The Top Movie Stars of 2021

From Oscar Isaac, Stephanie Beatriz, and Carrie Coon to old favorites like Matthew McConaughey and Jamie Lee Curtis, we relive the movies that made these stars household names in 2021. Of course, the top movie star for 2021 is none other than Tom Holland, for his role as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” The movie did very well, grossing a whopping $821.3 million.

To determine the top movie stars by year, 24/7 Tempo reviewed data on domestic box office from the film industry site The Numbers, a subsidiary of Nash Information Services. Actors were ranked based on their total contributions to the domestic box office in a given year. Box office contributions were calculated based on billing order, with domestic box office figures successively halved according to billing order. If an actor received top billing, for example, they would be assigned half of the film’s box office. Actors receiving second billing were assigned one-fourth of a film’s box office, actors receiving third billing one-eighth, actors receiving fourth billing one-sixteenth, and so on. Domestic box office data is adjusted for inflation.

Here are the top 25 movie stars for 2021.

25. Oscar Isaac

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $43.6 million
• Movies in 2021: 3 credits
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Dune ($109.7 million)

24. Michelle Rodriguez

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $43.8 million
• Movies in 2021: 3 credits
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: F9: The Fast Saga ($175.2 million)

23. Angelina Jolie

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $45.5 million
• Movies in 2021: 2 credits
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Eternals ($166.9 million)

22. Florence Pugh

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $46.5 million
• Movies in 2021: 1 credit
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Black Widow ($185.9 million)

21. Jamie Lee Curtis

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $46.6 million
• Movies in 2021: 1 credit
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Halloween Kills ($93.2 million)

20. Stephanie Beatriz

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $48.7 million
• Movies in 2021: 2 credits
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Encanto ($97.2 million)

19. Alexander Skarsgård

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $51.1 million
• Movies in 2021: 1 credit
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Godzilla vs. Kong ($102.2 million)

18. Jon Favreau

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $51.3 million
• Movies in 2021: 1 credit
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Spider-Man: No Way Home ($821.3 million)

17. Woody Harrelson

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $54.1 million
• Movies in 2021: 1 credit
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Venom: Let There be Carnage ($216.2 million)

16. Timothée Chalamet

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $54.9 million
• Movies in 2021: 2 credits
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Dune ($109.7 million)

15. Dwayne Johnson

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $59.2 million
• Movies in 2021: 2 credits
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Free Guy ($123.1 million)

14. Carrie Coon

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $65.4 million
• Movies in 2021: 1 credit
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Ghostbusters: Afterlife ($130.9 million)

13. Awkwafina

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $70.7 million
• Movies in 2021: 2 credits
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings ($227.4 million)

12. Ryan Reynolds

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $80.8 million
• Movies in 2021: 2 credits
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Free Guy ($123.1 million)

11. Daniel Craig

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $81.5 million
• Movies in 2021: 1 credit
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: No Time to Die ($162.9 million)

10. Matthew McConaughey

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $81.9 million
• Movies in 2021: 1 credit
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Sing 2 ($163.7 million)

9. Kumail Nanjiani

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $83.5 million
• Movies in 2021: 1 credit
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Eternals ($166.9 million)

8. Vin Diesel

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $87.6 million
• Movies in 2021: 1 credit
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: F9: The Fast Saga ($175.2 million)

7. Benedict Cumberbatch

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $106.1 million
• Movies in 2021: 3 credits
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Spider-Man: No Way Home ($821.3 million)

6. Tom Hardy

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $108.1 million
• Movies in 2021: 1 credit
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Venom: Let There be Carnage ($216.2 million)

5. Emily Blunt

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $110.7 million
• Movies in 2021: 2 credits
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: A Quiet Place: Part II ($162.2 million)

4. Scarlett Johansson

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $113.4 million
• Movies in 2021: 2 credits
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Black Widow ($185.9 million)

3. Simu Liu

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $113.7 million
• Movies in 2021: 1 credit
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings ($227.4 million)

2. Zendaya

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $205.7 million
• Movies in 2021: 3 credits
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Spider-Man: No Way Home ($821.3 million)

1. Tom Holland

• Box office contributions in 2021 (inflation-adjusted): $417.4 million
• Movies in 2021: 2 credits
• Highest grossing movie in 2021: Spider-Man: No Way Home ($821.3 million)