UK's top two grossing actors are not who you'd expect them to be

The UK's highest grossing male and female actors have been revealed and trust us when we say they're not who you'd expect them to be.

First up with the bloke – who comes to mind? Perhaps 007 himself, Daniel Craig. Or maybe Harry Potter's Daniel Radcliffe? Then there's Idris Elba, Tom Hardy, Sir Anthony Hopkins... the list goes on.

If you thought any of the above, then you would be wrong.

We know this thanks to an extensive study by loan company CashNetUSA, which looked at the IMDb filmographies of nearly 500,000 actors to calculate the total box office sales of their movies – adjusting for inflation, of course.

Ivan Cholakov/Alamy Stock Photo

So, which actors hiked up ticket sales the most?

What the firm discovered is that in the UK, the highest grossing performer in the male category is none other than Warwick Davis.

The 52-year-old movie star has helped to earn a box office total of a whopping $22.3 billion (£20 billion).

Though this finding may surprise you, it makes sense when you consider some of the long-running franchises he's been involved in, including Star Wars, Harry Potter and Leprechaun.

Then there's the 1988 fantasy favourite Willow, which is currently being made into a TV series with Warwick once again front and centre.

MGM/UA Distribution Co.

As for the top grossing female actor, some names that might come to mind include Kate Winslet, Judi Dench, Emma Watson or Keira Knightley.

But again, in terms of box office earnings, these stars pale in comparison to the woman at the top of the UK's list – Dame Maggie Smith.

Yes, the analysis showed that the 87-year-old star's filmography's total gross is a staggering $12.9 billion (£11.6 billion).

This one's a little less surprising, given Dame Maggie's career spans nearly 70 years. Like Warwick, Dame Margaret was involved in the Harry Potter franchise, as well as Downton Abbey, Sister Act and many others.

Warner Bros. Pictures

As one of the UK's most prolific stars, she's appeared in more than 60 films and over 70 plays.

And if you're wondering who the biggest earners for the US are, it'll come as no shock to find out that Pulp Fiction star Samuel L. Jackson brought in the most bank for the male category with a total gross of $28.7 billion (£25.7 billion).

For the women, it was Se7en's Gwyneth Paltrow who made it to the top of the leaderboard with box office earnings of $14.8 billion (£13.3 billion).

Topics: UK News, TV and Film, Money

Daisy Phillipson

Daisy graduated from Kingston University with a degree in Magazine Journalism, writing a thesis on the move from print to digital publishing. Continuing this theme, she has written for a range of online publications including Digital Spy and Little White Lies, with a particular passion for TV and film. Contact her on [email protected]

@DaisyWebb77