Forbes has released its annual breakdown of the highest-earning supermodels. Not surprisingly, Brazilian bombshell Gisele Bundchen (also known as Mrs. Tom Brady) tops the list for the second year in a row. In the last year, the mannequin made a whopping $25 million in posing gigs and endorsements. Supermodel-turned-TV host Heidi Klum ranks #2; she brought in $16 million this past year. As for bronze medalist Kate Moss — thanks to her teaming with Topshop and consistent ad and editorial work, she earned $8.5 million between June ’08 and June ’09. Also of note: both Moss and Klum are 35 years old and yet are two of the world’s highest-paid mannequins.
As for changes to the annual roster: “Emanuela de Paula is the only newcomer this year — which could be partially because the list was knocked down from the usual 15 models to only 11 this year — while a number of models disappeared from the rankings: Karolina Kurkova (who was ranked 6th last year at $5 million), Isabeli Fontana (11th last year at $3m) Gemma Ward (tied at 11th with Isabeli at $3m), Selita Ebanks (12th at $2.7m), Valentina Zelyaeva (13th at $2.3m), Hilary Rhoda (14th at $2m), and Liya Kebede (15th at $1.5m). Alessandra Ambrosio made a return to the list this year in 6th place, after dropping off last year,” says Fashionologie.