The Most Popular Actors and Actresses in the U.S.

There's no such thing as a sure thing in the movie business, and a recent poll on America's favorite actors and actresses proves it. Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie have supplanted Clint Eastwood and Sandra Bullock, respectively, as the most popular actor and actress in the U.S., according to the online survey of 2,300 adults by Harris Interactive Poll .

Depp beat out Denzel Washington and John Wayne as the post popular actors, while Jolie finished ahead of Julia Roberts and Bullock. Eastwood fell to No. 7 among actors, while Bullock fell to No. 3 among actresses.

Salaries of the Stars

And all the top-listed stars have benefited handsomely from their popularity. Depp also topped Forbes's September 2010 list of highest-paid actors, with a salary that reached an estimated $75 million for the year ending June 2010 -- ahead of Ben Stiller's estimated $53 million -- largely on the popularity of Walt Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean" film franchise.

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"Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" is the fourth-highest global grossing film of all time, generating $1.07 billion in worldwide box-office sales after its 2006 release, while its 2007 follow up, "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," is No. 9, according to BoxOfficeMojo.com.

Jolie tied Roberts for sixth place on a Forbes list of highest-paid actresses in August 2010, having earned an estimated $20 million for the year ended June 2010. Bullock topped that list at $56 million, followed by Reese Witherspoon, Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Aniston and Sarah Jessica Parker.

Still, popularity doesn't always ensure box-office sales. Depp and Jolie co-starred in the Sony film "The Tourist," which opened Dec. 10. That film, which had a production budget of about $100 million, has grossed a disappointing $61.5 million in U.S. box-office receipts after being largely panned by critics, according to BoxOfficeMojo.com. "The Tourist" has received a 20% rating on RottenTomatoes.com.