Angelina Jolie tops Forbes’ Celebrity 100 power list

LONDON - Angelina Jolie has overthrown Oprah Winfrey by becoming the world’s most powerful celebrity in the annual list compiled by business magazine Forbes.

Oprah, the talk-show queen, topped the list for the previous two years and remained highest earner, making 275 million dollars in the past 12 months.

However, this year, Jolie, 34- the Hollywood actress, human rights campaigner and mother-of-six-has relegated Winfrey to second place.

Forbes’ Celebrity 100 power rankings are based on a combination of earning power and media exposure.

The ‘Tomb Raider’ star and partner Brad Pitt, are the most photographed couple in the world.

Jolie’s 27 million dollars earnings in the past year included a 14 million dollars magazine deal for exclusive rights to the first pictures of the couple’s twins, Knox Leon and Vivienne Marcheline, who were born in August.

Pitt, on the other hand, is ranked in ninth place, one spot behind his ex-wife, Jennifer Aniston.

“In addition to nearly doubling her earnings in the past year, Angelina Jolie is the most famous star on the planet. She is in the dialogue of popular culture nearly every day - for her acting, for her relationship with Brad Pitt, for her children and for her philanthropic endeavours. All of this exposure leads to an extremely powerful celebrity brand,” The Telegraph quoted Forbes as saying.

Madonna occupies the third spot, not only because of her world tour, but also her high profile divorce from Guy Ritchie and her thwarted attempt to adopt a second child from Malawi.

At the fourth spot in the list is Beyonce, the US singer.

Tiger Woods is the highest ranked male celebrity, in fifth place, as the golfer remains the highest-paid sports star in the world, according to the magazine.

And Bruce Springsteen, who will headline the Glastonbury Festival later this month, director Steven Spielberg and basketball player Kobe Bryant complete the top 10.

After her much-publicised multiple breakdowns last year, Britney Spears has occupied the 13th spot in the list this year, thanks to her new album and her ‘Circus’ tour.

While Tom Cruise stays at 20th position, George Clooney stayed at 48 in the list.

Footballer David Beckham and teen sensation Miley Cyrus occupy the 28th and 29th spot respectively.

US President Barack Obama is the first sitting head of state to appear on the list, which has been published annually since 1999.

Here is the list of the 100 most powerful celebrities of 2009:

Rank and name pay in million dollars:

1 Angelina Jolie 27

2 Oprah Winfrey 275

3 Madonna 110

4 Beyonce Knowles 87

5 Tiger Woods 110

6 Bruce Springsteen 70

7 Steven Spielberg 150

8 Jennifer Aniston 25

9 Brad Pitt 28

10 Kobe Bryant 45

11 Will Smith 45

12 Dr. Phil McGraw 80

13 Britney Spears 35

14 David Letterman 45

15 Coldplay 70

16 Adam Sandler 55

17 Harrison Ford 65

18 Michael Jordan 45

19 LeBron James 40

20 Tom Cruise 33

21 Bon Jovi 50

22 Donald Trump 50

23 Rush Limbaugh 54

24 George Lucas 170

25 Simon Cowell 75

26 Stephenie Meyer 50

27 Roger Federer 33

28 David Beckham 42

29 Miley Cyrus 25

30 Tyler Perry 75

31 Kenny Chesney 65

32 Jay-Z 35

33 Clint Eastwood 35

34 Howard Stern 70

35 Sean Combs 30

36 Phil Mickelson 40

37 Jerry Seinfeld 85

38 Dave Matthews Band 65

39 Tom Hanks 35

40 Ellen DeGeneres 35

41 Eddie Murphy 40

42 Rascal Flatts 60

43 Jay Leno 32

44 Ryan Seacrest 38

45 Nicolas Cage 40

46 Kanye West 25

47 AC/DC 60

48 George Clooney 25

49 Barack Obama 2

50 50 Cent 20

51 Brian Grazer/Ron Howard 45

52 Kimi Raikkonen 45

53 Jerry Bruckheimer 100

54 Chris Rock 42

55 Ronaldinho 30

56 Jim Carrey 30

57 Manny Pacquiao 40

58 Sarah Jessica Parker 27

59 Toby Keith 52

60 Jonas Brothers 25

61 James Patterson 60

62 Kevin Garnett 30

63 Jeff Gordon 30

64 Meryl Streep 24

65 Larry David 55

66 Derek Jeter 30

67 Serena Williams 17

68 Stephen King 30

69 Taylor Swift 18

70 Daniel Radcliffe 25

71 Reese Witherspoon 15

72 Gisele Bundchen 25

73 Cameron Diaz 20

74 Nicole Kidman 9

75 Carrie Underwood 14

76 Maria Sharapova 22

77 Venus Williams 15

78 Heidi Klum 16

79 Rachael Ray 15

80 David Copperfield 30

81 Glenn Beck 23

82 Katherine Heigl 18

83 Jon Stewart 14

84 Jeff Dunham 30

85 Anne Hathaway 7

86 Tina Fey 7

87 Drew Barrymore 12

88 Charlie Sheen 21

89 Eva Longoria Parker 9

90 Ana Ivanovic 10

91 Alec Baldwin 8

92 Sandra Bullock 17

93 Steve Carell 20

94 Hugh Laurie 10

95 Wolfgang Puck 18

96 Penn and Teller 20

97 Kate Moss 8

98 Mariska Hargitay 8

99 Jennifer Love Hewitt 6

100 Danica Patrick 7 (ANI)