Some actors cash-in millions per film, even for a few minutes appearance, as they are considered box office magnets. It doesn’t always work though. A few are paid more than their work deserves.
Forbes compiled their yearly list of the most overpaid stars by looking at the actors’ salaries compared to how much their three most recent films grossed and how much the movies cost to make. According to Forbes, in order for a film to earn money, it has to make twice its production budget in ticket sales, plus the millions spent on marketing. Most films on these actors’ résumés didn’t meet this criteria. The biggest movie flop is Jack Black’s “The Big Year,” which cost $41 million to produce, but only brought in $7 million in ticket sales.
But the top of the list is reserved to Eddie Murphy whose career has just collapsed. Imagine That, A Thousand Words and Meet Dave were colossal flops. Last year’s Tower Heist, which was supposed to be something of a return to form for the comedian, failed to wow at the box office, earning $153 million on an estimated budget of $75 million. (In order to even come close to turning a profit, a movie has to earn twice its production budget in ticket sales, plus the millions spent on marketing.) Murphy then backed out of hosting the Oscars, which didn’t help his reputation.
Here are the top 10 Hollywood actors not worthy of their fat paychecks.
10| Katherine Heigl
The actress earns her films $3.40 for every $1 she pockets. Heigl’s films have been in steady decline since her huge success in “Knocked Up.” Her 2012 movie, “One for The Money,” didn’t attract enough people to the theaters to turn a profit.
> Last three films:
“One For The Money”: $40 million budget, $37 million worldwide gross.
“New Year’s Eve”: $56 million budget, $142 million worldwide gross.
“Life As We Know It”: $38 million budget, $106 million worldwide gross.
9| Sandra Bullock
Bullock star earns her films $5 for every $1 she’s paid. While “The Blind Side” was a major box office success, “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close” barely made enough to cover its budget, despite its Oscar nomination for best movie.
> Last three films:
“Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close”: $40 million budget, $48 million worldwide gross.
“The Blind Side”: $29 million budget, $309 million worldwide gross.
“All About Steve”: $15 million budget, $40 million worldwide gross.
8| Jack Black
Black returns $5.20 for every $1 he profits. Like other stars on our list, one of his film’s flops over shadows his other project’s successes. “The Big Year” was a giant failure, not even grossing 20 percent of its estimated budget.
> Last three films:
“The Big Year”: $41 million budget, $7 million worldwide gross.
“Kung Fu Panda 2″: $150 million budget, $666 million worldwide gross.
“Gulliver’s Travels”: $112 million budget, $237 million worldwide gross.
7| Adam Sandler
Funnyman Sandler returns $6.30 for every $1 he pockets. While “Hotel Transylvania” was a major success this year, it was overshadowed by the disaster of “That’s My Boy.”
> Last three films:
“Hotel Transylvania”: $85 million budget, $297 million worldwide gross.
“That’s My Boy”: $70 million budget, $58 million worldwide gross.
“Jack and Jill”: $80 million budget, $150 million worldwide gross.
6| Nicholas Cage
This “National Treasure” star brings in $6 for every $1 he makes. “Drive Angry’s” dismal box office return made him a contender for this year’s list.
> Last three films:
“Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance”: $57 million budget, $133 million worldwide gross.
“Drive Angry”: $50 million budget, $29 million worldwide gross.
“Season of the Witch”: $40 million budget, $92 million worldwide gross.
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