14 Celebrities Who Are Billionaires as of 2024: Taylor Swift, George Lucas and More

Star Wars director George Lucas ranks first in the World's Celebrity Billionaires 2024 list by Forbes.

He has a net worth of $5.5 billion, although he has already retired from filmmaking and sold his Lucasfilm to Disney for $4 billion in cash and stock in 2012.

"For the past 35 years, one of my greatest pleasures has been to see Star Wars passed from one generation to the next," said Lucas. "It's now time for me to pass Star Wars on to a new generation of filmmakers."

As of January, the Star Wars franchise stands second among the highest-grossing movie franchises of all time.

With a net worth of $4.8 billion, Steven Spielberg is second on Forbes' list of celebrity billionaires. He has been part of the group since 1994 and made history as the first director to hit the billion mark.

His creations include Jurassic Park, Jaws, and Schindler's List, and his hits have earned more than $25 billion at the box office.

NBA superstar Michael Jordan has a $3.2 billion net worth, making him the third billionaire and the first among the athletes.

He expanded his financials through his NBA career, garnering $94 million in salary and signing bonuses. His skills also made him the most sought-after player and the highest-paid in 1997 and 1998.

Jordan has savored more earnings from brand partnerships and a massive investment in 2010 when he bought the Charlotte Hornets NBA team for $175 million. The amount ballooned, helping him sell the team in August 2023 for $3 billion.

"Michael's one of the few people that have had success three times," says Ted Leonsis, who partnered with Jordan on investments and deals in the past. "A lot of entrepreneurs, they make it once. They have a big win, take their winnings, retire, and [we] never hear from them again, or they try something a second time, and it doesn't work."

Oprah Winfrey ultimately became the first Black female billionaire when she joined the list in 2003 — and the No. 1 female among the current Forbes ranking.

Her $2.8 billion net worth came from her career as a host and her business ventures, making her a self-made billionaire.

In 2015, Winfrey bought a 10 percent stake in WeightWatchers worth $43 million but has since left the board.

"I decided that because this special was really important to me and I wanted to be able to talk about whatever I wanted to talk about, and WeightWatchers is now in the business of being a weight health company that also administers drug medications for weight. I did not want to have the appearance of any conflict of interest," the talk show star told late-night host Jimmy Kimmel.

Jay-Z became the first hip-hop artist to become a billionaire. He set the record in 2019, years after launching different businesses, including Armand de Brignac, Tidal and other deals.

"Even in a year without a tour or album release, Jay-Z mints millions from his Armand de Brignac champagne and D'Usse cognac," Forbes revealed.

As an artist, Jay-Z — who has a $2.5 billion net worth — gave young musicians advice that helped him become the man he is today.

"That was the greatest trick in music that people ever pulled off, to convince artists that you can't be an artist and make money," he said. "Hip-hop from the beginning has always been aspirational. It always broke that notion that an artist can't think about money as well."

After being Paris Hilton's closet organizer, Kim Kardashian built her empire and has become one of the industry's most successful reality TV stars.

The Keeping Up With the Kardashians alum has launched different brands through the years, with SKIMS — launched in 2019 — as her highest-earning business. She also has KKW Fragrance, KKW Beauty and SKKN, Kimoji and Dash Boutique.

Kardashian is worth $1.7 billion as of 2024.

The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit creator Peter Jackson joined the billionaires' list with his $1.5 billion net worth. He reached the milestone in 2021 when he sold his Weta digital film effects shop to Unity Software for $1.6 billion in cash and stock.

"Weta Digital's tools created unlimited possibilities for us to bring to life the worlds and creatures that originally lived in our imaginations," Jackson said. "Together, Unity and Weta Digital can create a pathway for any artist, from any industry, to be able to leverage these incredibly creative and powerful tools."

Tyler Perry has one of Hollywood's most inspiring rags to riches stories.

The 54-year-old Star Trek star, who has a $1.4 billion net worth, has sprawling properties and a long list of shows, movies and stage plays that put him in the spotlight. Unlike other celebrities, Perry worked hard to earn everything he has now.

"I love when people say you come from 'humble beginnings,'" he shared. "[It] means you were poor as hell. Ownership changes everything."

His close friend Whoopi Goldberg told Variety that Perry worked tirelessly to have a strong empire.

"Every piece of that studio he bought with his dough. I think the idea of letting people know that this wasn't a gift, this was hard-earned, [is important]. And in any other place, he'd be at the tip of everybody's tongue, the talk of the town — it would be a huge thing. And yet somehow, people haven't really stepped up to recognize it as far as I'm concerned," Goldberg added.

Rihanna has a massive career in the music industry as a singer, but her brands — Fenty Beauty and Savage X Fenty — pushed her net worth to $1.4 billion. Her financials remain stable even though she has not released a new solo album since her 2016 project, Anti.

Forbes' list also has Tiger Woods' name, and the golfer follows Jordan as the second athlete who is a billionaire. His career significantly stabilizes his $1.3 billion net worth, though he has earned most of the amount from endorsements.

But in January, Woods officially ended his partnership with Nike after 27 years.

"Over 27 years ago, I was fortunate to start a partnership with one of the most iconic brands in the world," he wrote in a social media post. "The days since have been filled with so many amazing moments and memories, if I started naming them, I could go on forever."

LeBron James has also made it to the list with a $1.2 billion net worth.

James started expanding his finances as a basketball player, but his partnerships with brands and investments in companies have pushed his net worth to the billion mark. The amount also made him the NBA's highest-paid active player.

In 2023, Forbes named Magic Johnson a billionaire, though he only earned around $40 million as a Los Angeles Lakers player.

The majority of his fortune comes from his businesses and joint venture partnerships, including having a 60 percent ownership stake in Equitrust, a life insurance company. He also owns businesses and has ownership stakes in WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks, MLB's Los Angeles Dodgers, NFL's Washington Commanders and more.

He has a $1.2 billion net worth.

The latest artist to be added to Forbes' billionaire's list is Taylor Swift, who officially reached billionaire status "based solely on songwriting and performing."

"I think what's really interesting is the proliferation of self-made billionaires," Grace Chung, senior editor at Forbes magazine, told the Nashville Tennessean. "To be a self-made woman, not just an heir that inherited her wealth, is really exciting to see and also see it grow."

Swift will resume her Eras Tour after the release of her upcoming album, The Tortured Poets Department.