Superhero stars are the top grossing actors of 2016

Captain America: Civil War co-star Scarlett Johansson is the highest grossing actor of 2016. Photo/AP

Comic book fans may have to wait until next year to get the first female superhero movie in over a decade, but 2016 has already shown that female superheroes are the real box office draw.

Scarlet Johansson, thanks largely to her role as Black Widow in Captain America: Civil War, has been named as the top grossing actor of 2016.

Forbes has compiled a list of the actors whose films made the most money at the global box office this year, and it shows that superheroes are still the biggest earners.

Johansson topped the list thanks also to her role in the Coen Brothers comedy Hail, Caesar!. Chris Evans and Robert Downey Jr came in second equal, despite Civil War being the only movie either of them appeared in this year.

Despite being critically slammed, Suicide Squad earned enough money to put Will Smith and Margot Robbie in the top 10. Photo/Supplied

Earlier this year, Johansson was named the highest grossing actress of all time, earning US$3.3 billion at the box office.

Despite both being slammed by the critics, Suicide Squad and Batman v Superman still succeeded at the box office, putting five of their stars in the top 10.

Similarly to Marvel, the DC women also out-grossed their male co-stars. Margot Robbie and Amy Adams came in fourth and fifth place respectively, beating out Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill and Will Smith to take the higher spots.

The only non-superhero on the list, Felicity Jones sneaks into ninth place thanks to the early success of Rogue One, just below Ryan Reynolds, who saw great success this year with Deadpool.

The list does not count animated voice roles and only includes movies where the actor received top billing, not cameo appearances.

Top grossing actors of 2016 (in NZ$)

1. Scarlet Johansson: 1.73 billion
2. Chris Evans / Robert Downey Jr. (tied): 1.66 billion
4. Margot Robbie: 1.59 billion
5. Amy Adams: 1.5 billion
6. Ben Affleck: 1.47 billion
7. Henry Cavill: 1.25 billion
8. Ryan Reynolds: 1.18 billion
9. Felicity Jones: 1.16 billion
10. Will Smith: 1.11 billion