Amos Oz' book A Tale of Love and Darkness. The film marks Portman's writing and directorial debut.









Kristen Stewart
$12 Million


With Twilight in her rear view mirror, Stewart is now focused on building a career outside of playing Bella.

Upcoming films include American Ultra with Jesse Eisenberg and Still Alice with Julianne Moore.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/dorothyp...sses-with-51m/