Aug. 22 (UPI) — Mark Wahlberg claimed the top spot on Forbes’ list of the highest-paid actors in 2017, ahead of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Vin Diesel.
According to the list, Wahlberg earned $68 million before taxes, his highest earnings ever, due to fees for films that include “Transformers: The Last Knight” and the upcoming “Daddy’s Home 2.”
Wahlberg received a massive pay day for the most recent “Transformers” film, despite poor reviews and the lowest gross income for the franchise, due to fixed compensation.
His earnings in 2017 edged out Johnson, the former wrestler and “Baywatch” star, who earned $65 million, as well as Johnson’s “Fast and the Furious” co-star Vin Diesel, who earned $54.5 million in 2017.
Comedian Adam Sandler followed the trio of action stars, earning $50.5 million, largely due to his lucrative film deal with Netflix.
Actors featured in Marvel’s cinematic universe dominated the list, including “Avengers” stars Robert Downy Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo and “Guardians of the Galaxy” star Chris Pratt.
The list of the largest male earners in Hollywood also included international stars such as Jackie Chan, as well as Bollywood artists Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Akshay Kumar.
The rest of the list included industry veterans Tom Hanks, Tom Cruise and Matt Damon.
Wahlberg’s $68 million earnings in 2017 were nearly three times Forbes’ highest-paid actress, Emma Stone, who made $26 million in 2017 off the strength of her Oscar-winning film “La La Land.”
Stone’s “La La Land” co-star Ryan Gosling placed 14th on the list of the highest-paid actors in Hollywood, despite out-earning Stone with $29 million in 2017.
