We all know that actors can bank enviable amounts of money to star in movies. But for an elite group of top-tier talent, their salaries can reach staggering sums.
Read on as we countdown Hollywood's highest-paid movie roles of all time. There are some surprises on the way to the top spot...
All dollar amounts in US dollars. Pre-2023 figures have been adjusted for inflation to give a more accurate reflection of their value in today's money.
Leonardo DiCaprio starred in Martin Scorsese’s film Killers of the Flower Moon, which was released in October 2023.
The Hollywood heartthrob, who also served as an executive producer on the project, received an impressive $30 million (£22.3m) for his role in the movie.
The flick is based on David Grann's best-selling non-fiction book Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI, and also stars Robert De Niro, Jesse Plemons, and Brendan Fraser.
Ryan Reynolds banked $27 million for his role in the Netflix action movie Six Underground. Given that the pulse-racing flick dropped back in 2019, that's around $35.2 million (£25.8m) when adjusted for inflation.
Directed by Michael Bay, the action-epic isn't the only time streaming giant Netflix has forked out big bucks for the highly bankable Reynolds. He also earned a cool $20 million ($24.6m/£18m today) for his role in 2021's Red Notice.
Emma Stone took home $26 million for her leading role in the 2016 musical La La Land, which is $36.1 million (£26.5m) when adjusted for inflation.
The star even topped Forbes's 2017 list of the world's highest-paid actresses due to her supersized salary. What's more, Stone's powerhouse performance as Mia also landed her the Best Actress Oscar that same year.
Featuring for the second time in our round-up, Leonardo DiCaprio earned $30 million for his role in Don’t Look Up. The disaster movie dropped on Netflix in 2021, so his inflation-adjusted payday was around $37 million (£27.1m).
However, DiCaprio’s generous salary sparked a gender pay gap debate following reports that his co-star Jennifer Lawrence was paid $5 million (£3.7m) less than him for her top-billed role, which equates to around 83 cents for every dollar that DiCaprio received.
Mark Wahlberg earned $30 million for starring in the 2020 Netflix action comedy Spenser Confidential, which amounts to around $38.7 million (£28.4m) in today's money.
Netflix's investment in the star paid off, with 85 million households watching the film within its first month on the platform. In fact, Insider reports that the movie is one of Netflix's most popular original movies of all time.
Unsurprisingly, a sequel to the 2020 flick is reportedly in the works, with Wahlberg set to reprise his lucrative role.
Gritty historical drama Emancipation boasted the star power of Will Smith and a production budget of $120 million (£88m), yet was panned by critics when it was released on Apple TV+ in October 2022.
Though the movie flopped, Smith still banked a juicy $35 million (that's $39.9m/£29.2m today) for his leading role as Peter, an enslaved man who escapes and is pursued by his captors.
This supersized payday isn't even his highest salary by a long shot – more on that later...
Jim Carrey earned $20 million for his role in 1996 comedy The Cable Guy, or around $42.5 million (£31.1m) when adjusted for inflation.
Though the funny flick is now a cult classic, it flopped upon its 1996 release, grossing just $60.2 million at the box office, meaning Carrey's salary alone accounted for roughly a third of earnings at the time.
Fortunately for him, the box office bomb hasn't stopped Carrey from banking megabucks on other projects...
When Jim Carrey starred in the 2008 comedy Yes Man, he made somewhere between $30 million and $50 million ($46.5m/£34.1m to $77.5m/£56.8m today).
The star reportedly turned down an upfront salary in exchange for an ownership stake in the movie. His risky decision paid off big time, with the film grossing an impressive $223 million worldwide, which amounts to $345 million (£253m) today.
Will Smith pocketed $40 million for the 2021 biopic King Richard, which is around $49.3 million (£36.1m) when adjusted for inflation.
His gripping portrayal of Richard Williams, the father of tennis stars Venus and Serena, landed Smith the prestigious Best Actor award at the 2022 Academy Awards.
Smith's momentous Oscar win was overshadowed when he slapped awards host Chris Rock live on air for making a joke about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith in a now-infamous incident.
Also in 2021, Denzel Washington earned $40 million for his role in the crime thriller The Little Things, which is $49.3 million (£36.1m) in today's money.
His plump salary was largely thanks to the backend buyout deal he negotiated when the movie was released exclusively in cinemas and on HBO Max.
The star-studded flick also featured Rami Malek and Jared Leto, though veteran actor Washington took home the biggest paycheque.
The 2024 film Red One is an action-packed Christmas movie starring Dwayne Johnson as the North Pole's Head of Security on a mission to rescue Santa from kidnappers.
Johnson earned a staggering $50 million (£36.7m) for the role, setting the record for the highest-paid performance in a Christmas film.
However, this isn’t the first time The Rock has commanded a massive fee. In 2019, he earned the inflation-adjusted equivalent of $29 million (£21.2m) each for his roles in Jumanji: The Next Level and Red Notice.
Robert Downey Jr. sent fans into a frenzy when he announced plans to return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2024. Rather than reprising his iconic role as Iron Man, he's set to portray the villainous Doctor Doom.
He'll play the character in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars, earning a minimum of $50 million (£36.7m) per movie, or $100 million (£73.4m) in total.
However, with box office performance incentives, the star could earn up to $200 million (£146.7m) for his work in both films.
Arnold Schwarzenegger demanded a $29 million payday to reprise his iconic role in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. The sci-fi flick was released in 2003, so that's a sizeable $52.6 million (£38.6m) in today's money.
In addition to his juicy salary, the action star received a generous $1.5 million 'perk package' for luxuries such as private jet transportation, swanky hotel accommodations, a limousine service, personal security, and a personal trainer.
Following the roaring success of murder mystery movie Knives Out, Netflix inked a $469 million (£344m) deal for the rights to stream two sequels to the 2019 hit.
The first follow-up, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, dropped on the streaming platform in September 2022.
Leading man Daniel Craig reportedly earned $50 million (£36.7m) per movie for his role as the kooky detective Benoit Blanc, which works out to $57 million (£41.8m) in today's money.
Cameron Diaz was paid just $1 million upfront for her role in the comedy flick Bad Teacher in 2011.
However, the savvy star negotiated a deal that saw her earn a juicy cut of the box office profits.
As it was a hit, Diaz walked away with a mammoth $42 million – or $62.3 million (£45.7m) in today's money.
Robert Downey Jr. earned around $50 million for playing Tony Stark – or Iron Man, as he's perhaps better known – in the 2012 superhero blockbuster The Avengers.
In today’s money? That’s a mighty $72.7 million (£53.3m). But this jaw-dropping sum still isn’t the biggest payday for the Hollywood icon.
Featuring once again in our round-up, Leonardo DiCaprio earned at least $50 million for the mind-bending thriller flick Inception – the equivalent of $76.5 million (£56.1m) when adjusted for inflation.
DiCaprio took a pay cut to appear in the 2010 project but reached an agreement with director Christopher Nolan that saw him take home a slice of the box office earnings and a cut of home entertainment sales and TV deals.
The clever negotiation makes this the Hollywood hotshot's biggest-ever payday – for now, at least.
Johnny Depp earned $55 million to reprise his role as Captain Jack Sparrow in 2011’s Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, which works out at around $81.6 million (£59.9m) today.
The swashbuckling adventure saga is one of the most expensive movies ever made and boasted a production budget of $410 million. That's an eye-watering $608 million (£446m) when adjusted for inflation.
Depp, who once claimed he was "overpaid" for the role of Captain Jack Sparrow, has reportedly banked over $300 million (£220m) for starring in the franchise's five films.
Tom Hanks has struck several 'act now, get paid later' deals on films that have seen him earn a portion of the box office profits.
This savvy strategy certainly paid off on the 1998 war epic Saving Private Ryan, with Hanks taking home $40 million, or a huge $81.9 million (£60.1m) in today's money.
But as we'll soon discover, this staggering sum isn't even the veteran star's biggest payday.
As already demonstrated, Netflix is willing to fork out serious megabucks to secure the biggest stars.
In 2014, the streaming giant reached a deal with Adam Sandler to star in four exclusive movies on the platform.
The actor reportedly received an incredible $62.5 million (£45.9m) per project, with comedy Western The Ridiculous 6 the first to land in 2015.
Adjusted for inflation, that works out to $88 million (£64.5m) today.
Netflix renewed the generous deal in 2017 and again in 2020. Sandler's most recent exclusive on the streaming service was Happy Gilmore 2, which released in 2025.
Robert Downey Jr. reprised his role as Iron Man for the penultimate time in 2018’s Avengers: Infinity War, earning a colossal $75 million for his efforts. In today's money, that’s an astonishing $99.6 million (£73m).
The star’s incredible salary was largely thanks to the backend profit deal he negotiated with Marvel Studios.
Sandra Bullock was paid an impressive $20 million upfront for her role in the 2013 space saga Gravity.
However, the shrewd actress also negotiated a 15% cut of the box office revenue, which scored her a salary of at least $70 million.
In today’s money, that’s a spectacular $100.3 million (£73.6m), making Bullock the highest-paid actress of all time for a single movie role.
To reprise his iconic role as Indiana Jones for the fourth time, Harrison Ford was paid $65 million for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. That's around $100.8 million (£74m) today.
Film studio Paramount agreed to a deal that saw leading man Ford, director Steven Spielberg, and producer George Lucas split a hefty chunk of the box office earnings.
The 2008 adventure epic grossed an outstanding $791 million globally, or a tidy $1.2 billion (£880m) today.
Johnny Depp portrayed one of his kookiest characters to date when he stepped into the zany shoes of the Mad Hatter for Tim Burton’s 2010 live-action retelling of Alice in Wonderland.
Depp earned around $68 million for his wacky role, or $104.1 million (£76.4m) in today’s money.
Tom Cruise earned $75 million for Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol.
As the action-packed flick dropped in 2011, that's an incredible $111 million (£81.4m) in today's money.
Cruise certainly earned his super-sized salary. The fearless star famously performed all of his own stunts, including scaling the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, which, at a dizzying 2,720 feet (830m) high, is the tallest building in the world.
Sticking with Cruise, the Hollywood icon raked in $13 million (£10.6m) upfront to reprise his role as fighter pilot Pete Mitchell in 2022's Top Gun: Maverick.
However, as an executive producer of the project, the action star also received a generous cut of the box office profits and home entertainment sales.
The long-awaited sequel to the 80s classic grossed almost $1.5 billion (£1.1bn) at the global box office, meaning Cruise banked over $100 million (£73.4m), or $114 million (£83.6m) today.
While Hollywood veteran Jack Nicholson has played many iconic roles over the course of his decades-spanning career, his most lucrative role was as the Joker in 1989’s Batman.
As well as an inflation-adjusted upfront fee of $15.3 million (£11.2m), the star negotiated a deal that saw him earn a portion of the box office earnings. He also received a cut of the merchandise sales from the movie's sequels, even though he didn't appear in them.
The chilling role earned Nicholson $50 million overall, the equivalent of a mind-boggling $134.6 million (£98.7m) today.
Featuring for the third and final time in our round-up, Will Smith earned $100 million for Men in Black 3.
As the sci-fi flick was released in 2012, that’s a staggering $145.4 million (£106.7m) when adjusted for inflation.
The Hollywood hotshot negotiated a performance-based pay deal to return as Agent J, which seriously worked in his favour when the movie made $654.2 million – the equivalent of $951 million (£697m) today – at the box office.
As with Saving Private Ryan, Tom Hanks opted for a performance-based paycheque for 1994’s Forrest Gump.
When the movie grossed an inflation-adjusted sum of $1.4 billion (£1bn) at the worldwide box office, Hanks took home around $65 million, which is $146 million (£107.1m) in today’s money.
Both a commercial and critical hit, the movie won the Best Picture prize at the 1995 Academy Awards, and Hanks also received the Best Actor gong.
For his starring role as Neo in The Matrix trilogy, Keanu Reeves reportedly banked $250 million, which works out to $83.3 million for each instalment of the sci-fi series.
When factoring in inflation, that’s a jaw-dropping $166 million (£121.7m) per movie.
However, Reeves famously donated a large chunk of his earnings from the franchise to the special effects and design crew. The generous star reportedly gave away as much as $75 million, with the crew receiving $1 million each, or $1.9 million (£1.4m) today.
The largest single movie payday of all time goes to Bruce Willis – and while you might expect that he banked the supersized salary from starring in blockbuster franchises such as Die Hard or The Expendables, the truth might surprise you...
For his role in 1999 low-budget horror movie The Sixth Sense, Willis earned $114 million, which is $228.5 million (£167.6m) in today's money.
To entice the Hollywood legend to star in the project, he was offered $14 million upfront and a 17.5% share of the box office profits. He's also reported to have received a similar percentage share of home entertainment and licensing proceeds.
And the gamble certainly paid off. The indie flick became an unexpected blockbuster, grossing an inflation-adjusted sum of $1.34 billion (£983m) at the global box office.
Now discover the celebrities who turned down multimillion-dollar paydays