Mark Wahlberg dethrones Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson as world's highest-paid actor

Mark Wahlberg has dethroned wrestler-turned-actor Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson to be named the world's highest-paid in the world. The Deep Water Horizon star managed the impressive feat after taking home $68m (£53m) in 12 months.

Wahlberg, 46, who is worth $225 million, can also point to his roles in films Transformers: The Last Knight and forthcoming comedy sequel Daddy's Home 2 for his blockbuster payday. He has seen his earnings more than double from the $30m he made in 2016.

The Ted star acknowledged the achievement on his Twitter page after rapper P Diddy told him he "still owes me some money" from their Mayweather v Pacquiao wager. Wahlberg hit back "I gave it to charity!".

The father of four once told Forbes that the secret to his success was his ability to "kick ass better than anyone on the planet" and his smile.

Johnson slipped to second place with £65m in earnings after leading the big screen adaptation of Baywatch. The former WWE star also took home an estimated $650,000 per episode for his HBO comedy, Ballers.

In third place is Johnson's The Fate of the Furious co-star Vin Diesel who raked in a healthy $54.5 million thanks to his soaring fees for reprising his role in the action franchise, xXx: The Return of Xander Cage and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.

Meanwhile, Iron Man star Robert Downey Jr. − who has topped the list from 2012 to 2015 has been relegated to sixth place with $48 million and Mission Impossible's injured star Tom Cruise can celebrate still making the top ten despite seeing his earnings drop by $10m from 2016.

International actors Jackie Chan, Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Akshay Kumar have also earned their spots on the top ten list.

Forbes estimates earnings, before taxes and management fees, from movies, TV, and commercial endorsements.