Today is International Women’s Day.
International Women’s Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating women’s equality.
These are the top 10 most powerful women in the entertainment industry, according to Forbes Most Powerful People List 2021.
1. Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey has transformed her hit talk show, which ran for 25 years, into a media and business empire.
The profits from her show plus profits from her films add up to more than $2 billion.
In 2011, the 68-year-old launched cable channel OWN, and the 25.5% of the network is worth over $65 million.
2. Shari Redstone
Shari Redstone is the chairwoman of media empire ViacomCBS.
The mother-of-three successfully facilitated a $12 billion merger deal between CBS Corp. and Viacom Inc in 2019.
The 67-year-old is the first woman to have such a large stake of a U.S. media business, controlling a $30 billion media empire.
3. Dana WaldenÂ
Dana Walden is the chairman of Disney Television Studios and ABC Entertainment.
The 58-year-old heads 20th Century Fox TV, ABC Studios, the Freeform network, ABC-owned TV stations, ABC Entertainment and several other divisions.
In 2018, the Los Angeles native was elected to the board of directors at Live Nation Entertainment.
Dana is also on the board of Hulu.
4. Jennifer SalkeÂ
Former NBC Entertainment president Jennifer Salke was named head of streaming giant Amazon Studios in February 2018.
She oversees all aspects of Amazon’s television and film development, as well as production for the company’s global entertainment division.
In February 2019, Jennifer announced she would be taking Amazon Studios global, and she has approved the production of 20 series from around the world.
5. Donna LangleyÂ
Donna Langley is Chairman of Universal Filmed Entertainment Group.
Under her leadership, the company crossed $4 billion at the worldwide box office in 2018 for the second time in its 105-year history.
When cinemas shut down in 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic, the 54-year-old created premium on demand, so that new films could be streamed at home.
6. Suzanne Scott
Suzanne Scott started working at Fox News 1996 and in 2018, she became the first female CEO of the company.
The mother-of-one has oversight of the network’s many linear and digital platforms, including its News Channel, Fox Business Network, Fox News Books and Fox Weather.
Across these platforms, Fox reaches more than 200 million people every month, and it is the number one cable news network in the US.
7. Ann Sarnoff
Ann Sarnoff was named Chair and CEO of WarnerMedia Studios and Networks Group in August 2020.
The 60-year-old oversees all of the company’s content-focused teams, including the Warner Bros. Pictures Group, HBO and HBO Max, Cartoon Network, TBS, TNT, and Warner Bros. Television Group.
The mother-of-two also serves on the boards of PayPal, the Motion Picture & Television Fund, the US-China Business Council and The Shed.
8. Rihanna
Rihanna has a net worth of $1.7billion, thanks to the success of cosmetics line Fenty Beauty, her lingerie line Savage x Fenty, and her singing career.
Fenty Beauty, which she co-owns with French luxury retailer LVMH, generated more than $550 million in revenue in 2020.
Savage x Fenty lingerie line, which she has a 30% stake in, raised money at a $1 billion valuation in February 2021.
9. Reece Witherspoon
Hollywood actress Reece Witherspoon started her own production company called Pacific Standard in 2012.
In 2016, the Legally Blonde star partnered with Otter Media, a division of AT&T’s WarnerMedia, to launch media company Hello Sunshine, which focuses on female-driven stories.
A Blackstone-backed media company purchased a majority stake in Hello Sunshine in August 2021, valuing it at $900 million.
10. Beyoncé Knowles
Beyoncé first rose to fame as the lead singer in popular girl group Destiny’s Child.
The singer-songwriter went solo in 2003, and her career has skyrocketed since.
The 40-year-old’s On The Run II stadium tour with her husband Jay-Z grossed an estimated $5 million per night, pulling in a whopping total of more than $250 million.
In April 2019, the mum-of-three released a live album and Netflix special about her groundbreaking 2018 performance at Coachella called ‘Homecoming’.
That same month, the Houston native announced a new partnership with Adidas to relaunch her activewear line Ivy Park.
