Actress Scarlett Johansson has just become Hollywood’s highest-grossing star of all time—climbing to the top of the list. And well, Scarlett is versatile, talented, charismatic, and has two Oscar nominations. It’s no wonder she was chosen to carry the Jurassic World franchise on her shoulders with a new installment—which could become a trilogy.
Below, we’ll take a look at the top 10 most bankable actors in Hollywood today, but remember that this system is constantly changing, with names rising and falling. All it takes is a new hit. For example, Johansson took the top spot thanks to the new ‘Jurassic World,’ moving up three notches. Another factor to consider is that the actor needs to have a significant, prominent role in the film to be included, not just a cameo. Many names on the list have appeared in Marvel productions, which always helps. Check it out.
10) Dwayne Johnson
$6.1 billion
The Rock believed he would change the power hierarchy in the DCEU. It didn’t quite work out that way, and his ‘Black Adam’ failed to reach $400 million worldwide. But the hulking actor has other successes under his belt, such as the ‘Jumanji’ franchise ($962.5 million and $801 million), five ‘Fast & Furious’ films, including the spin-off ‘Hobbs & Shaw’ (with two of them surpassing $1 billion), and one of the lead voices in Disney’s ‘Moana’ and ‘Moana 2,’ with the latter also surpassing $1 billion.
09) Vin Diesel
$7.4 billion
The Rock is more versatile, and his films outside of major franchises tend to do better than Vin Diesel’s. But the ‘Fast & Furious’ star (another muscular bald man) has appeared in more films in the franchise (he’s the face of the brand) and was the voice of the tree-alien Groot in all three ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ films and the last two ‘Avengers,’ which broke all records.
08) Chris Evans
$10.2 billion
Chris Evans, the eternal Captain America, has made all of his money from Marvel films. He starred in three solo films as the hero, dressed in the American flag (they retired this costume shortly after the first one) and wielding the shield, with one of them surpassing $1 billion. He also starred in four Avengers films in a key role, all grossing over $1 billion, with the last two surpassing $2 billion.
07) Chris Hemsworth
$10.7 billion
The same can be said for Marvel’s other Chris, the Australian Hemsworth. Hemsworth, who plays the God of Thunder, has an advantage over Chris Evans: he starred in four solo films for his character, with the last two being the highest-grossing, with $855 million (Ragnarok) and $760.9 million (Love and Thunder). That is, four solo ‘Thor’ films and four ‘Avengers’ films (with the latter two grossing over $2 billion). He would be higher on the list if his franchise attempts in ‘Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga’ ($174 million) and ‘Transformers One’ ($129.4 million) had worked.
06) Tom Cruise
$13.3 billion
Tom Cruise is the only star on the list who has never starred in a superhero franchise. He almost played Tony Stark before the 2008 film, and could very well appear in the multiverse as an Easter egg, that’s what fans want. But Cruise has something no one else on the list has—or almost no one else—a career dating back to the 1980s, with countless hits across the decades. He also has the multi-million-dollar ‘Mission: Impossible’ franchise, which totals eight films, with six of them surpassing $500 million worldwide. There’s also ‘Top Gun: Maverick,’ the only film in his career to reach the $1 billion mark.
05) Chris Pratt
$14.1 billion
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s son-in-law makes his father-in-law proud, having been Hollywood’s highest-grossing star in the 1990s. Today, Chris Pratt occupies the top 5. He starred in three Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy films, as well as the two highest-grossing Avengers franchises, in which he played a significant role as Peter Quill. Pratt also has the luxury of starring in the Jurassic World trilogy (2015-2022), with all three films surpassing the $1 billion mark. Want more? He also voiced Super Mario Bros. in the 2023 animated film, one of two films that year to gross over $1 billion.
04) Zoe Saldana
$14.2 billion
Zoe Saldana needs more recognition. A Black, Latina, Oscar-winning actress, and star of one of the highest-grossing films in cinema history, Saldana also stars in Marvel as the anti-heroine Gamora. Like Chris Pratt, she’s a key player in all three Guardians of the Galaxy films, as well as starring in the two most financially successful Avengers films. Saldana, however, has an even more impressive trick up her sleeve: she’s the female lead in Avatar, one of cinema’s most profitable franchises, with only two films under her belt—both of which have surpassed $2 billion worldwide, with the first film approaching $3 billion. Oh yes, Saldana is expected to climb the ranks soon, quite possibly becoming number one and taking Johansson’s throne. It turns out that in December we’ll get the third Avatar, which promises to shake things up again.
03) Robert Downey Jr.
$14.3 billion
And if the cards will be shuffled again after the third ‘Avatar’ arrives in December, we can say the same for 2026. It turns out that next year will mark Robert Downey Jr.’s return to the MCU, this time as the villain Doctor Doom. And of course, the character will be essential to the fifth ‘Avengers’, as well as ‘Secret Wars,’ the sixth Avengers. For now, Downey holds third place, having starred in three solo ‘Iron Man’ films, four ‘Avengers,’ and was a key player in the third ‘Captain America’ and the first solo ‘Spider-Man’ film in the MCU. In addition to everything else the star has done,
02) Samuel L. Jackson
$14.6 billion
If there’s one actor who has been in almost every Marvel movie, it’s Samuel L. Jackson and his Nick Fury. In other words, no other film has achieved as much success. In addition to countless MCU hits, including ‘Captain Marvel’ and ‘Spider-Man: Far From Home,’ Jackson also starred in hits like ‘Kong: Skull Island’ and is the voice of Frozone in Disney’s ‘The Incredibles,’ the latter of which surpassed $1 billion at the box office. Oh, and we couldn’t forget the ‘Star Wars’ prequel trilogy, a smash hit in the 2000s.
01) Scarlett Johansson
$14.8 billion
Now, we’ve reached the new champion of the whole thing. Scarlett Johansson has always been a bankable actress, ever since she decided to say yes to the role of Natasha Romanoff, Marvel’s Black Widow, debuting in ‘Iron Man 2’ (2010). Since then, she’s had almost as many appearances as Samuel L. Jackson.
Other than that, Johansson still has ‘Lucy’ (US$469 million), was the voice of the snake Kaa in the live-action ‘The Jungle Book’ (US$967 million) and the teenage porcupine Ash in the animated franchise ‘Sing’ (US$634 million and US$408 million). But the nail in the coffin was the recent ‘Jurassic World: Afterlife’, which has already grossed US$647 million worldwide.
