Scarlett Johansson Is Easily 2018’s Highest-Paid Actress Thanks To ‘Avengers’ Films

It pays good money saving (or not saving…) the universe from Thanos, apparently.

Forbes has recently come out with its list of the 10 highest-paid actresses for 2018. And vaulting into the #1 spot, after not even making the top 10 in 2017, is none other than Black Widow, aka Scarlett Johansson, with a whopping $40.5 million.

And believe it or not, if you look at her output over the last year, it’s mostly coming from her role in “Avengers: Infinity War” and the upcoming “Avengers 4.” Not too shabby at all, especially considering her very limited screentime in the aforementioned ‘Infinity War.’ Johansson has become a highly sought-after actress, commanding big paydays and spearheading productions.

You could argue that she’s the only reason that “Ghost in the Shell” was made in 2017 (perhaps not the best idea), and Johansson is clearly the reason they were developing the upcoming film “Rub & Tug,” even though controversy has sent that production into chaos. Either way, thanks to Marvel Studios, the actress is probably one of the most famous women in the world.

Coming in at a distant #2 is Angelina Jolie, based on her massive paycheck for the upcoming “Maleficent 2,” followed by Jennifer Aniston, who continues to make a mint off of using her likeness for ads. The rest of the top 10 is a mixture of women that have dominated the list in previous years, like Jennifer Lawrence, Mila Kunis, and Reese Witherspoon.

However, an actress to watch out for is Gal Gadot, who cracks the top 10 based on the payday she’s getting for “Wonder Woman 84.”

Here’s the full list of the 10 highest paid actresses:

1. Scarlett Johansson — $40.5 Million
2. Angelina Jolie — $28 Million
3. Jennifer Aniston — $19.5 Million
4. Jennifer Lawrence — $18 Million
5. Reese Witherspoon — $16.5 Million
6. Mila Kunis — $16 Million
7. Julia Roberts — $13 Million
8. Cate Blanchett — $12.5 Million
9. Melissa McCarthy — $12 Million
10. Gal Gadot — $10 Million