Staggering Celebrity Paychecks

Staggering Celebrity Paychecks

Staggering Celebrity Paychecks. It's no secret that celebs rake in the big bucks. Still, you might be surprised to learn the monetary mother lodes that some of these stars have hit. From super-lucrative deals to surprising financial firsts, click through to see what jaw-dropping figures were on these huge celeb paychecks.

It pays well to look this good in a gown. In fact, Gisele Bündchen may be the most financially successful runway-walker ever. According to Forbes, she is on track to make $1 billion.

She's the highest-paid reality star ever, and between her TV salary and endorsements, Kim made heaving, round, Kardashian-style mounds of money in 2010. According to The Daily Beast and other Web sites, Kardashian made $6 million last year.

"Twilight" star Taylor Lautner became the highest-paid teen star when, at 19 years old, he signed on to star in a "Stretch Armstrong" movie for an incredible $7.5 million.

The movie may have bombed, but Demi Moore wasn't crying when she received a record-breaking $12.5 million to star in "Striptease.”

Movie audiences love Jack Sparrow, and so should Johnny Depp: Playing the character a fourth time earned him a whopping sum that overshadows other actors' blockbusters salaries. Depp got $75 million to don Sparrow's costume again.

Julia Roberts is one of Hollywood's most recognizable faces, but it was only recently that she landed her first cosmetics endorsement. Her compensation for the deal is enough to put a smile on anyone's face. She's getting a reported $50 million to be the face of Lancome .

Sandra Bullock enjoyed so much financial success between the releases of "The Proposal" and "The Blind Side" that Forbes magazine named her the highest-paid actress working today. Bullock earned $56 million between 2009 and 2010.

He's one of the hardest-working men in Hollywood. And you might put your nose to the grindstone too, if you pulled the kind of cash that Ryan Seacrest does. The multimedia maven just signed a $45 million deal to renew with "American Idol."

She didn't retire after the end of her show, but Oprah Winfrey totally could have, considering how much dough she made during her last two seasons. Winfrey raked in $315 million per year for her show.

This is how much money Tiger Woods makes: Even in light of lost endorsements and faltering game after his adultery scandal, he's still the all-time best-paid athlete ever. In 2010, Woods earned $90.5 million in prizes and endorsements.

Even though he's no longer a TV regular, Charlie Sheen is still the highest-paid TV actor to date, making $1.25 million an episode at his peak. Yes, he really can afford to be that nutty.

Snooki made headlines this year when it was revealed that Rutgers University was paying her $32,000 to speak at the campus, an amount higher than they paid to acclaimed author Toni Morrison. Take that, literary world!

He may be moonwalking in another place now, but Michael Jackson is still breaking the bank. In fact, after his death, he scored the biggest record contract ever, valued at around $250 million.

Elizabeth Taylor left behind a legacy of drama and glamour. But she was also a record-breaker for being the first actress to be paid $1 million for a movie role.

Sure, it's paid out over a decade, but 10 years does nothing to belittle the fact that Alex Rodriguez holds the highest-valued sports contract ever at $275 million.

He's TV royalty, so it makes sense that Jerry Seinfeld would be the first lead actor to make $1 million per episode. That's a lot for a show about "nothing."

On his end, Conan O'Brien's dealings with NBC didn't go so well. But he recouped some of his losses when, post-cancellation, the network bought out the remainder of his contract for $32.5 million.

Marlon Brando racked up quite a few memorable roles in his day, but it's his cameo in the original "Superman" movie that paid him $3.7 million for rather scant screen time.

Low-cal alcohol is a good business to be in, apparently. Reality show alumna Bethenny Frankel sold her Skinnygirl line of diet booze for an amount that's ridiculous -- even by "Real Housewives" standards: $120 million?!

Source:wonderwall