For 25 years, Forbes has tracked the earnings of celebrity estates. Elvis Presley topped the very first list in 2001 and has remained a constant, earning over $1.2 billion since then. But no late celebrity has redefined posthumous success like Michael Jackson. Since his death in 2009, Jackson’s estate has pulled in an unbelievable $3.5 …
The Highest-Paid Dead Celebrities of 2025
For 25 years, Forbes has tracked the earnings of celebrity estates. Elvis Presley topped the very first list in 2001 and has remained a constant, earning over $1.2 billion since then. But no late celebrity has redefined posthumous success like Michael Jackson.
Since his death in 2009, Jackson’s estate has pulled in an unbelievable $3.5 billion, including $105 million in the last year alone. As one estate lawyer put it, “There’s Michael Jackson, then everyone else far behind.”
A huge part of those earnings came from Jackson’s lifelong business moves. His biggest win was buying the ATV catalog in 1985—home to nearly 4,000 songs, including most Lennon–McCartney hits. That investment later earned the estate about $1 billion when Sony bought the catalog in 2016. In 2024, the estate sold half of Jackson’s own publishing rights and masters to Sony for another $600 million, a move his mother unsuccessfully tried to stop in court.
Beyond the big deals, Jackson’s brand continues to thrive. His 2009 film This Is It made $267 million, while the Cirque du Soleil tour and Las Vegas residency have pulled in hundreds of millions more. The Broadway show MJ: The Musical has also been a strong global success.
Musicians dominate Forbes’ list again this year, taking 10 of the top 13 spots and earning a combined $541 million. Icons like Prince, Lennon, and Bob Marley continue to cash in through publishing and master recordings.
Some newcomers landed on the list after selling their catalogs to investment-backed buyers. The Notorious B.I.G., Miles Davis, and two late Pink Floyd members all secured major payouts in the past year.
Other estates still make money from iconic products tied to their names—like Arnold Palmer’s beverage line, Kobe Bryant’s sneakers, and Jimmy Buffett’s wildly successful Margaritaville empire.
Only a few celebrities hold onto their star power long after death, and even fewer still have their families controlling their image and legacy. That’s no longer the case for late icons like Marilyn Monroe, Albert Einstein, or Muhammad Ali.
