The top ten earning actors in 2012 were......

Tatum a surprise number two

Some of the names on the top ten have been there for many years. Actors like Tom Cruise and Denzel Washington have long held star power in Hollywood. But others, some rather high up in the rankings may surprise you.

Take a look at the list below and leave us your thoughts in the comments section below.

1   Robert Downey Jr, $75 million The Avengers was a huge key in his finishing number one.

3    Hugh Jackman, $55 million. Jackman’s range goes from X-Men to Les Miserables and will continue to expand with his “Wolverine” solo this year.

2   Channing Tatum, $60 million. The star of Magic Mike is somewhat of a surprise at number two.

4    Mark Wahlberg, $52 million. The former boy band member hit it big with Ted and has branched out with movies like The Fighter. He’s also signed on to be in the next Transformers movie.

5    Dwayne (The Rock) Johnson, $46 million. Being a former wrestler helped Johnson with name recognition and is shows. Johnson took home big money for Fast and Furious 6, and G.I Joe, Retaliation.

6    Leonardo DiCaprio, $39 million. Leo was helped along by the $250 million taken home by The Great Gatsby.

7    Adam Sandler, $37 million. What may surprise you here is the movie Hotel Transylvania is what placed Sandler on the list. The animated feature is the highest grossing film in Sandler’s career.

8     Tom Cruise, 35 million. Cruise stays in the top ten with Jack Reacher. While the film wasn’t big in the US it was a hit across the pond to land him a spot.

9      Denzel Washington, $33 million. Never bet against a guy who works as much as Denzel. His work in the movie The Pilot garnered his sixth Oscar nomination.

10  Liam Neeson, $32 million. Neeson quietly appears in the ranking due to the success of movies like Taken 2 and The Grey.

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