Second only to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars is the highest-grossing film franchise of all time, having made an incredible $10.3 billion (£7.7bn) to date at the box office. However, the real amount is much higher once you factor in the other lucrative money-making branches of the epic space saga, including toys, video games, merchandise, and TV spin-offs.
So who has made a fortune from the force? From the actors and directors to George Lucas himself, read on to discover whose bank balance is now interstellar thanks to the franchise. All dollar amounts in US dollars.
While Canadian actor Hayden Christensen had already starred in films including The Virgin Suicides and Life as a House, it was the role of Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars prequel trilogy that propelled him to fame and fortune.
It’s unknown how much he was paid for his performance as the ill-fated Anakin but based on the fact that his role in Star Wars remains his most famous part to date, it’s fair to assume most of his $12 million (£9m) net worth has come via the blockbuster franchise.
And Christensen's bank account is on course to prosper even more from the space saga: he's currently set to star in two Disney+ Star Wars shows.
In May 2022, he will feature in the highly anticipated Obi-Wan Kenobi series, and he's also scheduled to appear in Ahsoka, which begins production in April and is centred around Ahsoka Tano, the Jedi Knight from The Mandalorian.
Unlike Boyega and Ridley, Adam Driver was already an established actor before Star Wars, having already earned three Emmy nominations for his performance in the HBO comedy series Girls.
This meant he was able to command a mid-to-high six-figure salary for The Force Awakens. And it’s probably a good thing Disney paid out for Driver, as it’s hard to imagine anyone else in the role of troubled Sith Lord, Kylo Ren. As for the next two entries in the franchise, Driver's salary is estimated to have risen to seven figures.
Driver's current net worth is estimated to be around $16 million (£12.2m). Studios have been eager to snap Driver up since Star Wars, and he's starred in everything from the critically-acclaimed family drama Marriage Story to Ridley Scott’s historical epic The Last Duel.
While Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford made pitiful salaries for A New Hope, leading man Mark Hamill banked a sizeable $650,000 (£494k) for his role as Luke Skywalker. That’s $3.1 million (£2.3m) in today’s money.
While his salary for the next two movies is unknown, it’s probably safe to assume that he also got a pay rise, like his co-stars Fisher and Ford. Hamill also received 0.25% of the movie’s total profits.
Despite the fact that his role in 2015's The Force Awakens was no more a cameo, Hamill apparently still earned somewhere between $1 million (£759.5k) and $3 million (£2.3m).
As for reprising his role as the Jedi Master in The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker, it's estimated that Hamill took home a seven-figure sum for each film. Today, Hamill is reportedly worth $18 million (£13.7m) but, with Luke Skywalker being his most iconic role, it's safe to assume that nearly all of his fortune stems from Star Wars.
The Force Awakens was a breakout role for British actor John Boyega in 2015, and he was reportedly paid somewhere between $100,000 (£76.2k) and $300,000 (£228.6k) for playing the role of Finn, a former stormtrooper.
As for starring in 2017’s The Last Jedi and 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker, it’s estimated that Boyega earned a more sizeable seven-figure salary.
According to The Sunday Times Rich List 2021, John Boyega is worth a cool £18 million ($23.6m). Star Wars definitely put the young star on the map and undoubtedly helped him land other lucrative roles, including Detroit and Pacific Rim: Uprising.
Like Boyega, Daisy Ridley was also only paid between $100,000 (£76.2k) and $300,000 (£228.6k) for her role as Rey, the budding young Jedi, in The Force Awakens.
It’s unlikely Ridley was complaining though; prior to joining the Star Wars cast, the struggling actress was earning minimum wage in a bar. Her salary for the next two instalments is believed to have risen to seven figures.
Ridley featured on The Sunday Times Young Rich List in 2020, where her net worth was stated as being £17 million ($22.3m).
While Star Wars remains her biggest role to date, Ridley has boosted her fortune by appearing in other major motion pictures. This includes the star-studded Agatha Christie mystery Murder on the Orient Express, and Chaos Walking, a dystopian drama.
Natalie Portman was only 16 years old when she played Padmé Amidala in The Phantom Menace. Despite her tender age, the starlet had already racked up a seriously impressive filmography, having appeared in everything from the gritty crime thriller Leon: The Professional to the Woody Allen musical Everyone Says I Love You.
While Portman's Star Wars salary is unknown, she once admitted that she thought that the controversial and critically panned prequels had ruined her promising career, stating: "Everyone thought I was a terrible actress. I was in the highest-grossing film of the decade, and no director wanted to work with me".
Fortunately, it all worked out well in the end for Portman, who was soon back in high demand. She has since starred in everything from the psychological thriller Black Swan, for which she won the Academy Award for Best Actress, to the Marvel blockbuster Thor. She has also enjoyed a high-profile brand partnership with Dior since 2010.
Today, Portman is said to be worth between $54 million (£41m) and $90 million (£68.4m).
James Earl Jones may not have actually appeared on screen but he is still a vital part of the Star Wars galaxy as the voice of the menacing Darth Vader.
When negotiating his salary for the role in Star Wars (A New Hope), Jones was offered a share in the film's profits, or an upfront payment of $7,000 (£5.2k), which is the equivalent of $33,640 (£25.2k) today. Doubtful of Star Wars' box office potential – and needing to pay his rent – the struggling actor took the cash.
Given that Star Wars went on to gross close to $775.4 million (£581.4m), or an eye-watering $3.7 billion (£2.8bn) when inflation-adjusted, Jones made a costly decision. Even a small share in the film's profits could have banked him a nest egg of millions.
However, it’s not all doom and gloom. Jones went on to voice the all-powerful Sith Lord in future instalments of the franchise and, given that his net worth today is estimated at around $40 million (£30m), he evidently negotiated himself a much larger salary...
While Ewan McGregor didn’t negotiate as good a deal as original Obi-Wan actor Alec Guinness, he still allegedly banked a juicy $7 million (£5.5m) for Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. That’s $10.3 million (£7.8m) when adjusted for inflation.
His salary for the previous two entries, The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones, is unknown, though we imagine it was on a similar scale. What’s more, McGregor still receives an unknown amount of residual payments for Star Wars. It was reported in 2020 that he splits the royalties with his ex-wife as part of his divorce settlement.
Today, the Hollywood star, who’s acted in everything from Moulin Rouge! to The Impossible, is reportedly worth between $25 million (£19m) and $50 million (£38m).
But he’s not done growing his fortune from the force just yet. McGregor stars in the soon to be released series Obi-Wan Kenobi. Streaming platform Disney+ is reportedly spending multi-millions on the miniseries, so we imagine that McGregor will surely be taking home a hefty chunk of change.
While the starring trio of Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, and Harrison Ford received up-front salaries for Star Wars, Alec Guinness, who played Obi-Wan Kenobi, made the business-savvy decision to instead ask for a 2.25% share of A New Hope’s profits. As a result, he walked away with $3.3 million (£2.5m), or a staggering $15.9 million (£12m) in today’s money.
In total, his involvement in the Star Wars franchise is said to have earned Guinness around $50 million (£37.9m).
At the time of his death, Guinness was reportedly worth $100 million (£75.9m), which means around half of his staggering fortune came from Star Wars.
Despite this, the actor wasn’t afraid to be vocal about his dislike for the space opera, even going as far to call it "fairy-tale rubbish" in a letter to a friend. He also said in the DVD commentary of A New Hope that he "shrivelled up" when people mentioned the movies to him.
You may not recognise John Williams' name or face, but you'll certainly know his music. Williams is responsible for creating the iconic Star Wars score, and has been the composer on all nine movies in the series.
However, Williams’ salary for scoring A New Hope was far from intergalactic. It’s reported that he was paid somewhere between $25,000 (£19k) and $50,000 (£38k) for his work on the movie – $120,150 (£91.3k) to $240,300 (£182.6k) in today's money.
However, the composer has certainly pocketed from the space saga in the long run. He reportedly received a share of the film's profits and, while the exact figure is unknown, even a tiny percentage would have banked him big bucks given Star Wars' box office triumph.
Furthermore, scoring Star Wars thrust Williams into the musical spotlight. He has gone on to create music for other beloved movie series, including Jurassic Park and Harry Potter. His reported net worth is $100 million (£75.9m), though some sources suggest it could be as high as $300 million (£227.8m).
Han Solo is a favourite with fans and a core part of the Star Wars saga – so you may be surprised to hear that actor Harrison Ford only took home $1,000 (£761) per week for his starring role in A New Hope.
In total, he banked $10,000 (£7.6k), or $48,000 (£36.5k) in today’s money. He earned a more sizeable $100,000 (£76k) and $500,000 (£380.4k) for reprising his role in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi respectively, or $361,400 (£274.9k) and $1.4 million (£1m) when inflation-adjusted.
In addition, Ford also reportedly received 0.25% of the trilogy's total profits.
Ford wanted his beloved space smuggler character to die in The Empire Strikes Back, but we imagine he's glad that he was overruled as his biggest Star Wars payday came from 2015’s The Force Awakens. He was paid around $15 million (£11.4m) upfront to appear in the movie.
However, back-end profit deals meant that Ford actually made at least $25 million (£19m) from the movie. Undoubtedly, Han Solo cemented Ford’s status as an action star, and he went on to feature in other blockbuster flicks, including the Indiana Jones franchise.
Today, Ford is worth somewhere between $230 million (£174.9m) and $300 million (£228m).
While the new generation of actors have made millions from the latest movies in the franchise, so too has director J.J. Abrams.
He was reportedly paid around $4.8 million (£3.6m) upfront to direct The Force Awakens, plus given a 2% share of the movie’s profits. Despite the fact that the acclaimed director stated that he was finished with Star Wars after helming one instalment, Disney allegedly paid some serious cash to get him to return for The Rise of Skywalker after director Rian Johnson's The Last Jedi was panned by critics.
While his salary is unknown, Disney reportedly had to also pay a "one-time shot" fee to Paramount, with whom Abrams has had a $10 million (£7.6m) per year deal with 2006.
While Abrams undoubtedly banked some serious cash from Star Wars, he’s also bolstered his $300 million (£228.5m) fortune from helming the likes of the Star Trek movies, as well as Mission Impossible III and Super 8.
Kathleen Kennedy might not have the same name recognition as others on the list, but she’s a vital part of the Star Wars empire.
Kennedy has been the president of Lucasfilm since Disney acquired it in 2012. Lucasfilm created and produced the Star Wars and Indiana Jones movies, and as such Kennedy is responsible for producing The Force Awakens, Rogue One, The Last Jedi, Solo, and The Rise of Skywalker. She also serves as a producer on the hit Disney+ shows The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett.
Kennedy has a staggering $300 million (£228.5m) net worth. It’s unclear how much of her fortune is derived from her Star Wars credits, as the superstar producer has worked on over 70 films, including the Jurassic Park franchise, E.T. the Extra Terrestrial, and Schindler’s List, but it's likely to be a substantial share.
And now onto perhaps the most surprising entry on the list. Steven Spielberg has banked at least $40 million (£30.5m) from Star Wars, and not thanks to his directing skills. Spielberg actually won the money from a bet.
In the 1970s, Spielberg and his friend George Lucas (pictured together) were working on their respective films, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Star Wars. Up-and-coming director Lucas was convinced that Star Wars would be a flop and that Close Encounters would be a success, and therefore he proposed a cheeky wager. If Spielberg gave Lucas a 2.5% share of the profits of Close Encounters, he’d give him the same share in Star Wars in return. Spielberg decided to take a risk and accept the bet...
And that’s how, without so much as lifting a finger, Spielberg made tens of millions of dollars from Stars Wars.
Of course, this figure is a drop in the ocean compared to his mammoth $3.7 billion (£2.8bn) fortune, but pocketing $40 million (£30.5m) from a single bet is still quite the tale.
And finally, no one has made a bigger fortune from the force than George Lucas himself. But the Star Wars creator has one incredibly business-savvy decision to thank for his billions.
In 1973, Lucas was paid $150,000 (£114.4k) to direct American Graffiti, which is $990,000 (£755k) in today’s money. The comedy-drama was a major hit, becoming one of the highest-grossing films of all time. As a result, Lucas was given a salary increase of over 300%, and was offered $500,000 (£381.3k) to helm Star Wars. That’s $2.4 million (£1.8m) in today's money.
Lucas declined the pay bump, and instead offered to keep his salary at $150,000 on the condition that he retain both the merchandising and sequel rights for Star Wars. Fortunately for Lucas, the movie executives at Fox weren't banking on the film being a success, and they agreed to his terms.
Today, Lucas is worth a staggering $6.1 billion (£4.6bn). While he’s helmed other movies, including the huge Indiana Jones franchise, it was his idea for an epic space opera called Star Wars that is responsible for most of his incredible wealth.
Now discover which Star Wars movies have made the most money