We’re not really sure what’s worse, being named Hollywood’s Most Overpaid Actor, or winning that dubious honour because Adam Sandler was knocked out of the running, but either way, Johnny Depp may be soothing a slightly busted ego today.
The list of the top 10 most overcompensated thespians, assembled by financial bible Forbes, measures how much money top actors bring in at the box office for every dollar they earn, essentially reporting on how much bang they give studios for their buck.
Sandler topped the list in 2013 an 2014, but is absent from this year’s thanks to the fact that his four-film deal with Netflix will keep him out of cinemas for a while, leaving the top spot wide open.
Forbes figured out that, after a string of high-profile flops like The Lone Ranger, Mortdecai and Transcendence, Depp returns just $1.20 at the box office for every $1 he gets paid (all figures from here on out are in $US).
Denzel Washington is number two, pulling in $6.50 for every dollar he makes. That said, his movies – like 2 Guns and The Equalizer – tend to to well at the box office, suggesting that his presence on the list is more down to an inflated pay packet.
Your boy Channing Tatum also appears on the list, thanks to the spectacular failure of Jupiter Ascending, but Forbes admit that the successful Magic Mike XXL fell outside their release cutoff, and would have changed things had it been included.
Here is the list of the Top 10 most overpaid actors in all its glory; read it and weep.
1. Johnny Depp: $1.20 per $1
2. Denzel Washington: $6.50 per $1
3. Will Ferrell: $6.80 per $1
4. Liam Neeson: $7.80 per $1
5. Will Smith: $8.60 per $1
6. Christian Bale: $9.20 per $1
7. Channing Tatum: $10.80 per $1
8. Brad Pitt: $12.00 per $1
9. Ben Affleck: $12.30 per $1
10. Tom Cruise: $13.60 per $1
Story: The Guardian
Photo: David Livingston / Getty
Photo: David Livingston / Getty
