Forbes list of the world's highest-paid dead celebrities explained

This is a list of the world's highest-paid dead celebrities as ranked by Forbes magazine since October 2001.

2023 list

The 2023 list:^[1]

Rank	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1	Musician	United States	Overdose/homicide	$115 million
2	Musician		Heart attack	$100 million
3	Musician		Cancer	$45 million
4	Author		Heart attack	$40 million
5	Cartoonist		Cancer	$30 million
6	Musician		Overdose	$30 million
7	Musician		Drowning	$30 million
8	Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$22 million
9	Musician	Jamaica	Cancer	$16 million
10	Musician	United States	Heart attack	$14 million
11	Musician	United Kingdom	Cancer	$14 million
12	Athlete	United States	Heart disease	$10 million
13	Actor	United States	Overdose	$10 million

2022 list

The 2022 list:^[2]

J.R.R. Tolkien earned $500 million from the sale of Middle-Earth Enterprises.

Rank	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1	Author	United Kingdom	Pneumonia	$500 million
2	Athlete	United States	Helicopter crash	$400 million
3	Musician	United Kingdom	Cancer	$250 million
4	Musician	United States	Heart attack	$110 million
5	Musician		Heart failure	$100 million
6	Musician		Overdose/homicide^[3]	$75 million
7	Musician	Canada	Fatal fall	$55 million
8	Author	United States	Cancer	$32 million
9	Musician		Heart attack	$25 million
10	Cartoonist		Cancer	$24 million
11	Musician	Mexico	Heart attack	$23 million
12	Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$16 million
13	Musician	United Kingdom	Cancer	$12 million

2021 list

The 2021 list:^[4]

Netflix announced the acquisition of the Roald Dahl Story Company, which manages the rights to Roald Dahl's stories and characters, for a fee of $684 million (£500m). Dahl's heirs held at least a 75% stake before the company was acquired.

Rank	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1	Author	United Kingdom	Cancer	$513 million
2	Musician	United States	Overdose	$120 million
3	Musician		Overdose/homicide	$75 million
4	Cartoonist		Cancer	$40 million
5	Author		Cancer	$35 million
6	Musician		Heart attack	$33 million
7	Musician		Heart attack	$30 million
8	Athlete		Heart disease	$27 million
9	Lyricist		Natural causes	$23 million
10	Musician		Stroke	$21 million
11		Jamaica	Cancer	$16 million
12		United States	Accidental overdose	$15 million
13		United Kingdom	Homicide	$12 million

2020 list

The 2020 list:^[5]

Rank	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1	Musician	United States	Overdose/homicide	$48 million
2	Author		Cancer	$33 million
3	Cartoonist		Cancer	$32.5 million
4	Athlete		Heart disease	$25 million
5	Musician		Heart attack	$23 million
6	Athlete		Helicopter crash	$20 million
7	Musician		Overdose	$15 million
8		Jamaica	Cancer	$14 million
9		United Kingdom	Homicide	$13 million
10		United States	Overdose	$10 million
11		United Kingdom	AIDS	$9 million
12		United Kingdom	Cancer	$8.5 million
13	Actor	United States	Overdose	$8 million

2019 list

The 2019 list:^[6]

Rank	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1	Musician	United States	Overdose/homicide	$60 million
2	Musician		Heart attack	$39 million
3	Cartoonist		Cancer	$38 million
4	Athlete		Heart disease	$30 million
5	Musician	Jamaica	Cancer	$20 million
6	Author	United States	Cancer	$19 million
7	Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$14 million
8	Actor	United States	Overdose	$13 million
9	Musician	United States	Overdose	$12 million
10			Homicide	$11 million
11			Homicide	$10 million
12			Drowning	$9.5 million
13		United Kingdom	Cancer	$9 million

2018 list

The 2018 list:^[7] ^[8]

Michael Jackson brought in $287 million from the sale of his estate's stake in Sony/ATV Music Publishing to Sony.^[9]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Overdose/homicide	$400 million
2	Elvis Presley	Musician		Heart attack	$40 million
3		Athlete		Heart disease	$35 million
4		Cartoonist		Cancer	$34 million
5		Musician	Jamaica		$23 million
6		Author	United States		$16 million
7		Personality		Sepsis	$15 million
8		Actor		Overdose	$14 million
9		Musician		Overdose	$13 million
10			United Kingdom	Homicide	$12 million
11			United States	Homicide	$11 million
12		Athlete		Septic shock	$8 million
13		Model		Heart attack	$7 million

2017 list

The 2017 list:^[10] ^[11]

Rank	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1	Musician	United States	Overdose/homicide	$75 million
2	Athlete		Heart disease	$40 million
3	Cartoonist		Cancer	$38 million
4	Musician		Heart attack	$35 million
5		Jamaica	Cancer	$23 million
6		United States	Overdose	$20 million
7			Overdose	$18 million
8	Author		Cancer	$16 million
9	Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$12 million
10	Scientist	Germany	Aneurysm	$10 million
11	Musician	United Kingdom	Cancer	$9.5 million
12	Actor	United Kingdom	Heart failure	$8 million
13	Model	United States	Heart attack	$7.5 million

2016 list

The 2016 list:^[12]

Michael Jackson had the largest annual gain for an entertainer, living or dead, due to the $750 million sale of his half of the Sony/ATV Music Publishing catalogue.

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Overdose/homicide	$825 million
2		Cartoonist		Cancer	$48 million
3		Athlete		Heart disease	$40 million
4		Musician		Heart attack	$27 million
5	Prince			Overdose	$25 million
6			Jamaica	Cancer	$21 million
7		Author	United States	Cancer	$20 million
8		Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$12 million
9		Scientist	Germany	Aneurysm	$11.5 million
10		Model	United States	Heart attack	$11 million
11		Musician	United Kingdom	Cancer	$10.5 million
12		Actor	United States	Heart attack	$9 million
13		Actor	United Kingdom	Heart failure	$8 million

2015 list

The 2015 list:^[13]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Overdose/homicide	$115 million
2	Elvis Presley	Musician		Heart attack	$55 million
3		Cartoonist		Cancer	$40 million
4		Musician	Jamaica	Cancer	$21 million
5		Actor	United Kingdom	Heart failure	$20 million
6		Actor	United States	Overdose	$17 million
7		Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$12 million
8		Scientist	Germany	Aneurysm	$11 million
9	Bettie Page	Model	United States	Heart attack	$10 million
10	Dr. Seuss	Author		Cancer	$9.5 million
11	Steve McQueen	Actor		Heart attack	$9 million
12	Paul Walker			Car crash	$8.5 million
12	James Dean			Car crash	$8.5 million

2014 list

The 2014 list:^[14]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Overdose/homicide	$140 million
2	Elvis Presley	Musician		Heart attack	$55 million
3		Cartoonist		Cancer	$40 million
4		Actor	United Kingdom	Heart failure	$25 million
4			United States	Car crash	$25 million
6	Marilyn Monroe		United States	Overdose	$17 million
7		Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$12 million
8		Scientist	Germany	Aneurysm	$11 million
9		Author	United States	Cancer	$9 million
		Actor		Cerebral edema
	Steve McQueen	Actor		Cancer
		Model		Heart attack
13		Actor		Car crash	$7 million

2013 list

The 2013 list:^[15]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Overdose/homicide	$160 million
2	Elvis Presley	Musician		Heart attack	$55 million
3		Cartoonist		Cancer	$37 million
4		Actor	United Kingdom	Heart failure	$25 million
5		Musician	Jamaica	Cancer	$17 million
6		Actor	United States	Overdose	$15 million
7		Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$12 million
8		Scientist	Germany	Aneurysm	$10 million
8		Model	United States	Heart attack	$10 million
10		Author		Cancer	$9 million
10		Actor		Heart attack	$9 million
12	Bruce Lee	Actor		Cerebral edema	$7 million

2012 list

The 2012 list:^[16]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Actor	United Kingdom	Heart failure	$210 million
2		Musician	United States	Overdose/homicide	$145 million
3	Elvis Presley	Musician		Heart attack	$55 million
4		Cartoonist		Cancer	$37 million
5		Musician	Jamaica	Cancer	$17 million
6		Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$12 million
7		Actor	United States	Overdose	$10 million
7		Scientist	Germany	Aneurysm	$10 million
9		Author	United States	Cancer	$9 million
10		Actor		Heart attack	$8 million
10		Model		Heart attack	$8 million
12		Composer		Cancer	$6 million
13		Musician	United Kingdom	Cancer	$5.5 million

2011 list

The 2011 list:^[17]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Overdose/homicide	$170 million
2	Elvis Presley	Musician		Heart attack	$55 million
3		Actor		Overdose	$27 million
4		Cartoonist		Cancer	$25 million
5		Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$12 million
5		Actor	United Kingdom	Heart failure	$12 million
7		Scientist	Germany	Aneurysm	$10 million
8		Author	United States	Cancer	$9 million
9		Musician	United States	Overdose	$7 million
		Author	Sweden	Heart attack
		Actor	United States	Heart attack
		Composer	United States	Cancer
13		Musician	United Kingdom	Cancer	$6 million
		Model	United States	Heart attack
		Artist	United States	Arrhythmia

2010 list

The 2010 list:^[18]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Overdose/homicide	$275 million
2	Elvis Presley	Musician	United States	Heart attack	$60 million
3		Author	United Kingdom	Pneumonia	$50 million
4		Cartoonist	United States	Cancer	$33 million
5		Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$17 million
6		Author	Sweden	Heart attack	$15 million
7		Author	United States	Cancer	$11 million
8		Scientist	Germany	Aneurysm	$10 million
9		Businessperson	United States	Heart attack	$8 million
10		Composer		Cancer	$7 million
11		Musician		Overdose	$6 million
11		Actor		Heart attack	$6 million
13		Film producer		Stroke	$5 million

2009 list

The 2009 list:^[19] ^[20]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Fashion designer	France	Cancer	$350 million
2		Composer	United States		$235 million
2	Oscar Hammerstein	Lyricist			$235 million
3	Michael Jackson	Musician		Overdose/homicide	$90 million
4	Elvis Presley	Musician		Heart attack	$55 million
5	J. R. R. Tolkien	Author	United Kingdom	Pneumonia	$50 million
6	Charles Schulz	Cartoonist	United States	Cancer	$35 million
7	John Lennon	Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$15 million
7	Dr. Seuss	Author	United States	Cancer	$15 million
9	Albert Einstein	Scientist	Germany	Aneurysm	$10 million
10	Michael Crichton	Author	United States	Cancer	$9 million
11	Jimi Hendrix	Musician		Overdose	$8 million
11	Aaron Spelling	Film producer		Stroke	$8 million
13		Artist		Arrhythmia	$6 million

2008 list

The 2008 list:^[21]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Heart attack	$52 million
2		Cartoonist	United States	Cancer	$33 million
3		Actor	Australia	Overdose	$20 million
4		Scientist	Germany	Aneurysm	$18 million
5		Film producer	United States	Stroke	$15 million
6		Author	United States	Cancer	$12 million
7		Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$9 million
7		Artist	United States	Arrhythmia	$9 million
9		Actor		Overdose	$6.5 million
10	Steve McQueen			Heart attack	$6 million
11	Paul Newman			Cancer	$5 million
11	James Dean			Car crash	$5 million
13		Musician		Homicide	$3.5 million

2007 list

The 2007 list:^[22]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Heart attack	$49 million
2		Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$44 million
3		Cartoonist	United States	Cancer	$35 million
4		Musician	United Kingdom	Cancer	$22 million
5		Scientist	Germany	Aneurysm	$18 million
6		Artist	United States	Arrhythmia	$15 million
7		Author		Cancer	$13 million
8		Musician		Homicide	$9 million
9		Actor		Overdose	$7 million
10	Steve McQueen	Actor		Heart attack	$6 million
11		Musician		Heart failure	$5 million
12		Musician	Jamaica	Cancer	$4 million
13		Actor	United States	Car crash	$3.5 million

2006 list

The 2006 list:^[23]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Suicide	$50 million
2	Elvis Presley	Musician		Heart attack	$42 million
3		Cartoonist		Cancer	$35 million
4		Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$24 million
5		Scientist	Germany	Aneurysm	$20 million
6		Artist	United States	Arrhythmia	$19 million
7		Author		Cancer	$10 million
7		Musician		Liver failure	$10 million
9		Actor		Overdose	$8 million
10		Musician		Diabetes	$8 million
11		Author	United Kingdom	Pneumonia	$7 million
		Musician	United Kingdom	Cancer
		Musician	Jamaica	Cancer

2005 list

The 2005 list:^[24]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Heart attack	$45 million
2		Cartoonist	United States	Cancer	$35 million
3		Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$22 million
4		Artist	United States	Arrhythmia	$16 million
5		Author		Cancer	$10 million
6		Actor		Respiratory failure	$9 million
7	Marilyn Monroe	Actor		Overdose	$8 million
7		Author	United Kingdom	Pneumonia	$8 million
9		Musician	United Kingdom	Cancer	$7 million
		Musician	United States	Diabetes
		Composer	United States	Heart attack
12		Musician	Jamaica	Cancer	$6 million
12		Musician	United States	Liver failure	$6 million

2004 list

The 2004 list:^[25]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Heart attack	$40 million
2		Cartoonist	United States	Cancer	$35 million
3		Author	United Kingdom	Pneumonia	$23 million
4		Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$21 million
5		Author	United States	Cancer	$18 million
6		Actor	United States	Overdose	$8 million
7		Musician	United Kingdom	Cancer	$7 million
		Composer	United States	Heart attack
		Musician	Jamaica	Cancer
10		Composer	United States		$6.5 million
11		Composer			$6 million
	Ira Gershwin	Lyricist		Heart disease
	Jimi Hendrix	Musician		Overdose
	Alan Jay Lerner	Lyricist		Cancer
	Frederick Loewe	Composer		Heart attack
	Cole Porter	Composer		Kidney failure
17	James Dean	Actor		Car crash	$5 million
	Dale Earnhardt	Athlete		Car crash
	Jerry Garcia	Musician		Heart attack
	Freddie Mercury		United Kingdom	AIDS
			United States	Homicide
	Frank Sinatra		United States	Heart attack

2003 list

The 2003 list:^[26]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Heart attack	$40 million
2		Cartoonist	United States	Cancer	$32 million
3		Author	United Kingdom	Pneumonia	$22 million
4		Musician		Homicide	$19 million
5		Musician		Cancer	$16 million
6		Author	United States	Cancer	$16 million
7		Athlete		Car crash	$15 million
8		Musician		Homicide	$12 million
9		Musician	Jamaica	Cancer	$9 million
10		Actor	United States	Overdose	$8 million
11		Musician		Heart attack	$7 million
12		Composer		Cancer
13		Songwriter		Cancer
14		Musician		Overdose
15		Composer		Kidney failure	$6 million
16	Irving Berlin	Composer		Heart attack
17		Doctor	United Kingdom	Head trauma
18		Actor	United States	Car crash	$5 million
19		Musician	United States	Heart attack	$5 million

2002 list

The 2002 list:^[27]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Heart attack	$37 million
2		Cartoonist	United States	Cancer	$28 million
3		Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$20 million
3		Athlete	United States	Car crash	$20 million
5		Author	United States	Cancer	$19 million
6		Musician	United Kingdom	Cancer	$17 million
7		Author	United Kingdom	Pneumonia	$12 million
8		Musician	Jamaica	Cancer	$10 million
9			United States	Overdose	$8 million
10	Tupac Shakur			Homicide	$7 million
10		Actor		Overdose	$7 million
12		Musician		Heart attack	$5 million
12		Author		Heart attack	$5 million

2001 list

The 2001 list:^[28]

Rank	Name	Career	Nation	Cause of Death	Earnings
1		Musician	United States	Heart attack	$35 million
2		Cartoonist	United States	Cancer	$20 million
2		Musician	United Kingdom	Homicide	$20 million
4		Author	United States	Cancer	$17 million
5		Musician	United States	Overdose	$10 million
5		Musician	Jamaica	Cancer	$10 million
7		Artist	United States	Arrhythmia	$8 million
8		Author	United Kingdom	Pneumonia	$7 million
9		Musician	United States	Heart attack	$6 million
10		Musician		Heart attack	$5 million
11		Artist		AIDS	$4 million
11		Actor		Overdose	$4 million
13	James Dean	Actor		Car crash	$3 million

Notes and References

Web site: Dellatto . Marisa . The Highest-Paid Dead Celebrities Of 2023. Forbes . October 31, 2023. October 31, 2023.
Web site: Voytko . Lisette . The Highest-Paid Dead Celebrities Of 2022—A Writer Earns Half-A-Billion From The Great Beyond . Forbes . October 31, 2022. October 31, 2022.
News: Dr Murray found guilty of involuntary manslaughter . November 7, 2011 . Fox News.
Web site: Freeman . Abigail . The Highest-Paid Dead Celebrities 2021. Forbes . October 30, 2021. November 3, 2021.
Web site: Berg . Madeline . The Highest-Paid Dead Celebrities Of 2020. Forbes . November 13, 2019. November 16, 2020.
Web site: Greenburg . Zack . The Top-Earning Dead Celebrities Of 2019 . Forbes . October 30, 2019. August 30, 2020.
Zack O'Malley . Greenburg . Natalie . Robehmed . The Highest-Paid Dead Celebrities of 2018 . Forbes . October 31, 2017 . February 5, 2019 .
Web site: Murray . Tom . The 12 highest-paid dead celebrities of 2018 . Insider . November 1, 2018. August 30, 2020.
Web site: 2018-11-01. Michael Jackson tops 2018's highest earning dead celebrities list. 2020-12-02. The Independent. en.
Zack O'Malley . Greenburg . The Top-Earning Dead Celebrities of 2017 . Forbes . October 30, 2017 . February 5, 2019 .
Web site: Espinoza . Joshua . Here Are the Top-Earning Dead Celebrities of 2017 . Complex. October 30, 2017. August 30, 2020.
Zack O'Malley . Greenburg . Michael Jackson's Earnings: $825 Million In 2016 . Forbes . October 14, 2016 . February 5, 2019 .
Zack O'Malley . Greenburg . The 13 Top-Earning Dead Celebrities of 2015 . Forbes . October 27, 2015 . February 5, 2019 .
Dorothy . Pomerantz . Michael Jackson Tops Forbes' List of Top-Earning Dead Celebrities With $140 Million Haul . Forbes . October 15, 2014 . February 5, 2019 .
Dorothy . Pomerantz . Michael Jackson Leads Our List of the Top-Earning Dead Celebrities . Forbes . October 23, 2013 . February 5, 2019 .
Dorothy . Pomerantz . Elizabeth Taylor Tops 2012 List of the Top-Earning Dead Celebrities. Forbes . October 24, 2012 . February 5, 2019 .
Dorothy . Pomerantz . The Top-Earning Dead Celebrities . Forbes . October 25, 2011 . February 5, 2019 .
Lacey . Rose . Dorothy . Pomerantz . Top-Earning Dead Celebrities . Forbes . October 25, 2010 . February 5, 2019 .
News: Dorothy . Pomerantz . Top-Earning Dead Celebrities . Forbes. October 27, 2009 . February 5, 2019 .
News: Tom . Leonard . Forbes magazine: Yves Saint Laurent is highest earning dead celebrity . . October 29, 2009 . February 5, 2019.
News: Peter . Hoy . In Pictures: Top-Earning Dead Celebrities. Forbes. October 27, 2008 . February 5, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080303220139/https://www.forbes.com/2008/10/27/top-dead-celebrity-biz-media-deadcelebs08-cz_ph_1027celeb_slide_2.html?thisspeed=25000#2aa5a243be0b . dead . 2008-03-03 .
News: Lea . Goldman . In Pictures: Top-Earning Dead Celebrities. Forbes. October 29, 2007 . February 5, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080303220139/http://www.forbes.com/2007/10/26/top-dead-celebrity-biz-media-deadcelebs07-cz_lg_1029celeb_slide_2.html?thisSpeed=30000 . dead . 2008-03-03 .
News: Lacey . Rose . Top-Earning Dead Celebrities. Forbes. October 24, 2006 . February 5, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080602083838/http://www.forbes.com/2006/10/20/tech-media_06deadcelebs_cx_pf_top-earning-dead-celebrities.html . dead . 2008-06-02 .
News: Leah . Hoffmann . Top-Earning Dead Celebrities. Forbes. October 27, 2005 . February 5, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080729072347/http://www.forbes.com/2005/10/26/dead-celebrities-earnings_cx_pk_lh_deadceleb05_1027list.html . dead . 2008-07-29 .
News: Lisa . DiCarlo . Reaping Millions After Death. Forbes. October 26, 2004 . February 5, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150522113050/http://www.forbes.com/2004/10/25/cx_ld_1025deadcelebsintro.html . dead . 2015-05-22 .
News: Lisa . DiCarlo . Top-Earning Dead Celebrities. Forbes. October 24, 2003 . February 5, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161016152945/http://www.forbes.com/2003/10/24/cx_ld_1024deadcelebintro.html . dead . 2016-10-16 .
News: Betsy . Schiffman . Top-Earning Dead Celebrities. Forbes. July 12, 2002 . February 5, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080523091111/http://www.forbes.com/2002/08/12/0812deadintro.html . dead . 2008-05-23 .
News: Mei . Fong . Earnings From The Crypt. Forbes. February 28, 2001 . February 5, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080611070058/http://www.forbes.com/2001/02/28/crypt.html . live . 2008-06-11 .