Three other Indian actors make the cut.
Four Bollywood actors made the cut for Forbes’ list of the top 20 highest paid actors in the world. Shah Rukh Khan has been ranked 8th with $33 million in earnings to become the highest paid Indian actor.
Akshay Kumar has been ranked 10 with $31.5 million and Salman Khan came in 14 with $28.5 million in earnings. Veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan earned $20 million in 2015 to be placed 18.
Dwayne “The Rock†Johnson topped the list with $64.5 million earnings. His earnings more than doubled in a year due to his upfront fees for movies including Central Intelligence and Fast 8, as well as the forthcoming Baywatch.
A staple of the Fast and Furious franchise, the stellar box office performance of his recent films (including 2015’s hit San Andreas) have seen his quotes skyrocket, said Forbes.
Though Jackie Chan has not been active in Hollywood for some time, his movie ventures in China made him the second highest paid actor with $61 million in earnings. He is followed by Matt Damon, who tallied $55 million, Tom Cruise (No. 4, $53 million) and Johnny Depp (No. 5, $48 million).
Shah Rukh Khan returned to the list after the gap of a year.
“Khan continues to rule Bollywood’s box office with the lead role in hit Dilwale and many others, earning multimillion-dollar upfront fees and a cut of the back-end for his efforts. He also cashes in on endorsement deals for dozens of brands most Americans have likely never heard of,†said Forbes.
Shah Rukh Khan banked as much as Downey Jr., while Akshay Kumar ($31.5 million) earned the same as Brad Pitt in our scoring period.
“One of Bollywood’s busiest leading men, Kumar banked top rupee for three hit films in our scoring period. The action star bolsters his earnings endorsing a wider range of products than most Hollywood shills: Honda motorcycles, a dairy producer and a gold loan company, among others,†Forbes wrote about Akshay Kumar.
Though Salman Khan had hits like Bajrangi Bhaijaan, and Prem Ratan Dhan Payo to his account last year, he dropped a few spots from the previous ranking.
“One of Bollywood’s leading men, Khan makes top rupee from movies such as Bajrangi Bhaijaan and numerous endorsements. In May 2015 he was sentenced to five years in prison for a 2002 hit-and-run car incident which killed a homeless man; his sentence was suspended,†wrote Forbes.
Amitabh Bachchan, who is in his seventies, is one of the senior most actors in the list.
“Bollywood stalwart has starred in more than 150 movies in a career that spans five decades. The 73-year-old is busy as ever: he appeared in four films during our scoring period,†noted Forbes.