SCARLETT OUTSTRIPS RIVAL ANGELINA ON FORBES LIST

SCARLETT Johansson has become the world’s highest-paid actress, earning £31.8 million (R592m) in the last year.

The star, 33, flew to the top of the list thanks to her role as Marvel comic superhero Black Widow.

Johansson’s star turn in Avengers:

Infinity War meant she quadrupled her income from the previous year.

Her takings dwarfed the rest on the list, being nearly £10m more than secondplaced Angelina Jolie, who made £22m. Jolie, 43, made her millions largely thanks to Maleficent 2, which is set to be released in 2020.

Forbes’s annual list of highestearning actresses calculates pre-tax earnings between June 1, 2017 and June 1, 2018.

Jennifer Aniston, 49, came in third, despite not having starred in a high-profile project in the last year. She still gets income from Friends, as well as money for endorsements of beauty and fitness products, both of which helped her earn £15.3m.

She slipped down a place from last year’s list, when she earned £19.8m. Jennifer Lawrence, 28, who starred in the under-performing films Mother! and Red Sparrow was fourth, with continued earnings from her role in the X-Men series and a lucrative contract with fashion brand Christian Dior. Her £14.1m income was £4.5m less than the year before. In fifth place, was Reese Witherspoon, 42, who took in £13m, followed by Mila Kunis, Julia Roberts, Cate Blanchett and Melissa McCarthy. Last year’s highest-paid actress, Emma Stone, fell out of the top 10. Forbes said the lack of roles for women meant “there were fewer opportunities for stars to earn big bucks”. Only two women topped the $20m mark, down from three in 2017 and four in 2016. This is in stark contrast to Hollywood actors. Mark Wahlberg was the highest earner last year, taking home £53.5m thanks to Daddy’s Home 2 and Transformers: The Last Knight. –