While the highest-paid film actors can command multi-million-dollar salaries, actors can potentially earn substantially more by deferring all or part of their salary against a percentage of the film's gross, known within the industry as a "profit participation" deal.
Highest earnings for a single production
Since not all salaries are made public, this is a non-definitive list of actors who have received $30 million or more as compensation for their services in a single production. Occasionally an actor's fee may cover multiple films, and they are included on the list if the films were filmed as a back-to-back production (for example, Keanu Reeves and the Matrix sequels). The figures are given at their nominal value, since earnings from profit-based deals are accumulated over many years, making it unfeasible to adjust for inflation.
| Actor | Film | Year | Salary | Total income | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Keanu Reeves | The Matrix Reloaded The Matrix Revolutions | 2003 | $30,000,000 | $156,000,000 | |
| Bruce Willis | The Sixth Sense | 1999 | $14,000,000 | $100,000,000 | |
| Tom Cruise | Mission: Impossible 2 | 2000 | $100,000,000 | ||
| Tom Cruise | War of the Worlds | 2005 | $100,000,000 | ||
| Will Smith | Men in Black 3 | 2012 | $100,000,000 | ||
| Tom Cruise | Top Gun: Maverick | 2022 | $12,500,000 | $100,000,000 | |
| Alec Guinness | Star Wars | 1977 | $150,000 | $95,000,000 | |
| Robert Downey Jr. | Avengers: Infinity War | 2018 | $75,000,000+ | ||
| Robert Downey Jr. | Iron Man 3 | 2013 | $75,000,000 | ||
| Robert Downey Jr. | Avengers: Endgame | 2019 | $20,000,000 | $75,000,000 | |
| Sandra Bullock | Gravity | 2013 | $20,000,000 | $70,000,000+ | |
| Tom Hanks | Forrest Gump | 1994 | $70,000,000 | ||
| Tom Cruise | Mission: Impossible | 1996 | $70,000,000 | ||
| Harrison Ford | Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull | 2008 | $65,000,000 | ||
| Jack Nicholson | Batman | 1989 | $6,000,000 | $60,000,000 | |
| Leonardo DiCaprio | Inception | 2010 | $59,000,000 | ||
| Johnny Depp | Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides | 2011 | $35,000,000 | $55,000,000 | |
| Jackie Chan | Rush Hour 3 | 2007 | $15,000,000 | $53,700,000 | |
| Robert Downey Jr. | The Avengers | 2012 | $50,000,000 | ||
| Margot Robbie | Barbie | 2023 | $12,500,000 | $50,000,000 | |
| Cameron Diaz | Bad Teacher | 2011 | $42,000,000 | ||
| Robert Downey Jr. | Captain America: Civil War | 2016 | $40,000,000 | $40,000,000+ | |
| Leonardo DiCaprio | Titanic | 1997 | $40,000,000 | ||
| Tom Hanks | Saving Private Ryan | 1998 | $40,000,000 | ||
| Johnny Depp | Alice in Wonderland | 2010 | $40,000,000 | ||
| Robert Downey Jr. | Avengers: Age of Ultron | 2015 | $40,000,000 | ||
| Will Smith | King Richard | 2021 | $40,000,000 | $40,000,000 | |
| Denzel Washington | The Little Things | 2021 | $40,000,000 | ||
| Aamir Khan | Dangal | 2016 | $39,000,000 | ||
| Allu Arjun | Pushpa 2: The Rule | 2024 | $36,000,000 | ||
| Jim Carrey | Yes Man | 2008 | $35,000,000 | ||
| Will Smith | Emancipation | 2022 | $35,000,000 | $35,000,000 | |
| Arnold Schwarzenegger | Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines | 2003 | $29,250,000 | $30,000,000+ | |
| Mel Gibson | Lethal Weapon 4 | 1998 | $30,000,000 | $30,000,000 | |
| Brad Pitt | Ocean's Eleven | 2001 | $10,000,000 | $30,000,000 | |
| Leonardo DiCaprio | Don't Look Up | 2021 | $30,000,000 | $30,000,000 | |
| Leonardo DiCaprio | Killers of the Flower Moon | 2023 | $30,000,000 | $30,000,000 |
- ₹257 crore ($39.4 million at 2017 exchange rates).
- ₹300 crore ($35.9 million at 2024 exchange rates).
- Arnold Schwarzenegger received a $29,250,000 salary for Terminator 3 plus a 20% royalty on the worldwide box office gross over $380 million. The film ultimately had a global gross of $433 million.
Highest annual earnings
Forbes publishes yearly lists of the highest-paid actors and actresses based on total earnings from 1 June the previous year to 1 June the current year, and the highest-earning actor and actress for each year as determined by Forbes are tabulated here. The earnings only cover a one-year period, and in some instances are derived from other revenue streams besides acting work.
| Year | Actor | Earnings (gross) | Actress | Earnings (gross) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Sylvester Stallone | $74 million | Jane Fonda | $13 million | |
| 1988 | Sylvester Stallone | $63 million | N/a | N/a | |
| 1989 | Eddie Murphy | $60 million | N/a | N/a | |
| 1990 | Sylvester Stallone | $63 million | N/a | N/a | |
| 1991 | Kevin Costner | $59 million | N/a | N/a | |
| 1992 | Kevin Costner | $71 million | N/a | N/a | |
| 1993 | Kevin Costner | $48 million | N/a | N/a | |
| 1994 | Harrison Ford | $44 million | N/a | N/a | |
| 1995 | Sylvester Stallone | $58 million | Roseanne Barr | $32 million | |
| 1996 | Arnold Schwarzenegger | $74 million | Roseanne Barr | $40 million | |
| 1997 | Tom Cruise | $82 million | Roseanne Barr | $55 million | |
| 1998 | Harrison Ford | $58 million | Julia Roberts | $28 million | |
| 1999 | Tom Hanks | $71.5 million | Julia Roberts | $50 million | |
| 2000 | Bruce Willis | $70 million | Julia Roberts | $18.9 million | |
| 2001 | Unpublished | ||||
| 2002 | Adam Sandler | $47 million | Cameron Diaz | $40 million | |
| 2003 | Will Smith | $60 million | Jennifer Aniston | $35 million | |
| 2004 | Jim Carrey | $66 million | Cameron Diaz | $32 million | |
| 2005 | Will Ferrell | $40 million | Drew Barrymore | $22 million | |
| 2006 | Tom Cruise | $67 million | Jodie Foster | $27 million | |
| 2007 | Johnny Depp | $92 million | Nicole Kidman | $28 million | |
| 2008 | Johnny Depp | $72 million | Cameron Diaz | $50 million | |
| 2009 | Harrison Ford | $65 million | Angelina Jolie | $27 million | |
| 2010 | Johnny Depp | $75 million | Sandra Bullock | $56 million | |
| 2011 | Leonardo DiCaprio | $77 million | Angelina Jolie | $30 million | |
| 2012 | Tom Cruise | $75 million | Kristen Stewart | $34.5 million | |
| 2013 | Robert Downey Jr. | $75 million | Angelina Jolie | $33 million | |
| 2014 | Robert Downey Jr. | $75 million | Sandra Bullock | $51 million | |
| 2015 | Robert Downey Jr. | $80 million | Jennifer Lawrence | $52 million | |
| 2016 | Dwayne Johnson | $64.5 million | Jennifer Lawrence | $46 million | |
| 2017 | Mark Wahlberg | $68 million | Emma Stone | $26 million | |
| 2018 | George Clooney | $239 million | Scarlett Johansson | $40.5 million | |
| 2019 | Dwayne Johnson | $89.4 million | Scarlett Johansson | $56 million | |
| 2020 | Dwayne Johnson | $87.5 million | Sofía Vergara | $43 million | |
| 2021 | Dwayne Johnson | $270 million | Reese Witherspoon | $115 million | |
| 2022 | Tyler Perry | $175 million | N/a | N/a | |
| 2023 | Adam Sandler | $97 million | Margot Robbie | $78 million | |
| 2024 | Dwayne Johnson | $103 million | Nicole Kidman | $41 million | |
| 2025 | Adam Sandler | $60 million | Scarlett Johansson | $50 million | |
- George Clooney's 2018 earnings are mainly from the June 2017 sale of Casamigos tequila.
See also
- List of highest-grossing actors