On the heels of the success of “Captain America: Civil War” and “The Jungle Book,” Scarlett Johansson has vaulted onto the list of 10 top-grossing actors of all time, according to Box Office Mojo calculations (not adjusted for inflation).
Not only that, Johansson is the only woman in the elite group — her films amassing a total of $3.3 billion domestically over the span of her entire career.
The 31-year-old actress trails her “Avengers” castmate Robert Downey Jr., who is No. 5 on the list, as well as stars such as Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman and Harrison Ford.
Johansson is by far the youngest star in the group — by 20 years — the second oldest being 51-year-old Downey.
Given that the list combines the domestic box office revenue of an actor’s entire filmography, the actress’ placement is that much more impressive. “It is staggering when you take into account how young she is,” Rotten Tomatoes senior editor Grae Drake told TheWrap.
An important caveat: The list proves that Johansson is choosing and being cast in big money-making projects — as opposed to her being the main draw in her movies. Her top-grossing movies, including the Marvel movies and “The Jungle Book,” have all featured ensemble casts.
By comparison, Jennifer Lawrence appears much lower on the list. The 25-year-old Oscar winner ranks No. 55, though she presumably has plenty of time to keep amassing major box office credits in hits like her recent “X-Men: Apocalypse.”
“Johansson has perfectly and seamlessly balanced her impressive career with indie films,” Paul Dergarabedian comScore senior analyst told TheWrap. “Working with noted filmmakers like Luc Besson, Christopher Nolan, the Coen Brothers and Woody Allen and she tops it off by starring in major Marvel powered box office blockbusters and other popular films, most recently ‘The Jungle Book.’ Add it all up and Johansson’s career diversification plan has delivered huge overall returns at the box office and thus catapults her to among the highest grossing stars working today.”
“Her films stand the biggest chance to be nominated for Oscars in both visual effects and best picture categories in the same year,” said Drake, noting that Johansson’s appeared in 20 films that have scored “fresh” on the Rotten Tomatoes scale.
Is Johansson the first woman to crack the top 10? Considering the parameters of Box Office Mojo’s list, probably not. Though it’s hard to tell for sure since the box office data site, owned by Amazon’s IMDb, refused to share year-over-year comparison data with TheWrap, saying the site is self-serve only.
The list is decidedly heavy with male stars, the next closest actress on the list is Cameron Diaz, who ranks at No. 19 — just ahead of Matt Damon.
One actress who should improve her ranking once Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” comes out in 2017 is Emma Watson, currently ranked at No. 32.
Johansson is set to appear in two “Avengers: Infinity Wars” movies, due out in 2018 and 2019, so she could potentially move up a few more notches on the list.
Here’s the top 10:
| Total Gross | ||
| 1. | Harrison Ford | $4.9 billion |
| 2. | Samuel L. Jackson | $4.7 billion |
| 3. | Morgan Freeman | $4.4 billion |
| 4. | Tom Hanks | $4.3 billion |
| 5. | Robert Downey, Jr. | $3.9 billion |
| 6. | Eddie Murphy | $3.8 billion |
| 7. | Tom Cruise | $3.6 billion |
| 8. | Johnny Depp | $3.3 billion |
| 9. | Michael Caine | $3.3 billion |
| 10. | Scarlett Johansson | $3.3 billion |