Oscar-winning actress Zoe Saldaña, 47, has surpassed Scarlett Johansson to become the highest-grossing actress of all time, thanks to the success of Avatar: Fire and Ash, which added more than $1.2 billion to her total earnings. Saldaña’s films have now grossed more than $15.46 billion worldwide, according to data from The Numbers.
This success is thanks to the previous Avatar films, as well as her role as Gamora in the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy and the Avengers films. Saldaña has also had successful roles in the Star Trek films and the first Pirates of the Caribbean film. Last year, Johansson rose to the top of the list after the success of the film Jurassic World Rebirth, which managed to earn $ 869 million worldwide. She has also starred in many Marvel films.
Although Avatar: Fire and Ash performed less well at the box office than previous films in the series, it has held the top spot domestically since its release in December. Saldaña also lent her voice to Pixar’s adventure Elio, which failed to meet box office expectations.
Last year, she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the Netflix crime musical Emilia Pérez, and is currently working on the new season of the action drama series Lioness. Avatar director James Cameron has two more films planned, but there has been no official confirmation yet. “If for some reason we can’t make movies 4 and 5, I will hold a press conference and tell you what we had planned,” he said last month.
According to The Numbers, after Saldaña and Johansson, the highest-earning actors are Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Pratt, all known for their roles in Marvel films. The highest-earning non-Marvel actors are, in order, Tom Cruise, Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson and Tom Hanks. After Saldaña and Johansson, the other highest-earning actresses on the list are Emma Watson in 16th place, Karen Gillan in 23rd place and Elizabeth Olsen in 25th place.