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Business Insider

Hollywood, it seems, ain’t what it used to be.
In the post-streaming age, it’s rare for actors to bring in quite the same mammoth salaries – at least compared to the glory days when audiences were drawn to a film primarily based on its leading star.
Years ago, if a certain actor’s name was attached to a film, it almost guaranteed success. In the 90s, Will Smith, Tom Cruise and Jim Carrey were paid massive salaries simply because they attracted a crowd.
For instance, Carrey was paid US$20 million – a rarity today – for The Cable Guy in 1996, because it was expected he could deliver a huge opening weekend.

Now, audiences are more attracted to franchises than its stars. The Marvel Cinematic Universe, for instance, dominated the box office for the last decade (to be fair, Robert Downey Jr, who played Iron Man, made bank off of those films).
But some actors still command the recognition and leverage to strike gigantic deals, particularly Smith, Tom Cruise and Leonardo DiCaprio.

And with the rise of streaming services, actors find that the likes of Netflix and Apple aren’t afraid to shell out tens of millions of dollars too. Some movie stars in streaming films snag such big paydays because they’re granted a streaming back-end buyout, which aims to make up for box-office losses.
We ranked the highest-paid film roles of all time that earned actors more than US$25 million. Some actors – like Smith, DiCaprio, Cruise and Hanks – appear multiple times on this list.
Let’s take a look …
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29. Emma Stone in La La Land: US$26 million

Stone topped Forbes’ list of the world’s highest-paid actresses in 2017 with US$26 million, most of that coming from her Oscar-winning role in the 2016 film La La Land.
28. Ryan Reynolds in 6 Underground: US$27 million

Reynolds made US$27 million for the Michael Bay-directed Netflix action film, according to Variety, about six billionaires who turn into vigilantes.
27. Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines: US$29 million

Schwarzenegger promised that he’d be back for a third Terminator film under some pretty specific circumstances, including a US$29.25 million “pay or play” fee, according to Slate, which he would receive even if the film wasn’t made.
26. Brad Pitt in an untitled Formula One film: US$30 million

Variety reported that Pitt received a big payday from Apple with the actor starring as a former Formula One driver who returns to racing. We’re still waiting for the film, mind you …
25. Leonardo DiCaprio in Don’t Look Up: US$30 million

Variety reported that DiCaprio received US$30 million for his role in Netflix and director Adam McKay’s star-studded film Don’t Look Up, which includes a streaming back-end buyout.
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24. Mark Wahlberg as Spenser in Spenser Confidential: US$30 million

Wahlberg received US$30 million for Netflix’s action comedy Spenser Confidential, Variety reported, which was Netflix’s third biggest film of all time upon release with 85 million households watching in its first month.
23. Leonardo DiCaprio in Killers of the Flower Moon: US$30 million

DiCaprio is reportedly getting a big payday from Martin Scorsese’s latest film, says Variety, in which he plays a man who plots with his uncle to steal his wife’s family fortune by murdering them one by one.
22. Jim Carrey in Yes Man: US$30 million

Carrey reportedly exchanged his salary for Yes Man for an ownership stake in the romantic comedy film, which evidently paid off.
21. Will Smith in Emancipation: US$35 million

Apple TV+ is showing that it’s not afraid to shell out millions of dollars to actors that appear in its films as it paid US$35 million Smith for the drama Emancipation.
20. Will Smith in King Richard: US$40 million

Smith received US$40 million for his role as Richard Williams, the father of tennis superstars Venus and Serena Williams. It includes a back-end buyout because the film hit theatres and streamed on HBO Max simultaneously.
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19. Denzel Washington in The Little Things: US$40 million

Washington snagged US$40 million for The Little Things after receiving a back-end buyout when the film streamed on HBO Max the same day it hit theatres.
18. Tom Hanks in Saving Private Ryan: US$40 million

Hanks has struck “act now, get paid later” deals on multiple films, in which he would receive a portion of the box-office earnings. That got him at least US$40 million for Saving Private Ryan, but it’s not his most lucrative deal.
17. Cameron Diaz in Bad Teacher: US$42 million

Diaz was paid a mere US$1 million to get Bad Teacher produced, but received a portion of box-office earnings, which secured her over US$40 million for the film. It’s known as one of the most “legendary” deals in Hollywood history.
16. Margot Robbie in Barbie: US$50 million

Robbie was paid a reported US$12.5 million for her starring role in the breakout hit of 2023, but her role as producer on the film and box-office bonuses boosted her payday to about US$50 million, according to Variety.
15. Dwayne Johnson in Red One: US$50 million

Johnson was paid US$50 million for the upcoming holiday action film Red One, which Amazon Studios won in a bidding war. The compensation includes a back-end buyout for the streaming film.
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14. Daniel Craig in the Knives Out sequels: US$100 million (US$50 million per film)

Netflix landed two Knives Out sequels in a deal worth US$469 million and its star Daniel Craig could earn “upward of US$100 million” for the sequels, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The first Knives Out, released by the studio Lionsgate, was a box-office hit with more than US$300 million worldwide off of a US$40 million budget.
13. Leonardo DiCaprio in Inception: US$50 million

DiCaprio earned at least US$50 million for Christopher Nolan’s 2010 film Inception just from box-office earnings, but his deal also included home video and television sales. According to Forbes, the Oscar-winning actor took a pay cut because the film was so “risky”, but he and Nolan agreed to split first-dollar gross points.
12. Jack Nicholson in Batman: US$50 million

Though Nicholson was paid US$6 million up front for his role as the villainous Joker in the 1989 Batman film, he reportedly secured a lucrative deal that included box-office earnings and merchandise sales from its sequels – that he didn’t even appear in.
11. Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides: US$55 million

Forbes reported in 2010 that the fourth Pirates film released in 2011 was one of the most expensive films ever made, with production costs of over US$410 million. A large portion of those costs were due to paying staff and actors. Depp alone made US$55 million, which he admitted he was “overpaid” in 2011. The Hollywood actor has reportedly made over US$300 million combined.
10. Tom Hanks in Forrest Gump: US$60 million

The box-office hit Forrest Gump is another case in which Hanks opted for performance-based pay, in which he received an estimated US$60 million.
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9. Adam Sandler in his Netflix films: US$250 million for four films (US$62.5 million each)

Sandler struck a deal with Netflix in 2014 for four exclusive films worth an estimated US$250 million or US$62.5 million per film, according to Forbes. Netflix renewed the deal in 2017 for four more films and again in 2020.
8. Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull: US$65 million

To get Ford back for a fourth Indiana Jones film, Paramount agreed to a deal that split a large portion of the film’s earnings between him, director Steven Spielberg and producer George Lucas.
7. Johnny Depp in Alice in Wonderland: US$68 million

According to the Telegraph, Depp earned £50 million for Alice in Wonderland, which equates to about US$68 million in the US.
6. Sandra Bullock in Gravity: $70 million

Bullock was paid US$20 million up front for Gravity, which is an impressive number on its own. But her deal also included 15 per cent of box office revenue, which landed her at least US$70 million.
5. Robert Downey Jr in Avengers: Infinity War: US$75 million

Downey was the highest-paid actor of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, after negotiating a deal in which he received back end profits that resulted in US$75 million for 2018’s Avengers: Infinity War. He even made US$50 million for the first Avengers film in 2012, according to GQ.
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4. Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol: US$75 million

Cruise earned US$75 million from the fourth Mission: Impossible film, which allowed him to top Forbes’ most powerful actors list in 2012.
3. Keanu Reeves in The Matrix trilogy: US$250 million (US$83.3 million per film)

Between all three Matrix films, Keanu Reeves’ combined pay was US$250 million.
2. Will Smith in Men in Black 3: US$100 million

Will Smith’s performance-based pay for the third Men in Black film got him US$100 million of its US$624 million gross.
1. Tom Cruise as Pete “Maverick” Mitchell in Top Gun: Maverick: over US$100 million

In 2022, Cruise took just US$13 million upfront for Maverick in exchange for a lucrative back end deal that is likely to nab the actor over US$100 million when accounting for his portion of box office and home-entertainment sales. The film earned nearly US$1.5 billion worldwide.
This article originally appeared on Business Insider.


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Fame and celebrity

29 of the highest-paid film deals of all time, ranked: from Leonardo DiCaprio’s payday for Killers of the Flower Moon and Margot Robbie’s Barbie bonuses, to Robert Downey Jr becoming Marvel’s No 1

Margot Robbie, Will Smith and Tom Cruise all received huge pay cheques from the films Barbie, Men in Black 3 and Top Gun: Maverick, respectively. Photos: AFP, TNS, Reuters

Jim Carrey’s salary for The Cable Guy accounted for half the film’s US$40 million budget. Photo: AP

Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio in a still from The Killers of the Flower Moon. Photo: Apple TV+

Ryan Gosling as Sebastian and Emma Stone as Mia in a scene from the film La La Land directed by Damien Chazelle. Photo: TNS

 Ryan Reynolds in the 2019 film 6 Underground. Photo: @Netflix/YouTube

 Arnold Schwarzenegger in the iconic Terminator franchise. Photo: @FilmTV/YouTube

Brad Pitt attends the Los Angeles Premiere of Columbia Pictures’ Bullet Train in August 2022 – but will that Formula One film he starred in ever release? Photo: FilmMagic 

Leonardo DiCaprio in the 2021 satire Don’t Look Up. Photo: @AllexStark/Pinterest

Mark Wahlberg poses at the premiere of the film Spenser Confidential at the Regency Village Theatre, in Los Angeles, in February 2020. Photo: AP Photo

Leonardo DiCaprio plays an ambiguous character in Martin Scorsese’s film Killers of the Flower Moon. Photo: Apple TV+

Funnyman Jim Carrey starring in the 2008 romcom Yes Man. Photo: @OnDemandEntertainment/YouTube

Will Smith appearing in the 2022 film Emancipation. Photo: @MovieCity/YouTube

Will Smith gives a stellar performance in King Richard. Photo: TNS

Denzel Washington playing a detective in The Little Things. Photo: Gran Via Productions

Tom Hanks plays Captain Miller in Steven Spielberg’s Saving Private Ryan. Photo: @RottenTomatoesClassicTrailers/YouTube

Cameron Diaz reaped the rewards of her box office hit Bad Teacher. Photo: @BestMovies/YouTube

Margot Robbie stars in Barbie, which became the highest-grossing film of 2023. Photo: TNS

Dwayne Johnson attends a special screening of DC League of Super-Pets at AMC The Grove, in July 2022, in Los Angeles. Photo: TNS

Daniel Craig plays the quirky detective Benoit Blanc in Glass Onion. Photo: Netflix

Elliot Page (formerly Ellen Page) and Leonardo DiCaprio in Christopher Nolan’s masterpiece Inception. Photo: Warner Bros.

Jack Nicholson playing the Joker in the 1989 Batman film alongside Kim Basinger. Photo: @museumsound/X

Johnny Depp portrays Captain Jack Sparrow in blockbuster Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Photo: AP Photo

Tom Hanks as the beloved Forrest Gump in 1994. Photo: Paramount Pictures

Murder Mystery stars romcom favourites Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler. Photo: TNS

Harrison Ford was paid a hefty amount to appear in the fourth instalment of Indiana Jones. Photo: Lucasfilm Ltd

Johnny Depp as The Mad Hatter in the 2010 film Alice in Wonderland. Photo: AP Photo

Sandra Bullock made bank from the 2013 film Gravity. Photo: AP Photo

Robert Downey Jr is Marvel’s highest-paid actor. Photo: @ironman_mcm/Instagram

Tom Cruise poses during a press conference for his upcoming film Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol in Dubai, UAE, in 2010. Photo: AFP

Keanu Reeves giving a memorable performance in The Matrix franchise. Photo: Warner Bros.

Will Smith stars as Agent Jay in Men in Black, opposite Tommy Lee Jones. Photo: Reuters

Tom Cruise reprises his role as Captain Pete Mitchell in Top Gun: Maverick. Photo: TNS

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Spot the difference: Vince Vaughn and Matt LeBlanc. Photos: @vincevaughnfan; @aggresssivefingerpointing/Instagram

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Amy Schumer was considered to lead the Barbie production. Photos: @todayshow; @barbieffied/Instagram

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Timothée Chalamet almost starred in Saltburn instead of Barry Keoghan. Photos: @keoghan92, @tchalamet/Instagram

10 Bollywood stars who made it big in Hollywood: from Alia Bhatt, Amitabh Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, to Deepika Padukone and Priyanka Chopra Jonas – how did these actors crack Tinseltown?

Freida Pinto, Anil Kapoor and Alia Bhatt are among the Bollywood stars to have found the greatest success in Hollywood. Photos: @freidapinto, @anilskapoor, @aliabhatt/Instagram

Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Nick Jonas on their wedding day in 2018. Photo: Handout

Deepika Padukone at the Academy Museum Gala in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Invision/AP

Alia Bhatt attends the Red Sea Film Festival in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in December 2023. Photo: AFP

Irrfan Khan, in 2020, in Munich, Germany. Photo: DPA

Shabana Azmi poses at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne alongside governor of Victoria Margaret Elaine Gardner, in the Indian city of Mumbai. Photo: AFP

Anupam Kher at the premiere of The Headhunter’s Calling, during the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival in Toronto, Canada. Photo: The Canadian Press via AP

Freida Pinto’s most recent role sees her working alongside Scarlett Johansson, Sienna Miller and Kristin Scott Thomas. Photo: Markus Klinko

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in a still from Ponniyin Selvan: I (2022). Photo: Lyca Productions

Anil Kapoor poses during a screening of the movie Animal, in Mumbai, India, last November. Photo: EPA-EFE

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and her father-in-law Amitabh Bachchan pose at the red carpet event of musical comedy film The Archies, in Mumbai, India, last month. Photo: EPA-EFE

Meet Jodie Foster’s family: her wife once dated Ellen DeGeneres and the Oscar-winning actress and Nyad star rarely steps out with her sons Kit and Charles – but is Mel Gibson the biological dad?

Jodie Foster has been married to Alexandra Hedison since 2014. Photo: EPA-EFE

Actress Jodie Foster is best known for her roles in Taxi Driver and Silence of the Lambs. Photo: AFP via Getty Images

Alexandra Hedison is a former actress and once dated Ellen DeGeneres. Photo: Invision/AP

Charlie Foster, Jodie Foster and Kit Foster make a rare appearance together at the 70th Annual Golden Globe Awards in 2013. Photo: NBC/NBCU

Charlie Foster and his mother Jodie Foster pose for a photo backstage at Nevermore: The Imaginary Life and Mysterious Death of Edgar Allan Poe in 2015. Photo: FilmMagic

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Netflix film May December’s breakout star, Charles Melton. Photo: @melton/Instagram

Charles Melton posing with his May December co-stars Julianne Moore (left) and Natalie Portman (right). Photo: @netflix/Instagram

Charles Melton walked dogs to pay for bills as he pursues acting in Hollywood. Photo: @netflix/Instagram

Charles Melton credits his sister Tammie for helping him stay grounded. Photo: @melton/Instagram

Charles Melton (right) attending a Special Olympics event. Photo: @melton/Instagram

Charles Melton played football for Kansas State University before he turned to acting. Photo: @melton/Instagram

Charles Melton shares his love for his mother on Instagram. Photo: @melton/Instagram

A young Charles Melton with his mother and sisters. Photo: @melton/Instagram

Charles Melton takes his mum with him to red carpet events. Photo: @melton/Instagram

Charles Melton looking suave at the premiere of May December. Photo: @melton/Instagram

Charles Melton has a bunch of acting credits under his belt, including TV shows Glee and American Horror Story. Photo: @melton/Instagram

Charles Melton worked as a model before becoming an actor. Photo: @melton/Instagram

Charles Melton is passionate about being an actor. Photo: @melton/Instagram

Keanu Reeves in the iconic film series The Matrix. Photo: Warner Bros.

The late actor Heath Ledger portraying the character Ennis Del Mar in the film Brokeback Mountain. Photo: AP Photo

Meet J Balvin’s glamorous model girlfriend, Valentina Ferrer: crowned Miss Argentina 2014, the ‘Mi Gente’ singer’s partner wears Tiffany & Co. and Prada fits – and gave birth to their baby Rio

J Balvin has been with his model girlfriend Valentina Ferrer since 2018. Photos: @valentinaferrer/Instagram

Valentina Ferrer has her own health and wellness company, Kapowder. Photo: @valentinaferrer/Instagram

Valentina Ferrer often sports athleisure looks on her socials. Photo: @valentinaferrer/Instagram

Valentina Ferrer was initially scouted by Elite Model Management. Photo: @valentinaferrer/Instagram

Valentina Ferrer managed to bag the title of Miss Argentina in 2014. Photo: Missosology/Facebook

Valentina Ferrer grew up in Argentina. Photo: @valentinaferrer/Instagram

J Balvin and Valentina Ferrer in matching fits on Instagram. Photo: @valentinaferrer/Instagram

Musician J Balvin is eight years older than his girlfriend Valentina Ferrer. Photo: @valentinaferrer/Instagram

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Tinseltown’s greats like Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Cruise can still command hefty sums upfront, but actors have also won big by negotiating back-end profits, like Tom Hanks in Saving Private Ryan
Will Smith made US$100m from Men in Black 3 while Keanu Reeves got a combined pay of US$250m for The Matrix trilogy; meanwhile, Dwayne Johnson takes home US$50m for Amazon Studios’ upcoming Red One


Some of Hollywood’s greatest actors like Leo DiCaprio and Johnny Depp appear on this list multiple times, but who’s No 1? From Keanu Reeves’ The Matrix millions to Tom Cruise’ Top Gun dollars …
