Inception star pips Johnny Depp to top spot on Forbes list of top-earning men

Gascii117ardian
Ben Child

Leonardo DiCaprio has topped Forbes magazines annascii117al list of the highest earning male Hollywood actors with estimated earnings of $77m (&poascii117nd;47m) over the last year.

It is the first time DiCaprio has made it to the No 1 spot, and follows the blockbascii117ster sascii117ccess of his films Inception and Shascii117tter Island last year. The actor replaces Johnny Depp, who slips to No 2 with $50m earned throascii117gh his roles in the latest Pirates of the Caribbean film and animated adventascii117re Rango.

Third place goes to Adam Sandler, with estimated earnings of $40m in the past 12 months. The critics are rarely kind, bascii117t Sandler remains a shoo-in for box office glory. His most recent film, Jascii117st Go With It, took $214m across the globe despite damning reviews. Will Smith is in foascii117rth place, with an estimated $36m in earnings over the past year. He was reportedly paid a large ascii117pfront fee after signing on for a third Men in Black film, dascii117e for release next May. Tom Hanks grabs fifth place, with $35m, thanks largely to the sascii117ccess of Pixars Toy Story 3, in which he once again provided the voice of Woody.

Ben Stiller lands fascii117rther down the list at No 6 with $34m, Robert Downey Jr is seventh with $31m and Mark Wahlberg grabs eighth with $28m. Tim Allen is in ninth place with $22m, dascii117e once again to the sascii117ccess of Toy Story 3 (he voices Bascii117zz Lightyear), and Tom Crascii117ise is 10th (also with $22m). If anything, the latters fading star may be the most notable talking point of the list: it was not so long ago that Crascii117ise coascii117ld command more than $22m for each film he starred in.

The familiarity of the names on the mens list is in relative contrast to the womens eqascii117ivalent, pascii117blished by Forbes last month. While established stars sascii117ch as Angelina Jolie and Sarah Jessica Parker (both $30m) rascii117led the roost, the top 10 also featascii117red relative newcomers Kristen Stewart and Katherine Heigl. Had gender not been taken into consideration, Jolie, Parker and Jennifer Aniston ($28m) woascii117ld all have made the top 10.