Forbes officially unveiled its latest list of the world’s richest celebrity billionaires, who are reportedly worth a collective $31 billion, including Taylor’s $1.1 billion net worth, Rihanna's $1.4 billion and Kim Kardashian's $1.7 billion net worth. Here's a handful of these celebrities who grabbed the top spots on Forbes celebrity billionaires list 2024:
Filmmakers
George Lucas, No. 1 Net worth: $5.5 billion
The Star Wars director, 79, debuted as a billionaire in 1997. He is the richest celebrity, and owes a large part of it to his production company LucasFilm, which he sold to Disney in 2012 for more than $4 billion in cash and stocks.
Steven Spielberg, No. 2 Net worth: $4.8 billion
The American director, 77, made his entry into the Forbes richest list in 1994, the first director to make the cut, following his hit films like Jaws, Jurassic Park and Schindler’s List. “I’m a gambler, I haven’t taken a salary for almost a decade now,” he had told Forbes that year. Instead he used to get a percentage of gross sales for his movies. And the continuing screenings of Indiana Jones series at Universal theme parks has ensured that Spielberg gets a cut on every sold ticket.
Peter Jackson, No. 7 Net worth: $1.5 billion
The 62-year-old director from New Zealand, behind the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit franchises, made most of his fortune from his visual effects company, Weta Digital, which sold a portion of its assets to game-maker Unity Software in 2021, per Forbes. That deal reportedly brought Peter nearly $1 billion in cash and stock.
TV personalities
Oprah Winfrey, No. 4 Net worth: $2.8 billion
She once famously walked out of her job when her demand for equal pay as her male show co-host was denied. The celebrated US talk show host, TV producer and philanthropist, 70, became the first black female billionaire in 2003. In the years since, she has built her brand into a media and business empire, including investments in real estate and her own production company.
Kim Kardashian, No. 6 Net worth: $1.7 billion
The 43-year-old American reality TV star has become a billionaire from her beauty and clothing brands. Her shapewear line Skims was valued at $4 billion in a 2023 funding round, and she sold 20% of KKW Beauty makeup company to Coty in 2020 for $200 million, per Forbes. She has since shut KKW Beauty down.
Singers
Jay-Z, No. 5 Net worth: $2.5 billion
Hip-hop’s first billionaire sold a 50% stake in his champagne brand, Armand de Brignac, to luxury goods giant LVMH in 2021 for at least $300 million, and a majority stake in his cognac label D’Usse in 2023 for a reported $750 million to Bacardi, per Forbes. He also owns stakes in Uber and Block. His net worth does not include singer-wife Beyonce’s own half-billion-dollar fortune.
Rihanna, No. 9 Net worth: $1.4 billion
The 36-year-old Barbados-born singer, whose real name is Robyn Fenty, has stakes in two billion-dollar brands: cosmetics company Fenty Beauty, which she owns alongside luxury goods giant LVMH, and lingerie business Savage X Fenty.
Taylor Swift, No. 14 Net worth: $1.1 billion
The 34-year-old US singer had one of the most culturally influential years a musician has ever had by becoming a billionaire last October. Her estimated $190 million post-tax earnings from her historic Eras Tour helped boost the singer into the billionaires list — the first person to do it based solely on songwriting and performing, per Forbes.
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