Adam Sandler was the highest-paid actor in Hollywood in 2023, according to American business magazine Forbes.
Sandler raked in a total of $73m (€66m) last year, according to Forbes’ annual rich list, primarily thanks to the Happy Gilmore star’s lucrative deal with streaming giant Netflix.
Sandler was involved in four projects which were released in 2023. The stand-up comedian-turned actor starred in and produced Netflix’s Murder Mystery 2, while he also wrote, produced and provided voice work on Leo, the streamer’s popular animation.
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The 57-year-old also produced the Netflix action comedy The Out-Laws, which starred Irish actor Pierce Brosnan, while he also produced and starred in the streamer’s acclaimed coming-of-age comedy-drama You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah, which also starred his wife, Jackie Sandler, as well as his daughters, Sadie and Sunny Sandler.
This is the second time Sandler has topped Forbes rich list after doing so in 2022 when he made $47m (€43m) after starring in the likes of Mr Deeds and Punch-Drunk Love.
Coming in at second on Forbes list was Oscar-nominated Australian actress Margot Robbie, who earned $59m (€54m) last year thanks to the huge box office success of Barbie. Robbie tarred in as well as produced the film via her production company, LuckyChap – which also produced Barry Keoghan’s dark hit thriller, Saltburn.
At the age of 33, Robbie is the youngest actor to feature in the top 10, with the average age of the other nine actors north of 52.
Rounding out the top three highest-paid performers in Hollywood in 2023 is action star Tom Cruise, who pocketed $45m (€41m) last year after starring in the Mission: Impossible sequel Dead Reckoning Part One. The 61-year-old also earned a tidy sum from the streaming residuals from 2022’s box office hit Top Gun: Maverick.
Robbie’s Barbie co-star Ryan Gosling was fourth on Forbes’ list with earnings of $43m (€39m) last year based on the film’s estimated earnings from box office, video on-demand and the movie’s first streaming window.
Matt Damon came in fifth on the list after also collecting $43m (€39m) last year. The actor starred in the critical and commercial smash hit Oppenheimer, for which he was paid a $4m (€3.6m) salary, far below his normal rate, in exchange for a small slice of the movie’s substantial profits. The Good Will Hunting star also produced and starred in the Nike Sports film Air, which was sold to Amazon before its release.
Damon’s close friend – and Air co-star and director – Ben Affleck was ninth on the list with earnings of $38m (€34m) last year.
Sandler’s Murder Mystery 2 co-star Jennifer Aniston ranked sixth on the list after raking in $42m (€38m). On top of earning a sizeable sum for starring in the Netflix film, Aniston also collectd a substantial amount thanks to residuals from her megahit TV show Friends.
A-lister Leonardo DiCaprio starred in just one film in 2023 – Martin Scorsese’s critically acclaimed epic Killers of the Flower Moon – but still made $41m (€37m) last year to rank seventh on the list.
Meanwhile action star Jason Statham, the only English actor to make the top 10, placed eighth on the list with earnings of $41m (€37m) last year. The Transporter star appeared in four movies which were released in 2023: Fast X, Meg 2: The Trench, Expend4bles and Guy Ritchie’s Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre.
Rounding out the top 10 is legendary actor Denzel Washington, who pocketed $24m (€22m) last year after featuring in the third Equalizer film. The 69-year-old is the oldest person to make the top 10, and the only Black actor on the list.
In total, the 10 highest-paid stars combined to earn $449 million in 2023.
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