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The Forbes Fictional 15: The Richest Characters on the Big Screen.
Friday 2nd August 2013 | Ayse
The top multi-media resource for business news ‘Forbes’, are renowned across the globe for the billionaires list they annually release charting the wealthiest businessmen and women in the world. This list in the past has included esteemed business personalities, sultans, presidents, actors and now… superheroes and vampires!
Because since 2002, flexing their imaginative muscles, the team at Forbes, to accompany their shortlist of actual billionaires and billionairesses, have begun to compile and release an annual list of fiction’s most affluent entrepreneurs. The companion list entitled ‘The Forbes Fictional 15’, is released at the same time as the actual shortlist and estimates the net worth (in US $) of characters from movies, books, cartoons, television, video games and comic books.
Here are the top five wealthiest faces from the 2012 list that have graced the big screen:
5) Forrest Gump- #9 on the full list.
(played by Tom Hanks in the 1994 motion picture)
$5.7 B
· Source: Apple Inc.
· Residence: Greenbow, Ala.
His life philosophy ‘life is like a box of chocolates’ is certainly one that stood Gump in good financial stead through the years. Over the course of his fortuitous business career, Gump pursued a prosperous Ping-Pong career and became a decorated military officer, as well as the co-founder of the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company and Life brand of chocolate boxes. Most notably, Gump acquired 0.5% of Apple in its 1980 IPO contributing to a vast majority of the Alabamian’s wealth.
4) Bruce Wayne- #8 on the full list
(Played most recently by Christian Bale in
Batman Begins 2005, The Dark Knight 2008 and The Dark Knight Rises 2012)
$6.9 B
· Source: Inheritance, Defense
· Residence: Gotham City
After witnessing the tragic murder of both of his parents as a child, the American playboy, industrialist, and philanthropist, inherited their entire fortune including the illustrious Wayne Manor. The Waynes amassed their fortune in auspicious real estate investments before the city of Gotham developed into a cosmopolitan metropolis. Additionally, Bruce Wayne also generates revenue from Wayne Enterprises which was founded by Wayne’s merchant ancestors in the 17th century and has since grown to be one of the world’s largest multinational conglomerates. This business empire now extends to the industries of foods, shipping, yards, medical, electronics and entertainment. Wayne is also heavily involved in non-profit philanthropic organisations, though much rumour and mystery surrounds how the tycoon spends the rest of his leisure time- it is largely unknown.
3) Tony Stark #5 on the full list
(Played most recently by Robert Downey Jr in
Iron Man 2008, Iron Man 2 2010, The Avengers 2012 and Iron Man 3 2013)
$9.3 B
· Source: Defense
· Residence: Malibu, Calif.
Self-proclaimed “genius, millionaire, playboy, philanthropist” Tony Stark is the owner of multi-billion dollar multinational corporation Stark Industries. According to Forbes 25 largest fictional companies list, it has estimated annual sales of $20.3 billion, ranking it at number 16. Stark Industries was founded by Isaac Stark Sr in the 19th century and later by Howard Stark and finally by Tony, after his father’s death. The company specialises in developing advanced weapon and defence technologies and after Stark’s public proclamation that he was mind behind ‘Iron Man’, Stark Industries also developed the armour worn by ‘War Machine’ and later models of defensive armour worn by Stark himself. More recently, as exhibited by ‘Stark Tower’ in New York, Stark Industries has also made significant investments financing extensive research into renewable, green energy sources. ‘Stark Tower’ is a totally self-sustained power source.
2) Carlisle Cullen #3 on the full list
(Played by Peter Facinelli in the Twilight Saga 2008- 2012)
$36.3 B
· Source: Compound interest, Investments
· Residence: Forks, Wash.
The greatest compounding-interest success story that fiction has ever seen! Modest savings invested in 1670 and accumulated for 371 years have facilitated Cullen’s recent and extravagant purchases of a private Brazilian island for his second wife and a vast and infamously macabre art collection.
1) Smaug the Dragon #1 on full the list
(Will be voiced and portrayed by Benedict Cumberbatch in The Hobbit Trilogy 2012-2014)
$62 B
· Source: Marauding
· Residence: The Lonely Mountain
Described as "a most specially greedy, strong and wicked worm", Smaug is one of the last great Dragons of Middle-Earth who acquired his vast wealth by destroying the town of Dale and besieging The Lonely Mountain driving the native Dwarves out of their mountain kingdom of Erebor. Centuries spent sleeping atop his gold hoard caused gold and gemstones to become embedded in the flesh of Smaug's stomach, enhancing and embellishing his already virtually impenetrable scales. Some notable artefacts within the hoard include: the Arkenstone and several mithril mail Shirts, which are incredibly resilient to weapons.
To see the full Forbes Fictional 15 or any of their other shortlists, visit: www.forbes.com
Ayse Huseyin
