Transcripts:
The seven levels of Hollywood power explained. Level one, the pawn. Ana Taylor Joy. Ana Taylor Joy appears on billboards and in some of the biggest films of recent years, but none of that means she controls her trajectory. Robert Edgars plucked her from over a thousand video submissions for The Witch in 2015, and that pattern has defined everything since. M.
Knight Shyamalan cast her in Split and Glass. George Miller handed her Furiosa. And Netflix turned her into a household name with The Queen's Gambit, which 62 million households watched in its first month. Golden Globe winner, SAG award winner, and for all of that, she took home between 500,000 and $696,000. The most watched limited series in Netflix history at the time paid her less than a million.
When she voiced Princess Peach in the Super Mario Brothers, the film grossed $1.36 billion worldwide, and her paycheck came to $1 million. No production company exists under her name. No firstlook deals sit on her desk, and no seat at the table where decisions get made belongs to her. Dior, Tiffany, and Jerger Lultra pay her to wear their products, pushing her net worth to between 7 and $12 million.
In terms of actual Hollywood power, she waits for the phone to ring just like she did 10 years ago. [music] And the only difference now is that more people know her name when it does. >> Feel my creative when I'm being creative or when I'm barefoot. Actually, >> Jacob Eordy. Jacob Allerty took a different route to the same destination.
He showed up in Los Angeles from Australia with somewhere between $400 and $800 in his pocket, eventually sleeping in his car before booking Euphoria. Netflix's kissing booth franchise gave him visibility with teenagers, but earned him zero industry respect, and that's when he did something smart.
Directors with serious reputations started getting his attention. Sophia Copala cast him as Elvis Presley and Priscilla. Emerald Fennel made him the magnetic center of Saltburn, and Copala reportedly picked him partly because of his effect on women. Whatever that means, it worked. Saltburn became a cultural moment that had everyone talking about Barry Kyogan's bathtub scene and a Lord's magnetic screen presence.
He earned a BAFTA nomination and now GMO del Toro has him lined up for Frankenstein. None of that changes where he actually stands in the hierarchy. No production company, no back-end deals that let him share in profits [music] and every job still depends on a director deciding he's the guy.
When someone offered him Superman, he turned it down, calling it too much and too dark. His net worth sits around $4 to5 million. And the moment directors stop choosing him, the phone stops ringing. That's the reality of level one. >> When I think of a crush, I think like legless. So like pure and fine. I don't know.
Where am I going with this? >> Sydney Sweeney. Sydney Sweeney stands as the most interesting case at level one because she's actively trying to climb out of it. At 12 years old, she put together a 5-year business plan in PowerPoint to convince her parents she was serious about acting. And that tells you everything about how she approaches her career.
[music] Her Euphoria salary started between $25,000 and $44,000 per episode in season 1, then climbed to $350,000 total for all eight episodes of season 2. Anyone But you changed things when the romantic comedy grossed $220 million worldwide on a $25 million budget, proving she could open a movie. Here's where she really stands in the hierarchy.
Reportedly, she agreed to take a supporting role in Madame Webb, a movie that flopped just to get anyone but you green lit in the first place. Trading a bad project for a good one is negotiation from weakness. She founded 50/50 films and landed major brand deals with [music] Ford, Lanz, and Miumu. And IMDb, named her the most popular star of 2024.
Her net worth has climbed to around $40 million. But until she can finance projects without making those trades, she's playing by someone else's rules. >> Don't understand, NATE, IS I AM CRAZIER. >> THAT'S NOT SOMETHING TO BE [ __ ] PROUD OF, CASSIE. >> NO, but it is something you should be scared of. Level two, the negotiator, Scarlett Johansson.
Scarlett Johansson became the face of Level Two when she sued Disney. On July 29th, 2021, Johansson filed a lawsuit claiming Disney breached her contract for Black Widow. Her deal guaranteed a wide theatrical release, meaning at least 1500 screens with an implied 90 to 120day window before the film went anywhere else.
Disney released Black Widow simultaneously in theaters and on Disney Plus during the pandemic. And Johansson's compensation was heavily tied to box office performance. She claimed the dual release cost her around $50 million in bonuses. Disney's response accused her of showing callous disregard for CO 19's effects while revealing she'd already been paid $20 million.
The industry rallied behind her anyway. CA's Brian Lord called Disney'sresponse shameful [music] and 2 months later Disney settled for a reported payout exceeding $40 million. Her MCU salary progression tells the real story. $400,000 for Iron Man 2, around a million by the Avengers, and $20 million by Age of Ultron. Total MCU earnings between 60 and $15 million.
She's the highest grossing lead actress ever with over $14 billion in worldwide box office. As she told Marie Cla, "Just because I'm the top grossing actress of all time does not mean I'm the highest paid. I've had to fight for everything." Mark Wahlberg. Mark Wahlberg showed a different kind of negotiation, the kind that happens behind closed doors and doesn't always look good in the daylight.
December 2017 brought Ridley Scott's decision to reshoot All the Money in the World, replacing Kevin Spacy with Christopher Plameumber. After the accusations went public, the entire cast returned for about 10 days of additional filming. Michelle Williams, one of [music] the leads, received roughly $80 a day, totaling less than $1,000.
Mark Wahberg, [music] represented by the same agency, walked away with $1.5 million. The mechanism was a clause giving Wahberg co-star approval rights. and reportedly he refused to approve plumbers's casting until he was guaranteed the additional fee. The math was staggering, 1,500 times more than Williams for identical work.
When the story went public, backlash came immediately from Jessica Chastain, Jud Appattow, [music] and others. Within days, Wahlberg announced he was donating the $1.5 million to the Times Up Legal Defense Fund in Williams name. The episode revealed something important about Level Two. These actors know exactly what their contracts allow and use every bit of leverage available, whether or not it looks fair.
[music] Wahberg's net worth today sits between 300 and $400 million. Built on acting, plus a business empire, including Wahberggers, F-45 training, and car dealerships. Robert Downey Jr. Robert Downey Jr. changed how the entire industry thinks about star compensation. When Marvel cast him as Iron Man in 2008, his well-documented personal troubles meant the studio could lowball him to $500,000, but his contract included back-end points.
Iron Man grossed $585 million, and suddenly that backend was worth a fortune. by the Avengers. Downey negotiated a $10 million base plus backend, pushing total earnings between $50 and $80 million on a film that grossed $1.5 billion. Iron Man 3 brought another $50 to $75 million. For Avengers Endgame, he secured $20 million plus 8% backend, translating to roughly $75 million.
[music] Total MCU earnings between $435 and $500 million. The most important negotiation happened in 2013 before Age of Ultron. Downey went on the Daily Show and hinted at retirement, saying they'd need to renegotiate. An anonymous source told Deadline he had real power and balls of steel. What made Downey different is that he refused to sign until Marvel agreed to raise his co-stars salaries, too.
[music] He used leverage to lift everyone else. His Oscar win for Oppenheimer in 2024 and his reported 80 to$100 million deal to return as Dr. Doom confirmed his leverage isn't going anywhere. We give you the one person who could play Victor Von Doom. >> [screaming] >> Level three, the star, Leonardo DiCaprio.
Leonardo DiCaprio has spent three decades proving prestige and profit aren't mutually exclusive. His career box office exceeds $7.2 billion worldwide, and the films he chooses consistently outperform expectations. Titanic made $2.194 billion and remains the third highest grossing film ever. Inception brought in $830 million. And The Revenant, a brutal, nearly dialogue-free survival film, grossed $533 million.
The Wolf of Wall Street became Scorsese's highest grossing movie at $46 million. DiCaprio understood back-end deals early. His Titanic contract gave him $2.5 million upfront, plus 1.8% of gross, which turned into $40 million when the film became a phenomenon. Inception earned him nearly $60 million through gross points [music] and today his quote sits north of $30 million.
What makes DiCaprio a true level three star is his ability to elevate material by showing up. His Scorsesei partnership has produced six features generating $1.3 billion combined when he was attached to Gangs of New York. Miramax finally secured financing for a project stuck in development. Aian way his production company founded in 2001 has produced Oscar-winning films with first look deals at both Apple and Sony.
His net worth sits at $300 million. And studios don't just want Leonardo DiCaprio, they need him to make certain kinds of movies possible. Dwayne Johnson. Dwayne the Rock Johnson represents the opposite end of the level three spectrum, pure commercial dominance. His career box office exceeds $12.
5 billion worldwide with over $10 billion from films where he's lead or co-lead, making him the highest grossing star at the domestic box office. [music] The industry callswhat he does to struggling franchises franchise Viagra. When he joined Fast and Furious for Fast 5, the franchise jumped from $363 million to $626 million.
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle gross $962 million and the sequel added another $800 million. [music] Forbes has named him highest paid actor five times. His 2024 earnings totaled $13 million and Red One paid him $50 million, the largest fee plus buyout in streaming history. Seven Bucks Productions, founded in 2012, takes its name from when he was cut from the Canadian Football League and had $7 in his pocket.
His real wealth comes from outside Hollywood. Teramana Tequila is valued between $2 and $3 billion after selling 1.4 million cases in its first 16 months, the fastest liquor launch in industry history. His Under Armour deal pays $25 million annually, and his 391 million Instagram followers make him the most followed American male.
net worth $800 million with analysts believing Taramana could push him past billionaire status. Zenaia. Zenaia is the clearest example of a star whose power is actively being built. At 28, she's anchored some of the decade's biggest films with her Spider-Man trilogy grossing over $4 billion combined, and No Way Home Alone, bringing in 1.
916 billion, the [music] sixth highest grossing film ever. Dune Part Two added another $714 million. The film that proved she could carry a project solo was Challengers in 2024, a tennis drama with no superheroes that grossed $96 million worldwide. According to Post Track data, 55% of audiences said they bought tickets specifically because of Zenaia, making it the highest grossing tennis film in American history.
Her salary progression tells the story. $300,000 for Spider-Man. Homecoming around $10 million total for No Way Home and $10 million for Challengers, her highest payday yet. Her Euphoria season 3 salary is reportedly $1 million per episode. Back-to-back Emmys at ages 24 and 26 made her the youngest ever outstanding lead actress winner.
Brand partnerships with Valentino, Louis Vuitton, Bulgari, and Lancome [music] extend her presence beyond film. Christopher Nolan has cast her in the Odyssey alongside Tom Holland. Her net worth sits between 22 and $30 million. Modest compared to DiCaprio, but her trajectory is undeniable. Level four, the producer, [music] Brad Pitt.
Brad Pitt built the gold standard for actor-driven production. Plan B Entertainment, founded November 2nd, 2001, has become the independent production company with the most Oscar nominations and wins in Hollywood. Three best picture wins tell the story, The Departed, [music] 12 Years a Slave, and Moonlight.
10 best picture nominations overall, including The Tree of Life, The Big [music] Short, Selma, and Manari. After his divorce from Jennifer Aniston in 2005, Pit became sole owner and reshaped the company around prestige projects that wouldn't exist without his involvement. Damon Lindelof put it simply, [music] "They are using their clout and Brad's notoriety to make movies that wouldn't be made otherwise.
" December 2022 brought French conglomerate Mediaan, acquiring 60% of Plan B at approximately $300 million valuation with Pit retaining significant ownership and operational control. The company holds first look deals with Warner Brothers, Amazon MGM Studios, and MGM. Recent productions include Bob Marley, One Love, and Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice.
Beyond Hollywood, Pit owns Chatau Mirraval, purchased for $60 million and now valued between 164 and $500 million. His net worth sits between 400 and $450 million. But more than money, what Pitbilt is the ability to champion story studios might overlook and push them to the Oscar stage. I want to thank my co-stars, uh, Leo, Margot Robbie, Margot Robbiey's feet, Margaret Collie's feet, Dakota Fanic's feet.
Seriously, Quinton has separated more women from their shoes than the TSA. Margot Robbie. Marggo Robbie took a different path to the same destination. Lucky Chap Entertainment started in 2014 in a shared London flat founded with her now husband Tom Akerly along with Josie McNamera and Sophia Kerr.
The mission was specific, [music] promoting female stories from female storytellers. Barbie turned Lucky Chap into a powerhouse. [music] When Robbie pitched Mattel's CEO, she compared Barbie and Greta Gerwig to Dinosaurs and Spielberg, then predicted the film would gross $1 billion. She was wrong. It made 1.
44 billion worldwide, becoming the highest grossing Warner Brothers film ever and highest grossing [music] film by a solo female director. Robbie's compensation reflected her position as both star and producer, $12.5 million salary equal to Ryan Gosling's, plus back-end bonuses totaling approximately $50 million. Forbes named her the highest paid actress of 2023 with $59 million.
Barbie wasn't Lucky Chap's first success. I Tanya [music] grossed $53.9 million on $1 million and won Allison Janney a best supporting actress Oscar. Promising Young Woman won bestoriginal screenplay. Saltburn followed in 2023. After Barbie, Warner Brothers formalized a first look deal in 2024, and the company has expanded internationally through a joint venture with Mediaan.
Robbiey's net worth is $60 million. But the real value is what she's built. She no longer has to trade bad projects for good ones. Ryan [music] Reynolds. Ryan Reynolds turned maximum effort into something Hollywood had never quite seen. A hybrid production company and advertising agency, generating content, selling products, and accumulating equity stakes all at once. The story starts with Deadpool.
Reynolds had been attached since 2004 and after a disastrous 2009 appearance in X-Men Origins. Wolverine director Tim Miller created test footage to prove the concept. [music] The footage sat on a shelf for 2 years while Fox hesitated. July 2014, it leaked online and within 24 hours, Fox green lit the film.
Reynolds didn't admit he was behind the leak until September 2025, confessing, "Yes, I cheated a little, but I think I was on to something." The Deadpool franchise has grossed $2.9 billion with the first making $782 million on $58 million. Deadpool and Wolverine brought in 1.
338 billion, the highest grossing R-rated film ever. Reynolds real innovation is using fame to build equity. Aviation Jin became between 67 and $122 million when Dagio bought it in 2020. [music] His Mint Mobile stake became $300 million when T-Mobile purchased it in 2024. He and Rob Melhenny bought Rexum AFC for $2.5 million, spawning the Emmy-winning Welcome to Rexum.
Net worth [music] between 350 and $400 million. Reynolds figured out your face has value beyond the screen. >> Did you leak the footage? >> Was it you? >> It was one I Here's what I'll say. [laughter] >> Level five, the mogul Tyler Perry. Tyler Perry achieved something unprecedented. Complete debt-free ownership of a major film studio without a single outside investor.
Tyler Perry Studios sits on 330 acres of Fort McFersonson in Atlanta, [music] purchased in 2015 for $30 million despite being appraised at $75 million. Industry observers called it a sweetheart deal. Perry then invested $250 million of his own money to transform it into a complex with 12 purpose-built soundstages, 40 historic buildings, and permanent standing sets, including a White House replica and a 16,000 ft mansion.
The real power isn't buildings, it's what Perry owns. He finances productions without studio backing and retains 100% ownership of everything, over 22 films, more than 2,000 television episodes, and 24 stage plays. [music] His media franchise alone generated over $1 billion across 14 films. A 2017 Viacom CBS deal is worth $150 million annually, plus a 25% equity stake in BET Plus. economic impact.
Over 4,000 jobs, $60 million annual payroll, and $800 million flowing into Georgia's economy. Forbes confirmed his billionaire status in 2020 with current estimates between1 billion and $1.4 billion. [music] Perry explained how he pulled it off. Ownership was easy because I was underestimated. They said, [music] "Sure, you can own it.
" They didn't think it'd be worth anything. >> So, ownership was the key, man. Ownership. Everything in my life. I own every play, every movie, every character, every TV show. It's all owned by me. And that is what has set the difference of me being able to say, I'm going to set a path where I can open the door for everybody else.
>> Absolutely. >> Or waiting for somebody to give me a job. >> Reese Witherspoon. Reese Witherspoon built Hello Sunshine from a book club into a media empire, then sold it at exactly the right moment. November 2016 brought the company's founding with a specific thesis. Women's stories were undervalued and there was money to be made identifying them early.
The centerpiece was Reese's Book [music] Club, catapulting 63 books to the New York Times bestseller list. Hello Sunshine developed a pipeline to adapt those books, producing Big Little Lies with its 18 Emmy nominations, The Morning Show at $2 million per episode for Witherspoon and Where the Craads Sing at $144 million in box office.
August 2nd, 2021 [music] brought the defining moment when Blackstone's Candle Media acquired Hello Sunshine at a $900 million valuation. Blackstone paid $500 million to buy out investors and Witherspoon's estimated personal take after taxes came to around $120 million. Plus, she retained approximately 18% ownership.
The sale vindicated everything. After Big Little Lies won Emmys after Wild and Gone Girl earned Oscar nominations, Witherspoon still had only four employees and couldn't keep the lights on. [music] She described the realization, "I had self-funded my first company. Hello, Sunshine was her answer, a structure that could scale beyond personal involvement, net worth between 400 and $440 million.
" Forbes has named her the richest actress in Hollywood. George Clooney. George Clooney became a mogul through an unexpected vehicle, tequila.He founded Case Amigos in 2013 with Rand Gerber and Mike Meldman originally as a private label for their vacation homes in Mexico. They weren't trying to build a brand, they just wanted tequila they like to drink.
[music] June 2017 brought Diagio's acquisition for $700 million upfront, plus up to $300 million in performance-based earnouts, potentially $1 billion total. Clooney's estimated share from the upfront alone, at least $233 million. By 2022, Casamigos became the fastest growing spirits company in its category. Clooney's reaction captured the accidental nature.
If you asked us 4 years ago if we had a billion-dollar company, I don't think we would have said yes. Smokehouse Pictures, founded in 2006 with Grant Hez, has produced Prestige Fair. Argo won best picture in 2012, and Good Night [music] and Good Luck received six Oscar nominations. Clooney has directed nine films and remains the only person besides Walt Disney nominated for Academy Awards in six different categories.
Net worth approximately $500 million. [music] What makes Clooney level five rather than level four is scale and diversification. The tequila money puts him in a category where Hollywood work is almost a side project compared to his beverage empire. >> Money would go on the screen and gamble on the movie being good. If it's good, maybe you make some money.
If not, in doing so, I decided that I'd have to focus on other forms of business. I'd have to have a way to to make sure and ensure that I could make a living if this didn't work out. I bought a house in Mexico with Randy and then we started making our own tequila down in Halisco. Started off as gifts for our friends.
>> Oprah Winfrey. Oprah Winfrey invented the playbook Everyone at Level 5 follows. When the Oprah Winfrey show went into national syndication in 1986, [music] she made a decision that would define her career. She insisted on owning the show through Harpo Productions rather than accepting a salary.
That first year generated $125 million in revenue and Oprah's cut came to $30 million. By 2011, at the peak of the show's run, she earned $315 million annually. She became the first black female billionaire in 2003 at age [music] 49. The O network launched January 1st, 2011 as a 50/50 joint venture with Discovery. O Magazine generated $1 billion in consumer revenue.
Her investment power became legendary when she purchased 10% of Weight Watchers in 2015 for $43.2 $2 million at around $7 per share with the stock eventually climbing to $75, pushing her stakes value past $430 million. Business interests include True Food Kitchen and Oatley. Forbes estimates her net worth between $3.1 and $3.
2 billion with some sources citing $5 billion. What Oprah understood before anyone else in entertainment is that fame is a depreciating asset unless you convert it into ownership. She converted it better than anyone in history. You never want to be in a position where something is that important to you to do and you can't do it because the boss says you can't.
The fact that I had not been allowed the time for The Color Purple is the reason why I made the decision to take the risk to own my own show. >> Level Six, The Aur. Christopher Nolan. Christopher Nolan demonstrated exactly how much leverage a Level Six filmmaker holds when he walked away from Warner Brothers in late 2020. >> [music] >> The studio announced its entire 2021 slate would debut simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max.
And Nolan called the decision a real bait and switch and took his next project elsewhere. Universal won the bidding war for Oppenheimer by agreeing to extraordinary terms, 15% of first dollar gross, [music] meaning Nolan earned money before the studio recouped a scent. He originally asked for 20% and his wife and producing partner Emma Thomas reportedly received the remaining 5% [music] complete final cut authority, a 100-day theatrical window guaranteed, a 6- week blackout on competing releases, and three weeks of IMAX
exclusivity. First, dollar gross is a structure only a handful of filmmakers in history have ever commanded, Spielberg and James Cameron among them. Oppenheimer grossed $958 million with Nolan's total earnings just under $100 million. He won his first Academy Awards for best director and best picture. His career box office exceeds $6 billion across 12 films.
On set, his control is absolute. Cell phones banned, film over digital, practical effects over CGI, no second unit. Every frame in his movies is shot by him personally. Quinton Tarantino. Quinton Tarantino has operated with Final Cut authority since 1993 when his original Miramax contract granted him reserved rights. These rights were carefully identified, bargained for, and memorialized in his deal, including print publication rights, screenplay publication rights, and theatrical and television sequel rights. When Harvey Weinstein fell and
Miramax changed hands, Tarantino's reserved rights survived because theybelonged to him, not the studio. That level of contractual protection is almost unheard of for a director who signed before having any real leverage. His career box office exceeds $1.9 billion, built entirely on original properties he wrote and directed himself.
No franchises, no adaptations, no sequels except Kill Bill Volume 2. What makes Tarantino unique at level six is his self-imposed constraint. Only 10 films then retiring. [music] I like that I will leave a 10 film filmography, he explained. 10 and done, leaving them wanting more. Nine films exist so far by his count, treating both Kill Bill volumes as a single [music] work.
His announced 10th, the movie critic, it was canled in April 2024 after a change of heart. The artificial scarcity around his filmography has only increased his mystique and leverage. And every Tarantino film is treated as an event precisely because there are so few [music] of them. >> I'm probably only going to make 10 movies, so I'm already planning on what I'm going to do after.
>> You said this. So, you're going to Are you seriously already? >> That's why I'm counting them. That's why I like two more left. Yeah. >> Greta Gerwig. Greta Gerwig achieved level six status faster than anyone in recent memory. Ladybird in 2017 cost $10 million and grossed $79 million while earning five Oscar nominations.
Little Women in 2019 made $218 million. Barbie earned $1.44 billion and became the highest grossing film ever directed solely by a woman. That progression from Indie Darling to Billiondoll Blockbuster in just 6 years gave Gerwig leverage that would normally take decades to accumulate. Before Barbie even opened, Netflix signed her to write and direct at least two chronicles of Narnia films.
The first, an adaptation of The Magician's Nephew, is scheduled for release on December 25th, 2026 [music] with a reported budget of approximately $200 million. The cast includes Daniel Craig, Carrie Mulligan, and Meryill Streep. Gerwig secured something Netflix rarely grants, a theatrical window. The film will play in IMAX theaters starting November 26th, 2026 for at least 2 weeks before moving to streaming.
That concession demonstrates just how much Netflix wanted Gerwig attached. She's spoken about aspiring to Christopher Nolan's back-end profit participation model, describing it as a way to bet on yourself. Her Barbie compensation of roughly $50 million when combining producing backend with directing fees suggests [music] she's already getting close to that goal. Ben Affleck.
Ben Affleck took auditous route to level six. His acting career had spectacular highs and public lows, but his directing work was consistently excellent. Gone Baby Gone in 2007 announced him as a serious filmmaker. The Town in 2010 was a commercial hit and Argo in 2012 won best picture. Even though Affleck was controversially snubbed for best director, that snub might have been the last time the industry underestimated him.
November 2022 brought the launch of Artists Equity with Matt Damon and backing from Redbird Capital Partners, who committed at least $100 million. The company's core innovation, [music] expanded profit participation for below the line creative talent, Affleck explained. not just writers and directors and stars but also cinematographers, editors, costume designers, and other crucial artists who, in my view, are very underpaid.
The idea aligns incentives across entire productions. If the film succeeds, everyone benefits, not just the people with the best agents. Air, the company's debut, grossed $90 million globally in 2023. The combined box office of Affleck and Damon exceeds $10.7 billion across more than 110 features. What distinguishes artists equity from a typical production company is its ambition to change how Hollywood compensates creative work at every level, not just [music] the top.
Clint Eastwood. Clint Eastwood has operated at level six longer than most people on this list have been alive. Malpaso Productions was founded in 1967, taking its name from Malpaso Creek near his caramel home. His agent warned that accepting a fistful of dollars was a bad step, and Eastwood named the company after that doubt as a reminder.
Malpaso's first production, Hangam High, in 1968 earned him $400,000 plus 25% of net box office. [music] A profit participation model unusual for actors at the time, becoming the template for everything after his Warner Brothers relationship has lasted nearly 50 years across more than 40 features, one of the longest studio filmmaker partnerships in history.
[music] Four Academy Awards, best director and best picture for Unforgiven in 1992 and again for Million-Dollar Baby in 2004. At 94, Eastwood directed juror number two in 2024. His efficiency is legendary, rarely more than a few takes, no elaborate setups. His creative control extends to composing scores for his own films, including Mystic River, Million-Dollar Baby, and Gran Torino.
[music] When you've worked at thehighest level for six decades, the system doesn't tell you what to do. You've become the system itself. Level seven, the untouchable. Steven Spielberg. Steven Spielberg stands at the very top of this hierarchy. His career box office exceeds $10.7 billion worldwide, roughly $2 billion more than second place James Cameron.
Three of his films became the highest grossing ever at release. Jaws, [music] ET, The Extraterrestrial, and Jurassic Park. No other director has broken his own all-time record twice. Amblin Entertainment was founded in 1980. Then in October 1994, he co-founded DreamWorks SKG with Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen, each contributing $33 million.
DreamWorks won three consecutive best picture Oscars from 1999 to 2001, American Beauty, Gladiator, and A Beautiful Mind. Spielberg's Oscar record is staggering. 13 best picture nominations as producer set the all-time record. Nine best director nominations tie him for third. He's the only director nominated in six different decades.
The Presidential Medal of Freedom arrived in 2015. Perhaps most remarkable is a deal most have never heard of. 2% of all Universal Parks ticket sales in perpetuity, generating 30 to $50 million annually without doing anything. [music] Forbes 2025 places his net worth at $5.3 billion, making him the richest celebrity billionaire with some estimates reaching $10 billion.
Spielberg doesn't ask permission to make movies. The industry asks permission to be part of his. Tom Cruz. Tom Cruz has spent four decades proving movie stardom isn't dead. You just have to be willing to do things no one else will do. His career box office exceeds $12 billion, placing him among the highest grossing actors in history.
[music] Raw numbers don't capture what makes Cruz untouchable. It's the way he's preserved theatrical experience when everyone else abandoned it. During the pandemic, when studios sold films to streaming, Cruz refused. He held Top Gun Maverick for theatrical release, waiting over 2 years for audiences to return. Maverick grossed 1.
496 billion, his highest grossing film ever. At the 2023 Oscar lunchon, Spielberg told him directly, "You saved Hollywood's ass. Maverick might have saved the entire theatrical industry." Mission Impossible has generated $4.13 billion across seven films under Cruz Wagner Productions, founded in 1992, giving him creative and casting control.
His practical stunts are explicitly budgeted, climbing the Burge Khalifa, a 25,000 ft halo jump, and motorcycle cliff dives. The Hollywood Reporter noted studios can only hope to influence Cruz. November 2025 brought an honorary Academy Award net worth approximately $600 million. But more than money, Cruz possesses absolute conviction that movies should be seen on the biggest screen possible and willingness to risk his life to make it worthwhile.
>> Merryill Streep. Merryill Streep holds a record no one else approaches. 21 Academy Award nominations belong to her, the most of any actor in history, 17 for best actress, and four for best supporting actress. Three Oscar wins place her alongside only Ingred Bergman and Jack Nicholson as the only performers with three competitive acting Oscars across multiple categories.
Her Golden Globe record is equally untouchable. More than 30 nominations and eight wins. The Presidential Medal of Freedom arrived in 2014 and the honorary Palm Door at KN followed in 2024. These aren't just career highlights. They're institutional recognitions that she has become woven into the cultural fabric itself.
What makes Stre's position remarkable is longevity. At 75, she continues landing major roles. Other actresses her age simply don't get offered. Big Little Lies featured her in a pivotal role. Only Murders in the Building brought an Emmy nomination, and Don't Look Up added another credit to a career spanning more than 50 years at the A-list level, a durability almost no other actor has matched.
The industry doesn't treat Meill Street like an actress looking for work. It treats her like a national treasure who occasionally agrees to grace a project with her presence. Alpuccino. Alpuccino defined what American screen acting could be across five decades. [music] Nine Oscar nominations span a career that includes some of the most iconic characters in film history.
Michael Corleone in The Godfather, Tony Montana in Scarface, Frank Serpico in Serpico. His single Oscar win for Sen of a Woman in 1992 delivered the huah that became part of cultural vocabulary. Pacino's influence extends beyond film as one of the few performers to achieve the triple crown of acting, having won an Oscar, Emmy, and Tony Award.
That rare distinction confirms range and mastery of craft that very few actors ever achieve. At 85, Pacino remains active in ways unusual for someone half his age. The Irishman in 2019 earned him his first Oscar nomination in 27 years, reminding audiences and the industry that his talent hadn't diminished one bit.
His2024 memoir, Sunny Boy, renewed public interest in his life and career, becoming a bestseller and generating conversation about his legacy. Pacino doesn't need to work. He's earned every right to disappear. He keeps showing up anyway. And when he does, the industry still pays attention. That sustained relevance over five decades is why he belongs at level seven.
>> DO YOU WANT TO PLAY WITH US? OKAY. SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE FRIEND. >> Robert Dairo. Robert Dairo combined two Oscar wins with a business empire extending far beyond Hollywood. Best supporting actor for The Godfather Part Two in 1974 and best actor for Raging Bull in 1980 represent performances that fundamentally changed how audiences understood what was possible in film acting.
His cultural status as a titan of American cinema has never wavered in five decades. Dairo built beyond his acting legacy. Tribeca Productions was founded in 1989, leading to the Tribeca Film Festival in 2002, established specifically to revitalize lower Manhattan after September 11th. The festival has become one of the world's most respected, posting more than 600 screenings annually.
Business interests expanded through Nou, the restaurant group he co-founded in 1994. Now operating more than 50 restaurants and 13 luxury hotels worldwide. [music] He owns the Greenwich Hotel and has invested between 600 million and1 billion in Wildflower Studios. His 2023 Oscar nomination for Killers of the Flower Moon at age 80 proved he remains a vital screen presence.
The honorary palm door arrived at can in 2025. Net worth approximately $500 million. Dairo has reached a point where work, businesses, [music] and cultural influence have merged into something inseparable from American film history itself. If you like this analysis, you'll love where I go next. Click the video on your screen and find
