Irish leading men a-OK in the top 50 rich list

A trio of Irish Hollywood hunks have made it into the top 50 of a leading showbiz rich list after earning huge packets in a string of blockbuster films.

Dubliner Colin Farrell, who is in New York filming his latest movie, is the highest Irish entry on OK’s annual Rich List at No 16 with almost €14m in earnings in 2012.

Meanwhile, Taken star Liam Neeson is just one place below him on the list with close to €14m, while Michael Fassbender polled No 22 on the list with €12.5m in pay cheques.

Colin Farrell has been back to his box-office best over the past year, with the big-budget Total Recall remake hitting the big screen, while 60-year-old Liam Neeson is also picking up huge fees for a succession of movies, including Wrath of the Titans, The Dark Night Rises, and Taken 2.

Bafta-winning comic Brendan O’Carroll entered the top 50 rich list of British and Irish showbiz stars at No 47 with reported earnings of €9.1m over the past year.

His fortune is thanks to sitcom Mrs Brown’s Boys, his stage show, and a movie deal.

“The Irish sitcom is on screen for a third series and sells well across Australia and New Zealand”, said an OK spokesperson.

“There was a sell-out tour last year, Mrs Brown Rides Again, with spin-off sales from a box-set and a calendar, and a feature film due to start filming in the autumn, an animated version of the sitcom, and a game show in development.”

Chatshow host Graham Norton is No 43 on the list with an estimated €9m in the bank as a result of the sale of his production company to ITV last year and his BBC pay packet.

Boyband One Direction rank No 28 with €11.5m banked last year thanks to their No 1 albums and their sell-out world tour.

However, Westlife were still ahead of the world’s biggest boyband at No 19 in earnings as they bowed out of the pop world with a farewell tour in 2012.

OK estimates that the Irish quartet pulled in almost €14m last year with their final, sell-out tour, along with their greatest hits album.

However, the magazine did strike the gloomy note that the band were unlikely to feature on the list again after going their separate ways.

TV guru Simon Cowell landed in the No 1 spot with €65m earned from his juggernaut shows, which are broadcast around the world.

Elton John was No 2, largely due to 120 gigs around the world and his Las Vegas residency, which is reported to have raked in over €46m.

Golden Globe-winning singer Adele is in fifth place with over €28m from the sales of her album, 21, which has now sold 25 million copies around the world.