After ending her wildly successful syndicated show on ABC, Winfrey struggled to stay relevant as her OWN network floundered in the ratings. The magazine reports that Winfrey, who had to put the ax to The Rosie Show earlier this year, “has yet to take a salary at OWN, so her sources of revenue are now the shows she produces through her Harpo production company (like Dr. Phil and Rachael Ray), her satellite radio station and her magazine.” Still, even that has been a struggle for the current Forbes 400 cover girl: back in April it was estimated by Publishers Information Bureau that Omagazine was down 24.1 percent in ad pages from 2011.
Forbes predicts that if her business ventures continue to perform like this, Winfrey (who also topped theirHighest-Paid Celebrity list for the fourth year in a row) won’t come in at No. 1 next year. (If only she earned income from this gif!)
So which lady could take the reins come 2013? Believe it or not, Britney Spears. Yes, the X Factor judge may just be the ultimate comeback kid, as she ranked second on the list of Hollywood’s Highest-Paid Women, earning an estimated $58 million thanks to touring, her fragrance line, and strong album sales. Still, Spears, and everyone else, would have some major catching up to do, as Winfrey still outperformed her financially by $107 million.
Trailing Winfrey and Spears is singer Taylor Swift, who can set her face to perpetual stun, as she is the youngest woman on the list and brought in roughly $57 million from May 2011 to 2012 — enough to put her at No. 3. Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres came in at No. 4 with around $53 million, while pop starRihanna tied her by earning the same amount thanks to her radio dominance over the past year.
Rounding out the rest of the top 10 are Lady Gaga ($52 million), Jennifer Lopez ($52 million), Gisele Bundchen ($45 million), Katy Perry ($45 million), and Judge Judy Sheindlin ($45 million). Surprisingly and noticeably absent from the list: Kristen Stewart (who made Forbes’ list of the Highest-paid Actresses in Hollywood back in June) Beyoncé, Adele, Miley Cyrus, and those ubiquitous Kardashians.