Robert Downey Jr earned an estimated $75million (nearly £50million) last year, making him the highest paid actor in Hollywood.Robert's massive earnings saw him top Forbes annual list of highest paid actors ahead of Channing Tatum and Hugh Jackman who came second and third respectively.Much like his millionaire alter-ego Tony Stark, it has been revealed that the Iron Man star is very well paid. But last year he did not even feature in the top 10 list. He has since overtaken the likes of Tom Cruise and Leonardo DiCaprio to the number one spot.
Thanks to his role as Iron Man in Avengers: Assemble, which took more than $1.5bn (nearly £1bn) last year, Forbes estimate his earnings to be $75million between June 2012 and June 2013. During this time he also put on his superhero suit again for the third film in the Iron Man franchise, which fared just as well at the box office, taking more than $1.2bn .Robert said that he was honoured to be part of the Avengers project, even if he was part of the expensive sale of comic company Marvel to mass media conglomerate Disney. "I feel like I got sold to Disney for $4 billion dollars," he said jokingly to Screen Rant."It's been very humbling because I always realise that you're just kind of part of this thing, you know?" he said. "And I think the problems begin when any one person involved in particularly anything that’s successful decides that they have some sort of ownership to it, because really, this is something that Stan Lee scratched down going on, what, 50 years ago now. "Robert has reinvented himself thanks to his roles as Tony Stark/Iron Man and Sherlock Holmes. He struggled for work after his Oscar-nominated portrayal of Charlie Chaplin in the 1992 film Chaplin. This was mostly due to his addiction to drugs and alcohol.He has since overcome these problems to rise to the top of the A-list and the rich list in Hollywood.
Channing took the second place on the rich list, with a sizeable amount of his $60m earnings this year coming from the 2012 drama about a group of male strippers, Magic Mike.Channing teamed up with Oscar-winning director Stephen Soderbergh to make the film, which was based on the actor's own experiences before he broke into Hollywood. Stephen and Channing financed the film themselves and from a budget of just $7million, the film went on to take $167million.Hugh Jackman came in third place, earning an estimated $55million over the last year, after his roles in the film adaptation of the musical Les Miserables. Like Robert, he has also made his millions thanks to the success of a superhero franchise. Hugh has reprised his role as Wolverine in the X-Men films, with the latest, The Wolverine, out this month.
Securing fourth place on the list with $52million was Mark Wahlberg, who as well as starring in lewd comedy Ted, has been working behind the scenes as a producer on hit TV show Boardwalk Empire and upcoming films Prisoners and Cocaine Cowboys.Dwayne Johnson came in fifth place after starring in the sixth installment of the Fast & Furious franchise and securing the titular role in the upcoming Hercules: The Thracian Wars, earning him $52million.Leonardo DiCaprio fell from joint second place in 2012 to seventh place in 2013, but still brought in $39million for his roles in Django Unchained and The Great Gatsby.Adam Sandler was joint second with Leo last year, but fell beneath him in seventh place in 2013's list, earning $37million.Tom Cruise was last year's top earner, taking in $75million between July 2011 and July 2012 thanks to Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol and Rock of Ages. This year, his $35million earnings from Jack Reacher and Oblivion saw him take eighth place on the list.In ninth and tenth place were action men Denzel Washington with $33million and Liam Neeson with $32million.The list only named male actors. According to Forbes, last year's highest earning actress was Kristen Stewart, who made $35million between June 2011 and June 2012. That would place her in joint eighth place alongside Tom Cruise.Top 10 highest paid actors1. Robert Downey Jr $75 million2. Channing Tatum $60 million3. Hugh Jackman $55 million4. Mark Wahlberg $52 million5. Dwayne Johnson $46 million6. Leonardo DiCaprio $39 million7. Adam Sandler $37 million8. Tom Cruise $35 million9. Denzel Washington $33 million10. Liam Neeson $32 million
