Richest actors in the world

Money and fame are probably the best parts of being an actor. Although an actor’s success should be measured by how famous he is, it is impractical to try and measure fame. Something that can be measured, however, is Money. Though it does not acutely valuate the accomplishments of the actor (he/she may have other assets that make money), it gives us a picture of who stands where on the money tree and who has been successful not only in his acting career but in his life, because in the end, how much ever one denies it, your money defines who you are. Though only few actors flaunt their wealth, the net worth of almost every celebrity is public knowledge. Here is the list of the top 10 richest actors in the world (List does not contain Television actors and actors who are not acting as of May,2013).

10. Robert De Niro- $185 Million

As one of the greatest actors in Hollywood, De Niro’s position on this list is justified by his many successes both as an actor and a producer. De Niro is most known for his roles in Taxi Driver, Godfather II, Meet the Fockers and Silver Linings Playbook. He currently demands a salary in excess of $20 Million per film. He owns a $14 Million house in the heart of New York City. He owns 27 restaurants all around the world and also co-owns many of the restaurants in the Nobu chain. He also owns The Greenwich Hotel and also the restaurant Locanda Verde located inside it. He also co-founded the Tribeca Film Festival and the film studio, Tribeca productions. Robert De Niro is acting in three more movies that will be released by 2014.

9. Salman Khan- $200 Million

As one of the leading stars in Bollywood, it is, in no way, a surprise to see Salman Khan in this list. This immensely popular North Indian actor and son of screenwriter Salim Khan shot to fame for his performance in his second  film, Maine Pyaar Kiya. He has done over 80 Hindi films till date, with his latest, Ek Tha Tiger, grossing 1.86 Billion which is the second highest in Bollywood.  He was voted the best looking man in India and the 7th best in the world by People’s Magazine in 2004. Salman owns six motor vehicles including two Audis, a Land Rover and two Suzuki bikes. He is also in the center of many controversies both romantic and legal. However, Salman Khan remains one of the most influential people in Bollywood. He has a large fan base which is evident from the several Favorite Hero Filmfare awards that he has won. He often lends his star power for charitable causes. He started his own non-profit charitable foundation called Being Human: Salman Khan Foundation and also has a production company called Being Human Productions which donates all its profits to the Being Human Foundation.

8. Will Smith- $200 Million

Will Smith is an outstanding actor and also a successful rapper and has a net worth of $200 Million. He achieved modest fame as a rapper under the name, The Fresh Prince. His roles in Bad Boys, I,Robot, The Independence Day and Men in Black made him one of the most popular actors in the world. He has won 3 Grammy awards and has received two Oscar Nominations for best actor for the movies, Ali and In Pursuit of Happyness. He has also had great success in Television especially in the NBC show, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Smith has reportedly made donations to President Barack Obama’s first presidential campaign. Will smith owns a massive and lavish residential estate called The Calabasas estate in Malibu California, where he and his family currently stay. The estate is valued a $20 Million and it boasts of full size tennis, basketball and volleyball courts, a pool, a picturesque private lake and a state of the art Gym.

7. Leonardo DiCaprio- $215 Million

Hailed by many as the most versatile actor in the world, Leonardo DiCaprio proved his versatility by bagging nine Oscar nominations for various films and various roles. His debut film was a sci-fi horror called Critters 3, but it was James Cameron’s Titanic which gave him international fame. From there it was a one way trip to the top, with movies like Catch Me If You Can, Shutter Island, Aviator, Blood Diamond and Django Unchained. One of his recent movies, Christopher Nolan’s Inception earned high critical acclaim and grossed $825 Million in which he got a solid chunk of the profits. He is known to receive a high fee upfront for all his movies. He owns a Carbon Beach house in Malibu California which is currently valued at $23 million. The estate is among three ocean front properties owned by DiCaprio in the same area. Rising to fame with Titanic, DiCaprio could have easily become a romantic heart-throb or even an action star. But he waited for the proper scripts and chose directors like Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg and Christopher Nolan. His diverse and intense characters made him extremely popular the world over.

6. Tom Cruise- $250 Million

Tom Cruise is a 3 time Oscar nominated American actor and a multi-millionaire film producer. . His first major blockbuster was 1983’s Risky Business, which literally made him the most sought after actor in the business. He is the only actor to have his six consecutive movies gross more than $100 million. A string of Hollywood hits and he was clearly leading the way, both in terms of cash and fan following. As a producer, he was even more successful. The Mission Impossible franchise, which is a baby of his own production company, is one of the highest grossing movie franchises of all times. He is also known for his roles in Top Gun, A Few Good Men, Rain Man, Tropic Thunder and Steven Spielberg’s Minority Report.  He is the only person to make it to the top of Forbes Celebrity 100 power list not once, but twice. He owns a $35 Million estate called The Beverly Hills Mansion in Beverly Hills, CA.  He is also Hollywood’s highest paid actor.

5. Sylvester Stallone- $275 Million

Known worldwide for his title roles in two of the most successful movie franchises, Rocky and Rambo, Sylvester Stallone boasts of a net worth of $275 Million. Stallone had it rough in his childhood, with his parents getting divorced when he was nine. After that, he was raised in 5 different foster homes and his inspiration to act came from the need to impress those strangers who tried to raise him. Stallone personifies the phoenix metaphor, by rising from the ashes to become a great action hero in Hollywood. He has also directed and written stories for many of his films. His latest venture, The Expendables franchise, also grossed money the world over mainly due to its pure action based script and exquisite star cast of action veteran heroes. He owns a Beverly Hills mansion worth $10 Million in California and also has a $4.95 million lakeside home nearby.

4. Tom Hanks- $350 Million

Thomas Jeffery Hanks is an American actor, screenwriter, producer and director. Tom Hanks’ career is the stuff of which showbiz legends are made. The affable actor first came to prominence in the 1984 romantic comedy Splash.  Tom Hanks’ role as Robert Langdon in the movie Angels & Demons reportedly fetched him the highest pay ever for an actor. He has won two consecutive Academy Awards for best actor for the movies Philadelphia and Forrest Gump respectively. He is also well known for his roles in The Da Vinci Code, Apollo 13, Cast Away, Catch Me If You Can and You’ve Got Mail. Tom Hanks has made donations to support numerous Democratic politicians and has been quite vocal regarding his support for same-sex marriage, environmental causes and alternative fuels. An advocate of eco-friendly technologies, he owns both the Toyota RAV4 EV and the first production AC propulsion eBox, which are electric vehicles. He also owns the costliest house in Florida and also the Pacific Palisades in Los Angeles.

3. Johnny Depp- $350 Million

The only man who can equal or maybe even outclass Leonardo DiCaprio when it comes to versatility is Johnny Depp. He came into limelight in early 80s with a television series 21 Jump Street, but soon hit the big screen with his critically acclaimed character Edwin Scissorhands and later took the Box Office by storm with one of the most successful movie franchises till date, Pirates of the Caribbean. He is also known for his roles in Sleepy Hollow, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Tourist, Public Enemies and the 2011 animated film Rango. He owns three houses, Somerset Mansion, West Hollywood Mansion and Plan-de-la Villa which is located in France. He also has a production company called Infinitum Nihil that has many successful movies in credit. He drives a vintage 1959 Corvette Roadster. His lavish assets don’t end here, as they include an entire island called Little Halls Pond Cay located in Exuma Land and Sea Park which is worth $3.6 Million and a fifty-six foot luxury Yacht called Vajoliroja.

2. Keanu Reeves- $350 Million

Second on this list is Keanu Reeves, the handsome musician turned actor who dedicated 27 years of his life (since 1985) to the film industry. Now worth $350 Million, it is very difficult to believe that Keanu was living in rented houses and hotels till 2003 when he bought his Hollywood Hills home for $5 Million. Known very well worldwide for his role as Neo Anderson or The One in The Matrix, Keanu made more than half of his wealth from the massively successful Matrix Trilogy. The trilogy was well received by the audience and critics and was lauded for its superior graphics, action sequences and mind boggling sci-fi script. Reeves’ character, Neo, became one the greatest believable sci-fi successes in Hollywood history. He is also known for the action thriller, Speed, in which he took lead opposite Sandra Bullock. He has 4 automobiles which include a Porsche and a Harley Davidson.

1. Shahrukh Khan- $600 Million

Sitting pretty on the top of the list is The “Badsha of Bollywood”, King Khan whose net worth is a whopping $600 Million. Currently the second most famous Indian actor only behind Superstar Rajinikanth, Shahrukh Khan set an example by rising up the ranks from a simple middle class family to becoming the richest actor in the world. He has done over 75 Hindi films which have grossed around $18 Million, making him one of the most successful actors in India. He is well known for his romantic films, DDLJ and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and his patriotic endeavors, Swades and Chak de India. He is the co-owner off the IPL Franchise Kolkata Knight Riders which is worth $75 Million and is also the co-chairman of the production company, Red Chillies Entertainment. He also co-owns the production company Dreamz Unlimited. He has one of the most amazing houses in India, called Mannat, which is a projection of King Khan’s lavish lifestyle. Apart from this he also owns a house at The Palm Jumeirah in Dubai, UAE. He owns six cars which include an Audi, two BMWs and a Rolls Royce. SRK, as he is often called, is known to make very generous donations to many charitable foundations and is also a board member of the Make a Wish foundation. His efforts to improve health care and spread education to underprivileged children earned him UNESCO’s Pyramide con Marni award.