Tatum's $60 million in earnings largely came from his astute decision to co-finance his male stripper film, Magic Mike, with director Steven Soderbergh.
Magic Mike cost $7 million to make and brought in $167 million, with a large chunk of the profits landing in Tatum's bank account.
There's also talk of a Magic Mike Broadway musical, a line of bars and a sequel.
Australian actor Hugh Jackman banked an estimated US$55 million in the past 12 months to land the No. 3 spot.
"A lot of that money comes from his work as Wolverine in the X-Men films," Forbes said.
The musical Les Miserables, which Jackman earned a best actor Oscar nomination, also added to his fortune with the movie costing just $61 million to make but earning $438 million at the worldwide box office.
Mark Wahlberg, thanks to his foul-mouthed teddy bear comedy Ted costing $50 million but earning a surprise $550 million, handed him the number four spot with $52 million in earnings for the year.
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson has a big bank balance to match his big biceps with $46 million in earnings for the year, with Fast & the Furious 6's $US695 million global box office haul giving him the number five slot.
Rounding out the top 10 were Leonardo DiCaprio ($39 million), Adam Sandler ($37 million), Tom Cruise ($35 million), Denzel Washington ($33 million) and Liam Neeson $32 million.
HOLLYWOOD'S HIGHEST-PAID ACTORS LIST
1. Robert Downey Jr ($75 million)
2. Channing Tatum ($60 million)
3. Hugh Jackman ($55 million)
4. Mark Wahlberg ($52 million)
5. Dwayne Johnson ($46 million)
6. Leonardo DiCaprio ($39 million)
7. Adam Sandler ($37 million)
8. Tom Cruise ($35 million)
9. Denzel Washington ($33 million)
10. Liam Neeson ($32 million)
- AAP
