Secrets of Hollywood’s Saudi Arabian ‘gold rush’: Gwyneth Paltrow, Naomi Campbell, Johnny Depp get millions

nypost.com:

may be the richest man in the world — but Mohammed bin Salman, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, has more money at his disposal, experts say.And the latter is using these funds to “entice” Hollywood’s A-list to normalize the country, despite spiraling allegations of its human rights abuses.Some of La La Land’s biggest names, from Will Smith to Gwyneth Paltrow and Johnny Depp, have been happy to soak up the kingdom’s majestic sand dunes.

The Saudis offered $1 million eachto lure stars to the Red Sea Film Festival in Jeddah in December; Paltrow reportedly took home even more than that, according to Variety.Although Musk has a net worth of $202 billion, one well-placed Middle East expert told The Post that bin Salman — commonly known by as MBS — has more freely available cash thanks to Saudi’s Public Investment Fund, a state-owned sovereign wealth fund now valued at around $750 billion.According to the expert, Saudi wants to make it into the largest sovereign wealth fund in the world by the end of 2030.

It has owned stakes in Western businesses including Uber, Disney, Boeing, Meta, Heathrow Airport, Bank of America and Citigroup — as well as funding LIV Golf and England’s Newcastle United Premier League soccer club.

And the movie industry is more than ready to take full advantage of this windfall. As one Hollywood producer who has worked in Saudi told The Post: “People at the highest levels at Hollywood studios right now are seeking an audience with the highest member of the Saudi authority, that is for sure.