The 10 Highest-Grossing Actresses of All Time

Move over, Samuel L. Jackson — there’s a new highest-grossing actor of all time in town … or should I say actress. With her latest movie, Jurassic World: Rebirth, Scarlett Johansson has moved into the number one spot to become the highest-grossing actor of all time. This is quite the feat considering Scarlett is just 40 years old, although she’s been acting since she was nine, making her debut in the film North.

On the heels of Scarlett Johansson’s amazing achievement in a field typically dominated by males, we wanted to highlight other actresses who have topped the box office with their own leading movie roles. Below, you’ll find a list of the top 10 highest-grossing actresses of all time, based on worldwide box office earnings from The Numbers for movies where they were the lead actress or part of a leading ensemble.

1. Scarlett Johansson: $15,179,605,462

Scarlett Johansson attends the “Vie Privée” (A Private Life) red carpet at the 78th annual Cannes Film Festival, May 20, 2025. | By YantsImages | Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International

Scarlett Johansson became the highest-grossing actor of all time in July 2025 after the highly successful release of Jurassic World: Rebirth. Johansson has been a leading actress or ensemble member in 18 films that have grossed a total of $15.18 billion at box offices around the world. The newest movie in the Jurassic World series has earned $649.78 million globally so far, though it is far from her most successful film. A majority of Johansson’s box office earnings can be attributed to her role in the highly successful Avengers films, where she played Natasha Romano, more famously known as Black Widow. Her highest-grossing film was Avengers: Endgame, which earned a whopping $2.72 billion worldwide!

2. Zoe Saldaña: $14,234,759,521

Zoe Saldaña at the “Entertainment Weekly: Wonder Women: Female Power Icons in Pop Culture” panel, Comic-Con 2009. | Image credit: Ewen Roberts | Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic  

Zoe Saldaña is the second highest-grossing actress and the fourth highest-grossing actor of all time, with a worldwide box office total of $14.23 billion. Saldaña has been the leading actress in 18 films and is best known for her role as Gamora in the Guardians of the Galaxy and Avengers movies. She is also known for her role as Neytiri in the Avatar movies, which significantly boosted her gross earnings. Saldaña’s highest-grossing film is 2009’s Avatar, after earning $2.92 billion worldwide, making it the highest-grossing film of all time. It ain’t easy being green (or blue), unless you’re Zoe Saldaña!

3. Emma Watson: $9,283,941,507

Emma Watson at the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival. | Image credit: David Shankbone | Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic

Coming in as the third highest-grossing actress of all time is Emma Watson, best known for playing Hermione Granger in the eight Harry Potter films. She has been credited as the lead actress in 13 movies. Her films have collectively grossed $9.28 billion worldwide, placing her sixteenth among the highest-grossing actors. In addition to playing the role of Harry Potter’s brilliant and loyal best friend, Watson’s leading roles also include Belle in the live-action Beauty and the Beast, Meg in the 2019 movie Little Women, and Sam from The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

4. Karen Gillan: $8,445,016,120

Karen Gillan at GalaxyCon Raleigh in 2023. | Image credit: Super Festivals | Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic

Karen Gillan comes in as the fourth highest-grossing actress of all time with an impressive $8.45 billion at the worldwide box office. You may not recognize Gillan from her photo, but you would certainly remember her with the iconic blue and purple skin, bald head, and piercing black eyes of her most famous character. Gillan is best known for her role as Nebula in the Guardians of the Galaxy and Avengers movies. As mentioned earlier, Avengers: Endgame is one of the highest-grossing films, earning a whopping $2.72 billion worldwide.

5. Elizabeth Olsen: $8,352,912,444

Elizabeth Olsen in “The Assessment” at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival. | Image credit: John Sears | Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International

The fifth highest-grossing actress on our list is Elizabeth Olsen, with $8.35 billion earned at the box office worldwide. Olsen has appeared in 14 films, including her role as a Marvel character known as both a hero and a villain. Olsen’s portrayal of Wanda Maximoff, aka Scarlet Witch, throughout various Avengers, Doctor Strange, and Captain America movies helped propel her to 25th on the list of highest-grossing actors of all time.

6. Letitia Wright: $7,494,425,499

Letitia Wright and Forest Whitaker speaking at the 2017 San Diego Comic-Con International for “Black Panther.” | Image credit: Gage Skidmore | Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic

Letitia Wright is the sixth highest-grossing actress ever, with a worldwide box office total of nearly $7.5 billion. It comes as no surprise that her most famous role is as a Marvel character. Wright is most known for her role as Shuri, who appeared in multiple Avengers and Black Panther movies. You may also recognize her voice in Sing 2, where she voiced one of the leading roles, a Canadian lynx named Nooshy. Overall, Letitia Wright ranks 32nd among the highest-grossing actors.

7. Danai Gurira: $6,959,229,594

Danai Gurira speaking at the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con International in California. | Image credit: Gage Skidmore | Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported  

Danai Gurira is the seventh highest-grossing actress of all time, with a global box office gross of nearly $7 billion. Gurira is another actress on our list who shot to the top of the list thanks to the roaring success of the Avengers and Black Panther movies, where she played the fearless leader, Okoye. In addition to the Marvel character, Gurira is also known for her role as Afeni Shakur in All Eyez on Me. While this list focuses on movies, we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention another major role Gurira is recognized for — her portrayal of Michonne in The Walking Dead television series. Danai Gurira ranks 38th overall on the list of highest-grossing actors of all time.

8. Pom Klementieff: $6,483,778,884

Pom Klementieff during a photocall for Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. | Image credit: Gabriel Hutchinson Photography | Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International

The eighth highest-grossing actress is Pom Klementieff, with a worldwide box office total of $6.48 billion. Klementieff’s box office success can be credited to the highly successful Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy movies, where she portrays the charming and quirky Mantis in both series. Since leaving the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Klementieff has also received accolades for her role as Paris in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One.  Pom Klementieff is currently ranked as the 45th highest-grossing actor of all time.

9. Gwenyth Paltrow: $6,094,420,445

Gwyneth Paltrow at the 84th Annual Academy Awards Red Carpet 2012. | Image credit: MingleMediaTVNetwork | Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic

Gwyneth Paltrow ranks as the ninth highest-grossing actress, with a global box office total sitting at $6.09 billion. She has been credited in 47 films, but one of her most recognizable characters is that of Iron Man’s assistant, Pepper Potts. Paltrow has starred in a bevy of Marvel movies as Pepper Potts, including the Iron Man and Avengers series, as well as Spider-Man: Homecoming. She has been acting for almost thirty years; her first leading role was in the 1996 film Emma, where she played the title character. On the list of the highest-grossing actors of all time, Gwyneth Paltrow currently holds the 54th rank.

10. Jennifer Lawrence: $6,081,577,257

Jennifer Lawrence on the red carpet at the 83rd Academy Awards. | Image credit: Mingle MediaTV | Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic

Jennifer Lawrence is the tenth highest-grossing actress of all time, with a total of $6.08 billion at the box office worldwide. Jennifer Lawrence starred in the four Hunger Games movies as the lead character, Katniss Everdeen. Katniss was a pivotal role for Lawrence, propelling her to stardom and a multitude of starring roles ever since. Like so many others on our list, Lawrence has also starred in a Marvel movie. You may (or may not!) recognize her as Raven Darkhölme, also known as Mystique, from X-Men: Days of Future Past. Jennifer Lawrence is the 55th highest-grossing actor of all time, according to The Numbers.

As you can see from our list, movies from the Marvel Cinematic Universe have proven to be quite fruitful for the highest-grossing actresses of all time, as all but one of the top ten actresses have starred in a Marvel film. Will another movie series top the outlandish worldwide box office heights reached by Avatar or Avengers? The movie fanatic within us can only hope!

Who Are the Highest-Grossing Actresses of All Time?

*Accurate as of 07/23/2025

See also:

• The Silver Screen’s Financial Titans: Highest Grossing Actors
• The Top 50 Highest-Grossing Science Fiction Movies of All Time Ranked by Their Rotten Tomatoes Score
• The Top 50 Highest-Grossing Superhero Movies of All Time Ranked by Their Rotten Tomatoes Score
• The 10 Highest-Grossing Japanese Anime Films of all Time