ROCK ON A ROLL
Dwayne muscles way to top of H’wood $ heap
The Rock keeps crushing it.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has topped Forbes’ annual list of highest-paid Hollywood actors for the second year in a row, pulling in an eye-popping $87.5 million for the 12 months leading up to June 1.
The former pro wrestler, 48, pinned down a whopping $23.5 million check from Netflix for his upcoming flick “Red Notice” and clenched another huge payday with his successful Under Armour apparel line called Project Rock, the money magazine reported Tuesday.
Last year, Johnson pulled in an estimated $89.4 million for projects including his wildly successful “Jumanji” sequel and his HBO series “Ballers.”
“Deadpool” star Ryan Reynolds came in second this year with an estimated $71.5 million haul.
The action hero, 43, made more than $20 million apiece on the Netflix feature films “Six Underground” and “Red Notice,” Forbes reported.
And with the Marvel men who dominated last year apparently in a professional period of cryostasis, the new list included a few surprises.
“Avengers” actors Chris Hemsworth, Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans and Paul Rudd all dropped off this time around to make way for the likes of Mark Wahlberg, Ben Affleck, Vin Diesel and Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Wahlberg, 49, made an estimated $58 million in the last year, Forbes said, thanks in part to his Netflix hit “Spenser Confidential,” the third-most-watched original film on the streaming service after its March debut.
The “Daddy’s Home” star and former rapper also scored millions producing the documentary “McMillions” and the HBO series “Wahl Street.”
After a short hiatus, Affleck, 47, returned to silver screen roles and pocketed around $55 million from projects including the Warner Bros. drama “The Way Back,” about a recovering alcoholic, and Netflix’s “The Last Thing He Wanted,” according to Forbes.
And while the release of Diesel’s blockbuster “Fast & Furious 9” was pushed to 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 53-year-old franchise founder still snagged the No. 5 spot by raking in $54 million from deals including the animated Netflix series “Fast & Furious Spy Races.”
Bollywood star Akshay Kumar, 52, grabbed the No. 6 spot with $48.5 million, down from his No. 4 ranking last year as he works on his first TV series for Amazon Prime titled “The End.”
Miranda, 40, battled his way onto the list for the first time with a $45.5 million war chest after selling the movie rights for his Broadway hit “Hamilton” to Disney for $75 million, Forbes said.
Will Smith clocked in at No. 8 with earnings of $44.5 million thanks to big checks for lead roles including in his upcoming film “King Richard” about the dad of tennis champions Venus and Serena.
Adam Sandler and Jackie Chan dropped lower on the list this year but still posted earnings of $41 million and $40 million respectively.