Tom Cruise becomes Hollywood’s highest earning actor, after he earned more than $100 million for his latest film Top Gun: Maverick, as per a new report. Will Smith is the second highest paid actor with $35 million for his upcoming film, Emancipation. Also on the list are Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Dwayne Johnson, Vin Diesel and Joaquin Phoenix, among others. Read more: Tom Cruise is proof superstardom can be regained
Tom, who stars in Top Gun: Maverick, and has also produced the hit film, is reportedly expected to make more than $100 million thanks to box office earnings, his fee, as well as his cut from streaming revenues. Top Gun: Maverick released in May and reportedly earned $1.2 billion globally, making it the first Tom Cruise movie to pass the billion-dollar mark at the box office.
Variety reported on Wednesday that Tom ‘gets box office bonuses before the studio (Paramount Pictures) even breaks even’ ensuring his good pay. The report added that Tom and Dwayne Johnson, who earned $22.5 million for his upcoming film Black Adam, are two stars whose high ‘salaries are justified’. “I would never bet against Tom Cruise. Most actors aren’t worth what you pay them, but Cruise and maybe Dwayne Johnson justify their salaries,” a movie executive told Variety.
The second biggest earner, according to the Variety report, is Will Smith, who made $35 million for the upcoming action thriller Emancipation. Will made headlines and faced backlash for slapping Oscar host Chris Rock live on stage during the Academy Awards on March 27.
Other high-earning actors include Leonardo DiCaprio, who earned $30 million for Martin Scorsese’s upcoming film Killers of The Flower Moon, and Brad Pitt, who made $30million for an upcoming untitled Formula 1 drama. Meanwhile, Chris Hemsworth for Extraction 2, Denzel Washington for Equalizer 3, Vin Diesel for Fast X, Joaquin Phoenix for Joker 2, Tom Hardy for Venom 3, Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds for Spirited all earned $20 million for their respective films. Also on the list were Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, each making $12.5 million. They will soon be seen in the upcoming movie, Barbie.
