Two decades ago, the biggest movie stars, such as Julia Roberts and Nicole Kidman, would inarguably feature on the coveted list of highest-grossing actresses in the world. The advent of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which sparked a franchise invasion in Cinema, toppled the biggest movie stars from the list. Four MCU stars, including Scarlett Johansson and a Wizarding School alum, rule the list of the top five actresses of all time.
The top five highest-grossing actresses of all time have been part of lucrative, longest-running franchises. Scarlett Johansson, who made her big screen debut at the age of 10 in the film North, is the highest-grossing film actress of all time. The Black Widow star has starred in 40 films that have grossed over $14 billion worldwide. A significant portion of the revenue is owed to the MCU films, including Avengers, Iron Man, and Black Widow.
As reported earlier, at least four of the top 5 spots are dominated by MCU Stars. Only one non-marvel actress cracked the top five. Harry Potter star Emma Watson has grossed over $9 billion worldwide. Johansson leads by $5 billion against Watson, who ranks third.
However, Watson made the list with only 14 films compared to Johansson’s 40 movies. Last year, Scarlett Johansson was also the world’s highest-paid actress after her net worth increased to a staggering $165 million.
Meanwhile, despite starring in a blockbuster franchise, The Hunger Games, Jennifer Lawrence failed to crack the top five, landing at no. 9 with over $6 billion worldwide revenue.
Julia Roberts and Nicole Kidman, who have grossed over $5 billion and $ 4 Billion, respectively, failed to crack the top 10 list dominated by Marvel stars. Here are the five highest-grossing actresses of all time (via The Numbers)
- Scarlett Johansson (34 Films) – $14.4 Billion
- Zoe Saldana (34 films) $14.2 Billion
- Emma Watson (15 films ) – $9.2 Billion
- Karren Gillan (17 films) – $8.4 Billion
- Elizabeth Olsen (18 films) – $8.3 Billion
Zoe Saldana’s staggering revenue mainly stems from Marvel films, including the Guardians Of The Galaxy franchise. She is also a lead in James Cameron’s Avatar franchise, the world’s highest-grossing movie. Meanwhile, Karen Gillan made the list due to the MCU and the Jumanji franchise. Elizabeth Olsen, aka the Scarlet Witch, owes her success to the MCU.
Note: Box office numbers are based on estimates and various sources. Numbers have not been independently verified by Koimoi.
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