Sandra Bullock Earns Top Paycheck in Hollywood
8/04/2010 10:17:00 AM
kenmouse
, Posted in
Celebrity-Gossip
,
Featured Stories
,
Movie News
,
Sandra Bullock
,
0 Comments
For months and months, whenever Sandra Bullock's name was mentioned, folks would tilt their heads to one side with concern, sigh heavily, and say something like, "Poor thing." Mired in ex-husband Jesse James' infidelity scandal, it seems everyone forgot for a second that Bullock is also the most successful actress in the world -- one who raked in an estimated $56 million last year, according to Forbes, which just released its annual listing of the highest-earning actresses in film.Bullock maintains a very healthy lead over her nearest competitors, Reese Witherspoon and Cameron Diaz, who both earned $32 million between June 2009 and June 2010. Rounding out the top five are Jennifer Aniston and Sarah Jessica Parker, with earnings of $27 million and $25 million, respectively.
Much of Bullock's stellar earning power can be chalked up to faith -- faith in her films, that is. Bullock slashed her usual upfront fee to star in 'The Proposal' and 'The Blind Side,' opting instead to take a larger portion of each film's profits -- supposing they made any. It was a risky move, but both films turned out to be box office smashes, with 'The Proposal' taking in over $317 million worldwide, and 'The Blind Side' grossing over $308 million on a budget of less than $30 million. Of 'The Blind Side's' massive bundle, $255 million was banked in the U.S., making the film the first ever headlined by a female movie star to top $200 at the domestic box office.
Though she hasn't starred in a film since the 2008 hit 'Four Christmases,' upfront pay for two films we have yet to see -- James L. Brooks' upcoming 'How Do You Know,' co-starring Jack Nicholson and Paul Rudd, and 'Water for Elephants,' a period drama with Robert Pattinson and Christoph Waltz (Oscar winner for 'Inglourious Basterds') -- landed Witherspoon a prominent spot on the best-paid actresses list. The star also earns bank as an Avon brand ambassador.
Forbes estimates an actress's earnings by talking to agents, managers, producers and lawyers to determine how much a star earned in upfront pay on movies currently shooting and back-end pay earned after a movie hits theaters. Earnings from perfume and clothing lines, as well as ad campaigns, are also figured in.
Despite a string of box office disappointments, both Diaz and the very busy Aniston continue to rake in the dough. Diaz's money comes from upfront pay for the recent misfire 'Knight & Day' as well as earnings for the forthcoming 'Bad Teacher' and 'The Green Hornet.'
Aniston earned her green by keeping busy. While her recent films haven't ignited much heat at multiplexes, the actress has three films in various stages of production: 'The Switch,' co-starring Jason Bateman, is about to hit theaters; she's finished production on 'Just Go With It,' with Adam Sandler and Nicole Kidman; and she is currently filming 'Horrible Bosses,' a revenge comedy starring a who's who of Hollywood heavyweights, including Colin Farrell, Kevin Spacey, Bateman, Jaime Foxx and 'SNL' regular Jason Sudeikis.
Aniston also still receives residual payments from the syndication of 'Friends,' and is making fresh green with her recently launched her perfume line and in her role as spokeswoman for Glaceau smartwater.
Like Aniston, Sarah Jessica Parker is still banking on her old series, 'Sex and the City.' She profits from the show's syndication as well as its feature film spinoffs. This summer's 'Sex and the City 2' earned $280 million at the global box office, and Parker, as both star and producer, had upfront and back-end deals in place for the film.
A not-insubstantial portion of Parker's $25 million in earnings came from her popular brand of perfumes, which includes the hits Lovely and SJP NYC. The actress is also a creative director for luxury clothing line Halston.
Other top earners on the Forbes list include 'Eat, Pray, Love' star Julia Roberts, $20 million; Angelina Jolie, who is currently enjoying a summer hit with her new film 'Salt,' at $20 million; Drew Barrymore, $15 million; the legendary Meryl Streep, who took home $13 million for turning both 'Julie & Julia' and 'It's Complicated' into hits; and Kristen Stewart, whose $12 million came from her work on the 'Twilight Saga' as well as the indie films 'The Runaways' and 'Welcome to the Rileys.'
0 Response to "Sandra Bullock Earns Top Paycheck in Hollywood"
Post a Comment
Leave Your Thoughts & We Will Discuss Together