Scarlett Johansson, the first major female player in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, has made history (herstory?) by being named the highest grossing actress, ever. At least, according to Box Office Mojo. (Unbelievably, Cameron Diaz comes close to ScarJo, thanks mostly to her work in the Shrek films, and Charlie’s Angels.)
The role of Black Widow in those aforementioned Marvel movies, including The Avengers (her highest grossing picture, ever) and Iron Man, has allowed ScarJo to accumulate some pretty gnarly grosses. But with major roles in Her, or as Lucy in Lucy, and, more recently, as the seductive snake Kaa in the surprisingly good new Jungle Book, ScarJo continues to edge in on the man’s game, having appeared (or voice acted) in films that grossed over $3.3 billion. She’s been in other stuff, too, like Hail, Caesar! and Under the Skin, which were great movies but didn’t do much in the way of bumping her up above the men.
That $3.3 billion has allowed her to surpass actors like Bruce Willis and the late Robin Williams, as ScarJo now officially ranks in the top 10 all-time grossing actors. The usual male-dominated medium (in terms of pay, representation, and everything else — looking sternly at you, patriarchy) has finally been infiltrated. Even if maybe the people behind all of these high-grossing roles are men. The sentiment stands.
Her next big role is as the main character, Kusanagi, in the Ghost in the Shell adaptation. Boy, she sure has come a long way since Ghost World.