Downey Jr slips from 1st to 8th in stars’ pay rank

ROBERT Downey Jr has slipped from first to eighth among the world’s highest paid actors after a spectacular plunge in earnings.

The Iron Man star, 51, has seen his income fall from £60.1million last year to £25million in the 12 months to June – a 58 per cent cut.

His three-year run at the top of the Forbes list has been brought to an end by former wrestler Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, 44, who earned £48.8million.

Martial arts star Jackie Chan came in second place with £46.2million, followed by Matt Damon on £41.6million – more than double his take from the previous year thanks to the success of The Martian.

Another surprise was Harrison Ford, who came in at number 20 with earnings of £11.4million thanks to the new Star Wars film. He last made the ranks in 2009, and at 74 is also the oldest on the list. Downey Jr first became the world’s highest paid actor in 2013. His run continued until last year, when it was boosted by the success of Avengers: Age Of Ultron. This year he is joined in eighth place by Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan.

Forbes said that his pay had fallen as he had had a quiet year with just Captain America: Civil War playing at cinemas.

Meanwhile Johnson’s pay has more than doubled thanks to films such as Central Intelligence and Fast 8, the latest in the Fast And The Furious franchise. He was also paid upfront for the forthcoming Baywatch movie.

The figures cover from June last year to June 2016. Earlier this week Jennifer Lawrence, 26, was named the highest paid actress after earning £34.8million.