Ten celebrities on the list have become billionaires over the past 4 years, while singer Taylor Swift and television mogul Dick Wolf achieved this status for the first time last year. In general, the total wealth of the richest stars of 2024, represented in the of the Forbes ratingThe total debt of the company reaches $31 billion.
Most celebrities have earned billions from business, not creativity. For example, Rihanna owns the cosmetics brand Fenty Beauty, and Jay-Z owns two alcohol companies D’Usse Cognac and Armand de Brignac Champagne. Michael Jordan earned more than $100 million during his basketball career, but his contracts with Nike brought him even more money.
The 34-year-old American singer has had one of the most influential years of her career. In 2023, Taylor Swift’s name almost never disappeared from the headlines — concerts with her participation caused seismic activity equivalent to a 2.3 magnitude earthquake, ticket sales for her movie concert broke records, and finally Time magazine recognized the singer as «Person of the Year».
Wolfe, known as the inspiration for the most popular crime shows, including «Law & Order» and «FBI», made his debut on the billionaire list thanks to the nearly $2 billion (before tax) he earned during his 30-year career in television.
Johnson, now 64 years old, made his name in basketball, but he made his fortune in business — in particular through savvy partnerships with other billionaires. He owns the Washington Commanders of the NFL (with Justin Harris), the Los Angeles Dodgers of the MLB (with Todd Boley), the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA, and LAFC of the MLS.
The majority of his wealth comes from his stake in the life insurance company EquiTrust.
Over the course of his twenty-year basketball career, LeBron James has earned more than $1 billion on and off the court. He has invested in real estate and stakes in companies such as Blaze Pizza, his own production and entertainment company SpringHill, and, of course, sports.
James also has a stake in Fenway Sports Group, owner of the MLB Boston Red Sox; «Liverpool» football club and «Pittsburgh Penguins» NHL.
Golfer Tiger Woods joins an elite club of two people (LeBron James was mentioned above) who became billionaires while actively playing sports. Woods has won 15 of the top four tournaments and 67 Professional Golf Association tournaments. He is the youngest golfer to win a grand slam in his career (i.e. not within one calendar year).
Woods’ most famous endorsement deal with Nike lasted almost 30 years and ended in January. He also announced his own clothing line, Sun Day Red.
The pop star has stakes in two billion-dollar brands: the cosmetics company Fenty Beauty, which she owns together with luxury goods giant LVMH, and the lingerie business Savage X Fenty (Rihanna’s real name is Robin Fenty).
In more than 30 years of creating and starring in TV shows, movies, and plays, Perry has earned more than $1.4 billion before taxes. He is also known for lending one of his homes in Los Angeles to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle when they stepped down as senior members of the British royal family.
The visionary director of the «Lord of the Rings» and «The Hobbit» franchises, Peter Jackson, made most of his fortune through his visual effects company Weta Digital, which sold some of its assets to game maker Unity Software in 2021. This deal brought the New Zealander almost $1 billion in cash and shares.
No one has made more money from reality TV fame than Kim Kardashian. She has become a billionaire thanks to her beauty and clothing brands — in 2023, her Skims line of corrective clothing was valued at $4 billion.
The first hip-hop 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 brand D’Usse in 2023 for $750 million.
He also owns stakes in Uber and Block. His net worth does not include his wife Beyoncé’s half a billion dollars.
The daytime talk show host became the first black female billionaire in 2003. Since then, she has built her brand into a media and business empire, including real estate investments and her own production company.
Jordan became the first billionaire athlete in 2015, but it’s not because of his legendary basketball career. He earned more than $1.8 billion from brand partnerships and also made a very smart investment in 2010 by purchasing the NBA team «Charlotte Hornets» for $175 million — it was sold for $3 billion in 2023.
Spielberg joined the world’s billionaires in 1994 as the first director after releasing a string of hits, including «Jaws», «Jurassic Park» and «Schindler’s List».
«I am a gambler», — Spielberg said last year. «I haven’t taken a paycheck in almost ten years».
In return, he negotiated a percentage of the gross sales of his films, and still receives a portion of every ticket sold at Universal theme parks thanks to the Indiana Jones series.
The «Star Wars» director, who debuted as a billionaire in 1997, has become the richest celebrity in Forbes’ rankings, largely thanks to his production company LucasFilm, which he sold to Disney in 2012 for more than $4 billion in cash and stock.