# Sofia Vergara Is (Once Again) The Highest-Paid TV Actress



## kozykitten (25 Dez. 2015)

It’s no secret that Hollywood has always been a man’s world. The top 10 actresses on our list this year earned a total of $140 million between June 2013 to June 2014; that’s a far stretch from the combined $214 million our male TV actors earned this year. Still, no one can beat the most powerful woman in television right now: Sofia Vergara.

The actress lands in the No. 1 spot for a third year in a row, with a remarkable $37 million — that’s more than our top-earning TV actor, Ashton Kutcher ($26 million). At 42, the Modern Family star continues her streak in large part due to her business savvy. Like the rest of her cast members, the Colombian-born star earns a reported $325,000 per episode, but the bulk of her earnings come from her lucrative endorsements and licensing deals. Vergara is the face of Diet Pepsi, CoverGirl, Head & Shoulders, AT&T T +0.00%, and the medication Synthroid.

The actress’ appearance during this year’s Emmy Awards ceremony (where she was literally put on a pedestal and made to spin around) might have angered some female viewers, but Vergara is much more than just a pretty face — she’s the co-founder of Latin World Entertainment, a multi-million dollar empire. The talent management and entertainment-marketing firm recently teamed up with CNET to launch a Spanish-language tech news site. Vergara’s brand also continues to grow thanks to her 12-year deal with Kmart, a strategic move to better appeal to Hispanic shoppers.

Earlier this year, she also launched her first fragrance for HSN HSNI +0.00% and starred in the indie movie Chef, which received rave critical reviews and became the only summer indie to hit $30 million at the box office. Combine all of her various ventures together and Vergara out-earns FORBES’ second-highest paid actress by roughly $24 million.

Mariska Hargitay takes the No. 2 spot with an estimated total of $13 million in earnings. (Yes, Law and Order: SVU is still the longest-running drama series currently on TV). The drama, which was renewed for a 16th season, saw a double-digit increase in viewership in its past season, mostly thanks to Mariska’s star power. She also takes home a significant amount from extensive syndication of the show.

We took our numbers from our research for our annual Celebrity 100 list, which is partly based on how much Hollywood’s biggest stars earn from entertainment-related endeavors. Estimates are based on conversations with managers, producers, lawyers and industry insiders. We do not deduct for taxes, management fees and other celebrity expenses.

Kaley Cuoco took home an estimated $11 million in earnings, putting her at No. 3 on this year’s list. Thanks to the success of television’s most profitable show, The Big Bang Theory has been a huge launching pad for Cuoco’s career. She’ll be starring alongside Kevin Hart in a comedy hitting in a comedy hitting theaters next year and has and a lucrative line of endorsements for companies like Priceline and Toyota.. With the recently renegotiated contract for Big Bang (reportedly worth as much as $1 million per episode) she’ll likely be back on next year’s list with a significant increase in earnings

For women, Hollywood is a tough industry to beat — it’s a known fact that women make significantly less than men. But things are beginning to improve. In recent years, female roles on television have gotten better. Vergara’s character on Family may appear to be a clueless bombshell, but she’s got the mouth of a sailor and can fearlessly outsmart her husband faster than you can say “Jaaaaaaaay” (for those unfamiliar: that’s the name of her husband on the show, played by Ed O’Neill).

Some women in television are the stars of their shows and portray strong-willed characters who are driven by their ambitions and hunger for power. The result? A heroine whom it’s impossible not to root for.

Take Kerry Washington, for example, who ranks eighth on our list this year. With a total of $6 million, she nearly doubled her annual salary from last year. Her fierce portrayal of the formidable Olivia Pope on ABC’s political drama Scandal has popularized the phrase “gladiator in a suit.” A chunk of the star’s paycheck also comes from contracts with Movado and Neutrogena.

At No. 9 with $5 million in earnings is Clare Danes, who is a newcomer to this year’s list thanks to her role as Carrie Mathison on the hit show Homeland. The show, which she also produces and directs, will be returning for a fourth season. Her 2013 comedy-drama film As Cool As I Am was a flop, but Danes still cashed in a ton of money from her endorsement deal with Audi.


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