Mark Wahlberg Dethrones Dwayne Johnson to Become the Highest-Paid Actor on Earth

Anyone else ever have nightmares about another 'Ted' sequel?

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Image via Paramount
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Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is no longer the highest-paid actor on the planet. Mark Wahlberg, last seen in the widely panned robot comedy Transformers: The Last Knight, is now on top of Forbes' annual list, with a pretax haul of $68 million during the 12-month ranking period.

Despite failing to secure the top spot, Johnson still had a phenomenal year. Though the much-hyped Baywatch didn't exactly do memorable numbers at the box office, Johnson—thanks to his HBO hit Ballers and the forthcoming Jumanji sequel—still brought in $65 million. Last year, Johnson topped the Forbes ranking with a mere $64.5 million.

Elsewhere in the top 10, Tom Cruise is still making Tom Cruise money, and Adam Sandler is seeing dividends from his Netflix-assisted return. Check out the 10 highest-paid actors on the face of the earth below, carefully listed in reverse order for no real reason:

  • Akshay Kumar $35.5 million
  • Salman Khan $37 million
  • Shah Rukh Khan $38 million
  • Tom Cruise $43 million
  • Robert Downey Jr. $48 million
  • Jackie Chan $49 million
  • Adam Sandler $50.5 million
  • Vin Diesel $54.5 million
  • Dwayne Johnson $65 million
  • Mark Wahlberg $68 million

As expected, the latest highest-paid actors ranking shows the gender pay gap is still alive and well. If you combine the earnings of this year's top 10 highest-paid actors, the haul is almost three times as large as the combined income of the top 10 highest-paid actresses.​ Forbescites ageism, lack of roles, and fewer opportunities for backend profit deals as factors in this glaring disparity. 

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Wahlberg will next be seen in the largely robot-free comedy Daddy's Home 2, alongside Will Ferrell and Mel Gibson. The premise, judging by the previous movie, the trailer and various context clues, revolves around multiple fathers coming home.

On a related note, Wahlberg and Puff Daddy are helping build hype for the upcoming Mayweather/McGregor fight, with the two of them hopping in the ring for a sparring match. Puffy is still Team Mayweather, while Wahlberg is putting his full support behind McGregor. Who you got?

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