Who are Canada’s richest movie stars?

For a country of 35 million people, the true north strong and free sure knows how to produce movie stars.

Whether it’s Seth Rogen, Ryan Gosling, Rachel McAdams or Jim Carrey, Canadians are well represented in blockbuster films.

But you may be surprised by which Canadian movie stars are actually the most profitable.

For example, Vancouver’s Ryan Reynolds is a household name, but he does not even crack the top three in the most recent lists of most bankable Canadian actors.

The box office data was provided by database company The Numbers and accumulated by website The 10 and 3.

The website looked at the total box office draw, actors’ box office gross when they appear in a leading role, and box office draw of actors in leading roles on a per film basis.

The lists, which are accurate as of April 2017, may be surprising.

Total Box Office Earnings

The first aspect considered is the total box office draw (domestic and international) for every film that an actor has appeared in, whether in a leading, ensemble or supporting role.

Will Arnett takes an unexpected lead on this list (thanks to his turn in the LEGO movies), followed by Jim Carrey and Seth Rogan.

Photo Credit: the10and3.com

Overall Box Office Earnings as a Leading Actor

This list shows the star power of a lead. When appearing in a leading role, Jim Carrey reigns followed by none-other-than Canadian comedy legend Mike Myers.

Photo Credit: the10and3.com

Box Office Earnings as a Leading Actor per Film

Finally, these Canadian stars find their way on the top through the box office earnings as a lead per film. Kim Cattrall might be a surprise at second place, with only three films, but you can put that down to Sex and The City’s fame and success.

Both domestic and international box office figures were configured for the analysis.

To determine whether an actor has a leading role, The Numbers uses a simple rule: does the actor appear in the movie’s theatrical poster?

If there are more than four cast members on the poster, then all actors are classified as being lead ensemble members.

Otherwise, the actor’s role is classified as being supporting, cameo or other.