Some celebrities are rolling in it in their graves, making more after death than most of us earn while alive.
Yes, it’s that time of year: Forbes released its annual list of the highest-paid dead celebrities, a ranking it’s maintained since 2001.
Topping the list…
… is King of Pop Michael Jackson, who has earned an estimated $3.3B since his death in 2009. This year’s $600m earnings were buoyed by MJ: The Michael Jackson Musical.
Moving down the list:
Freddie Mercury, $250m: The Queen front man pulled in $241m more than he did in 2020, largely due to the biopic Bohemian Rhapsody.
Dr. Seuss, $75m: His earnings come thanks to licensing for myriad TV shows, movies, theme park attractions, and merchandise based on his characters.
Elvis Presley, $50m: His music and Memphis home still earn considerable revenue, with 600k visitors flocking to Graceland over the past year.
Ric Ocasek, $45m: In September, Primary Wave acquired the rights to the Cars front man’s name, image, and likeness, accounting for the windfall.
Other celebrities on the list include Prince, Whitney Houston, and Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz. New to the list is actor Matthew Perry, who died last October, and whose estate earned $17m+ in “Friends” royalties.
As morbid as it seems…
… it is interesting to see how a person’s work can enrich their estates for years to come, how the list changes based on what’s happening in entertainment, and the importance of negotiating rights to creative work. For example:
Author J.R.R. Tolkien, who died in 1973, topped 2022’s list with the $500m sale of Middle-earth Enterprises, which owns the rights to elements of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.
The “Friends” cast negotiated 2% of syndication income, which still earns them millions each year. Yet in the streaming age, “Friends” is an outlier — there’s an oversaturation of TV and fewer deals, and the low residuals paid out by streaming platforms was a key part of the recent Hollywood strikes.
Now, some Halloween trivia: George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead (1968) is in the public domain because its copyright statement was accidentally omitted from the title screen.