The late American music icon, Michael Jackson, renowned as the ‘King of Pop,’ has claimed the title of the world’s highest-paid deceased celebrity for 2023, according to Forbes magazine’s annual rankings released on Tuesday. Jackson’s estimated earnings for the year reached an impressive $115 million, marking his return to the top position after four years.
Elvis Presley, Jackson’s late father-in-law, secured the second spot with estimated earnings of $100 million.
The list of the top 13 highest-earning deceased celebrities also featured luminaries such as Bob Marley, Prince, John Lennon, and Whitney Houston, collectively amassing an estimated $470 million in earnings for the past year. This figure reflects a 70 percent decrease from the previous year.
The rankings were determined based on pretax earnings derived from sales, licensing deals, streams, and various other sources of income spanning from October 1, 2022, to September 30, 2023.
Here is the complete list:
- Michael Jackson (US singer) – $115 million
- Elvis Presley (US singer and actor) – $100 million
- Ray Manzarek (US keyboardist) – $45 million
- Dr. Seuss (US cartoonist) – $40 million
- Charles M. Schulz (US cartoonist) – $30 million
- Prince (US singer) – $30 million
- Whitney Houston (US singer) – $30 million
- John Lennon (British singer) – $22 million
- Bob Marley (Jamaican singer) – $16 million
- Bing Crosby (US singer) – $14 million
- George Harrison (British singer) – $14 million
- Arnold Palmer (US golfer) – $10 million
- Marilyn Monroe (US singer) – $10 million