Stunning actress made $19 million (€15.4 million) last year, is industry’s highest earner

Jul 20, 2012 15:21 GMT  ·  By
Sofia Vergara is the highest earning woman in television right now, with $19 million (€15.4 million) in a year
   Sofia Vergara is the highest earning woman in television right now, with $19 million (€15.4 million) in a year

The Kardashians might have emerged relatively unscathed from the scandal and ensuing backlash caused by Kim's allegedly fake wedding to Kris Humphries, but Kim's finances did take a hit. She's just been dethroned as the highest paid woman on TV.

The number one spot goes to Sofia Vergara, Forbes magazine reports.

Between May 2011 and May 2012, the stunning actress raked in the big bucks, both from endorsement deals and her sitcom “Modern Family,” to a grand total of $19 million (€15.4 million).

Kim comes in second but, even so, she remains one of the most powerful players in the game. Proof of that is the fact that she's just $1 million (€815,660.6) behind Vergara.

With all the controversy surrounding her at all times, Kim remains the highest earning reality star of the moment: she is featured in several shows and, perhaps most importantly, is sitting atop of a very successful business empire which includes anything from clothes to makeup products.

Eva Longoria, star of the now-defunct “Desperate Housewives,” comes in an number 3, with $15 million (€12.2 million). She too runs her own business empire, which also includes the famous restaurant Beso.

Bethenny Frankel, who recently launched her own talk show but is also the face of a popular range of weight loss products, is at number 4, followed by Kim's sister Khloe Kardashian, who earned $11 million (€8.9 million) this past year.

The rest of the Forbes chart of the highest paid women in television right now looks like this: Tina Fey, Mariska Hargitey, Zooey Deschanel, Felicity Huffman, Ellen Pompeo, Kate Walsh, Teri Hatcher, Marcia Cross, Kaley Cuoco, Alyson Hannigan, Mag Halgenberger, Melissa McCarthy, Julianna Marguiles, Kyra Sedwick and Courteney Cox.

In a separate piece, Forbes goes into the specifics of Vergara's business empire and how her “secret” is that she's more than just a pretty face.

Some of her fans might not have known this, but she is actually at the head of a multi-million media empire: Latin World Entertainment, which she built up from the ground with her partner Luis Balaguer.