Hollywood's Most Overpaid Stars

The Star Economy: Hollywood's Most Overpaid Stars
by: Dorothy Pomerantz · November 18, 2009

Will Ferrell tops our list of actors who cost more than their box office worth.
LOS ANGELES -- This summer's "Land of the Lost" was one of those epic Hollywood disasters that makes outsiders question why anyone is in the movie business. The concept seemed like a good idea: pair funnyman Will Ferrell with a cult kids show from the '70s and hilarity is bound to ensue.

Or not. The film ended up costing an estimated $100 million and earned only $65 million at the worldwide box office. Universal studio heads Marc Shmuger and David Linde were subsequently fired. (For more on the movie's origins, see: "A Sleestak Comeback.")

"Land of the Lost"'s dismal box office helped land star Will Ferrell at the top of our annual list of Hollywood's Most Overpaid Stars. Ferrell is no longer the sure bet he seemed after hits like "Elf" ($220 million worldwide box office) and "Talladega Nights" ($162 million box office). Ferrell's 2008 film "Semi-Pro" earned only $43 million. "Step Brothers" did better with $128 million, but it wasn't enough to help Ferrell -- mainly because the star commands a high salary in comedies where he plays his trademark man-child role.

For every dollar Ferrell was paid, his films earned an average $3.29. Compare that to Shia LaBeouf, who topped our list of Best Actors for the Buck in August. For every dollar LaBeouf was paid, his films earned an average $160.

Second-worst? Ewan McGregor. The Scottish actor, best known for his work in films like "Trainspotting" and "Star Wars" (where he played a young Obi-Wan Kenobi), doesn't earn as much as some of the higher-profile actors on our list. But his recent movies have performed poorly, making him a terrible investment for producers. For every dollar McGregor was paid, his films earned an average $3.75.

To create our list, we looked at the 100 biggest stars in Hollywood. To qualify, each actor had to have starred over the last five years in at least three movies that opened in more than 500 theaters. (In McGregor's case, we didn't include the 2008 Woody Allen movie "Cassandra's Dream," because it played in only 107 theaters.)

We didn't include animated films, because the actors aren't really the draw -- and they tend to take pay cuts for voice work.

We calculated each star's estimated earnings on each film, including up-front pay and any earnings from the film's box office receipts, DVD and TV sales. We then looked at each movie's estimated budget (not including marketing costs, which are susceptible to accounting chicanery) and box office, DVD and television earnings to figure out an operating income for each film.

We added up each star's compensation on his or her last three films and the operating income on those films and divided total operating income by the star's total compensation to come up with each return-on-investment number.

Besides Will Ferrell, other big names on our list include Eddie Murphy and Tom Cruise. Murphy (who ranks fourth) has commanded one of the highest quotes in Hollywood for his work in family comedies, thanks to the performance of movies like "The Nutty Professor," which grossed $274 million at the worldwide box office.

But lately his return on investment has fallen off a cliff. Last year's "Meet Dave" was a box office disaster, earning only $50 million worldwide. This year's "Imagine That" did even worse, bringing in $18 million. Murphy escaped being named the most overpaid star thanks to 2007's "Norbit," which earned $160 million. For every dollar Murphy was paid, his films earned an average $4.43.

Cruise ranks sixth with a return on investment of $7.18. The star has worked out unusual deals on past films where he takes nothing up front in return for a large chunk of first-dollar gross -- that means on stinkers like "Lions For Lambs," Cruise earned even if the studio (in this case, his studio, United Artists) didn't recoup its money. These are just the kinds of deals studios are trying to avoid.

In Pictures: Hollywood's 10 Most Overpaid Stars
To create our list, we looked at the 100 biggest stars in Hollywood. To qualify, each actor had to have starred over the last five years in at least three movies that opened in more than 500 theaters.

We then calculated a return-on-investment number for each star by dividing total operating income on the three films by the star's total compensation, including up-front salaries and earnings from DVD and TV sales.
No. 1 (Worst) Will Ferrell

Ferrell is one of the few Saturday Night Live stars to achieve real movie fame, thanks to films like Elf and Talladega Nights. The success of those comedies bumped up Ferrell's paycheck, but recently that has hurt his return-on-investment number. This summer's Land of the Lost flopped, earning only $65 million on an estimated budget of $100 million. That pushed Ferrell to the top of our overpaid list. For every $1 Ferrell was paid, his films earned an average $3.29.

No. 2 Ewan McGregor

Although he appeared as Obi-Wan Kenobi in the three new Star Wars films, McGregor is not the kind of actor who earns $15 million paychecks. Unfortunately, his low pay couldn't protect him from landing second on our list, because his recent movies have performed so badly. For every $1 McGregor earned in a starring role his films brought in an average $3.75.

No. 3 Billy Bob Thornton

Like McGregor, Thornton is one of the lower-paid actors on our list. He also suffers from a run of box office duds. His 2007 film Mr. Woodcock earned only $34 million; The Astronaut Farmer, from the same year, brought in just $11 million. For every $1 Thornton was paid, his films earned an average $4.

No. 4 Eddie Murphy

For a while, Murphy (the second SNL alum on our list) seemed like he could do no wrong in moderately budgeted family films. His updates of Dr. Doolittle and The Nutty Professor each earned $300 million and spawned successful sequels. But lately the Murphy magic seems to have dulled. His two most recent films, Meet Dave and Imagine That, were both box office bombs. For every $1 Murphy was paid, his films earned an average $4.43.

No. 5 Ice Cube

The hip-hop star has made a second career for himself as an actor in films like Are We There Yet? and Barbershop. Ice Cube earns a modest (by Hollywood standards) paycheck, but his recent films haven't performed very well. Last summer's The Longshots earned only $12 million. For every $1 Ice Cube was paid, his films earned $4.77.

No. 6 Tom Cruise

For a long time, Cruise had one of the best deals in Hollywood: He earned almost nothing up front, but took a large chunk of the first-dollar gross. Good for Cruise, but not so good for the studios he worked with. Sometimes the star ended up making money while the studio was still in the red. For every $1 Cruise was paid, his films earned and an average $7.18.

No. 7 Drew Barrymore

The only actress on our list, Barrymore has had more luck lately as a producer than as an actress. February's He's Just Not That Into You, which Barrymore produced, was a surprise hit earning $178 million. But the actress only had a supporting role in that film. The 2007 film Lucky You, in which Barrymore starred, earned a mere $8 million at the worldwide box office. For every $1 Barrymore was paid, her films earned an average $7.43.

No. 8 Leonardo DiCaprio

The young actor earns big paychecks for playing in serious movies that don't always earn out. Last year's Revolutionary Road was a modest hit, earning $75 million on an estimated budget of $35 million. So was Body of Lies, which brought in $115 million on an estimated budget of $70 million. But modest hits aren't enough when your star is earning DiCaprio-sized paychecks. For every $1 DiCaprio was paid, his movies earned an average $7.52.

No. 9 Samuel L. Jackson

As a supporting player, Jackson shines. But the prolific actor (he's appeared in seven movies over the last two years) has trouble carrying a film in the lead role. Recent films like Soul Man and Lakeview Terrace failed to wow at the box office. For every $1 Jackson was paid, his films earned an average $8.59.

No. 10 Jim Carrey

The funnyman made a radical deal on his recent film Yes Man, which made him an investor in the movie and gave him a healthy return. His ROI number gets pulled down on this list because of films like The Number 23, which earned $77 million worldwide. When stars are earning as much as Carrey does, their movies have to hit it out of the ballpark. For every $1 Carrey was paid, his films earned an average $8.62.

that is so crazy