The most expensive representatives of show business are already leaving the profession.
In 2026, the number of billionaires who became wealthy due to their fame continued to grow. The American Forbes list included 22 athletes and artists with a combined fortune of about $48.1 billion — a year ago, the list had 18 people with a total wealth of $39 billion. The leader of the list once again was director Steven Spielberg with $7.1 billion, followed by 'Star Wars' creator George Lucas ($5.2 billion) and NBA legend Michael Jordan ($4.3 billion), who earned most of his fortune outside the basketball court. The list also included newcomers — Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Roger Federer, Dr. Dre, and director James Cameron.
Since Bruno Mars and rapper Travie McCoy first sang about wanting to be billionaires on the cover of Forbes magazine, sixteen years have passed. Although neither of them can boast such an achievement yet, a small but growing group of their celebrity colleagues has managed to make it into the global billionaire ranking of 2026 according to Forbes.
Both athletes and artists are signing increasingly larger contracts, making partnership deals, and more than ever resemble business owners and entrepreneurs (rather than ordinary employees), with Forbes finding 22 billionaires among celebrities in the fresh ranking with a combined wealth of about $48.1 billion. In 2025, there were only 18 with total assets of $39 billion.
Newcomers to the list in 2026 included Beyoncé Knowles-Carter ($1 billion), Roger Federer, Dr. Dre, and James Cameron. They are now in the same league as legends like Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, and Oprah Winfrey, who first appeared in the Forbes billionaire ranking in the 1990s and early 2000s, and those who joined the elite club relatively recently, such as Kim Kardashian, Taylor Swift, and Rihanna.
Defining what it means to be a 'celebrity' is quite challenging, but Forbes decided to choose people who first became famous and only then became very wealthy. Such a definition heavily leans towards artists and athletes and excludes those who became famous for their wealth or business success, like President Donald Trump and Mark Cuban.
