--- title: Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson Says He Started Out With $7. Now He's the World's Highest Paid Actor description: On Thursday, Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson was named World's Highest Paid actor. His humble beginnings offer a different picture of his life. authors: - name: Alexandra Mondalek url: https://money.com/author/alexandra-mondalek/ at_money_since: 2015 articles: 44 covers: - Lifestyle - Banking - Career Advice - Credit Cards - Economy and Politics - Education - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes - Technology social: - https://x.com/amondalek former_staff: true published: '2016-08-25T15:21:25.000Z' modified: '2024-05-08T04:03:49.000Z' section: Lifestyle tags: - dwayne johnson - Forbes - forbes highest paid actor list - pubdesk - Wealth word_count: 249 canonical: https://money.com/dwayne-johnson-highest-paid-actor/ type: Article source: structured-blocks --- > **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/). ![HBO Ballers Season 2 Red Carpet Premiere and Reception in Miami](https://img.money.com/2016/08/gettyimages-5474030181.jpg) *Johnson attends the HBO "Ballers" Season 2 Red Carpet Premiere and Reception on July 14, 2016 at New World Symphony in Miami Beach, Florida.* Rags to riches? More like spandex to suits for this former pro-wrestler. On Thursday, *Forbes* released its annual list of the World's Highest Paid Actors (following its release of the [Highest Paid Actresses](https://money.com/highest-paid-actresses-jennifer-lawrence/) on Wednesday), with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson leading the pack. In response, Johnson tweeted: The former [WWE superstar](http://www.wwe.com/superstars/rock)\-turned-actor earned $64.5 million in the year ending June 1, doubling what he earned the previous year. That's a stark difference to how he grew up in Hawaii. When he was 14, his [mother's car](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/features/drive-despair-rock-dwayne-johnson-712689) was repossessed and soon after he and his mother were evicted from his childhood home. "We come home, and there's a padlock on the door and an eviction notice. My mom starts bawling. She just started crying and breaking down. 'Where are we going to live? What are we going to do?'", Johnson [told the Hollywood *Reporter*](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/features/drive-despair-rock-dwayne-johnson-712689) earlier this month. The leading man (who plays a former athlete and current financial adviser of the HBO series *Ballers*) carries an impressive resume in the entertainment industry: Aside from acting, he also runs his own production company, Seven Bucks Productions. Here's *Forbes* full list of the top 10 highest paid actors: 10\. Akshay Kumar: $31.5 million 8\. Robert Downey Jr.: $33 million (tied) 8\. Shah Rukh Khan: $33 million (tied) 7\. Vin Diesel: $35 million 6\. Ben Affleck: $43 million 5\. Johnny Depp: $48 million 4\. Tom Cruise: $53 million 3\. Matt Damon: $55 million 2\. Jackie Chan: $61 million 1\. Dwayne Johnson $64.5 million ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://money.com/dwayne-johnson-highest-paid-actor/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://money.com" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Lifestyle", "item": "https://money.com/lifestyle/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Celebrities", "item": "https://money.com/celebrities/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson Says He Started Out With $7. 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