Forbes has released its annual list of the world’s most powerful celebrities and it’s one list where women are, at the very top at least, on equal footing with men. The annual Celebrity 100 list ranks the top stars from the world of movies, TV, music, sport, books and modelling.
Taking out the top spot as the world’s most powerful celebrity is Beyonce Knowles, who took over the number one position from Oprah Winfrey. Oprah came in at number four, and comedian Ellen DeGeneres at number five.
But despite women taking out three of the top five spots and five of the top ten, it is a decline from 2013 when women dominated the top ten with six spots. Pop stars Taylor Swift, Madonna and Lady Gaga all fell down the list from the top spots last year.
And the list — which ranks the most powerful celebrities based on estimated earnings and the number of mentions in traditional and social media — isn’t so ‘gender equal’ the further you go down the list, with female celebrities making up just 33 of the 100 most powerful, and ten of those women appearing in the 91 to 100 spots.
Knowles, who Forbes estimates earns $115 million per year, is riding high on the creative and commercial success of her self-title album released at the end of 2013, and her On The Run tour, which Forbes estimates earns $2.4 million per stop (and with 95 stops to date), plus a number of commercial endorsements.
Pop stars Rihanna and Katy Perry round out the top ten women. Jennifer Lawrence, the star of the female-led The Hunger Games, was ranked as the most powerful actress, coming in at number 12.
Below are the 33 most powerful females on the Forbes Celebrity 100
1. Beyonce Knowles
4. Oprah Winfrey
5. Ellen DeGeneres
8. Rihanna
9. Katy Perry
12. Jennifer Lawrence
17 Miley Cyrus
18. Taylor Swift
19. Lady Gaga
33. Jennifer Lopez
36. Sandra Bullock
54. Sofia Vergara
56. Gisele Bundchen
63. Maria Sharapova
69. Serena Williams
73. Angelina Jolie
76. Scarlett Johansson
77. Jennifer Aniston
80. Kim Kardashian
81. Amy Adams
84. J.k Rowlings
85. Li Na
89. Gwyneth Paltrow
91. Kate Moss
92. Meryl Streep
93. Kerry Washington
94. Kate Upton
95. Veronica Roth
96. Zooey Deschanel
97. Cameron Diaz
97 Lena Dunham
99 Kaley Cuoco
100. Natalie Portman