Note - this answer was first written in 2015, the initial answer reflected that time. Updated in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.
*Note that was the final full edit in 2021. This question just popped up in July 2023, and curious, I took another look and added a few actors to the list - any text in italics was added in the newest update. To note, the starting net worth is $300M for men, $200M for women - women consistently earn less, so I lowered the bar to include more actresses.
**Also note that the individual wealth numbers were not updated for anyone, just new names added to the list. In checking, most of their worth is the same or close enough to not warrant a complete update.
Actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus is an heir to the Louis-Dreyfus Group, a French company built by her great great grandfather in the mid-19th Century. Her father, Gerard C. Louis-Dreyfus was chairman of the company (passed away in 2016) with L-D worth about $3.4 billion, but the issues of inheritance are not fully known since other children were involved from the father’s second marriage). Her personal net worth ranges in multiple sources from $200M to $280M.
Actress Jami Gertz is a philanthropist and married to billionaire Tony Ressler, they are part owners of sports teams, and Ares Management, with a net worth at $2 billion.
Also interesting to note, on the multiple lists of celebrity worth that I sourced, and in multiple years, they do not include Oprah Winfrey, whose net worth is estimated at $2.6 billion.
Granted, from these three, the bulk of their wealth was not from acting, but many celebrities have multiple business interests. For others, the known wealth depends on what source you are able to find.
According to multiple sources:
- Tyler Perry estimated at $1 BN
- Jerry Seinfeld $950M
- Dwayne Johnson $800M
- Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan has $650 million according to multiple sources.
- Tom Cruise's net worth is estimated at $570M.
- George Clooney $500M
- Robert DeNiro $500M
- Kevin Hart $450M
- Reese Witherspoon $430M
- Mel Gibson $425M
- Adam Sandler $420M
- Jack Nicholson, now retired, according to Forbes is worth $400M.
- Sylvester Stallone at $400M
- Amitabh Bachchan at $400M
- Arnold Schwarzenegger at $400M
- Larry David $400M
- Jennifer Lopez $400M
- Mark Wahlberg $400M
- Clint Eastwood $375M
- Jackie Chan $370M
- Keanu Reeves $360M
- Tom Hanks $350M
- Jennifer Aniston $320M
- Will Smith’s net worth is $300M
- Sandra Bullock at $300M
- Michael Douglas $300M
- Robert Downey Jr. $300M
- Brad Pitt $300M
- Julia Roberts $250M
- Julia Louis-Dreyfus $250M
- Jessica Biel $250M
- Nicole Kidman $250M
- Michelle Pfeiffer $250M
- Jane Fonda $200M
Notes:
Actress Dina Merrill, who was living at the time I first wrote this answer and passed away in 2017, had a net worth of $5 billion, beating everyone else - her wealth from her acting career as well as numerous business endeavors, including involvement with Lehman Brothers.
Jessica Alba was on the list up to 2021 but her wealth had decreased in 2022 from $200M to $100M according to multiple sources.
One source used for the figures updated in 2023, and verified with other sources - Richest Actors In The World And Their Net Worth, 2023 - CEOWORLD magazine