12 of the most successful twins in the world

While Bill Koch's net worth of $1.6 billion is impressive, it's only a fraction of that of his twin brother, David, at the time of his August 2019 death. With a net worth of $42.5 billion when he died, according to Forbes, David Koch was one of the richest people in the world.

The twins' father, Fred Koch, started Koch Industries in 1940. The hugely successful conglomerate, which has generated over $100 billion in revenue, produces fertilizer, Dixie cups, Quilted Northern toilet paper, and refines crude oil.

David and his older brother Charles eventually became its two owners, while Bill sold his stake to his brothers. He is now the founder of Oxbow Corp, a company that produces petroleum coke and sulphur products.

The Koch twins engaged in a decades-long battle over control of the board of their father's company. Despite their drawn-out conflict, Bill expressed grief for his twin brother when he died in 2019, nearly three decades after being diagnosed with prostate cancer.

According to Boston.com, in a statement following David's death, Bill referred to his twin as "an outstanding human" with "strong principles, great character and strength."

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen are best known for their shared role in "Full House" and their subsequent co-starring roles in a series of movies. Although their acting career was lucrative — according to Cosmopolitan, as toddlers, they brought in $80,000 per "Full House" episode — the Olsen twins were quick to leave their acting days in the past in favor of a career in fashion.

In 2006, the Olsens founded The Row, which the Business of Fashion describes as one of "New York's most high-profile young brands." In 2007, they launched Elizabeth and James — a company named after their other siblings — which sold sunglasses, jewelry, and bags. As of 2019, Elizabeth and James has been sold exclusively at Kohl's.

Although their exact combined net worth remains unknown, the Business of Fashion reported in 2019 that, according to market-source estimates, The Row was bringing in $100 and $200 million annually. Further, Vanity Fair provided insight into some of their assets, reporting in 2020 that Mary-Kate and her ex-husband, Oliver Sarkozy, owned a $13.5 million townhouse.

Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss are best known for being two of the co-founders of HarvardConnection, later known as ConnectU, in 2004. The Winkelvoss twins later sued Mark Zuckerberg, claiming that his company, Facebook, stole ideas from HarvardConnection. This saga is reenacted in "The Social Network," a 2010 movie inspired by the founding of Facebook.

Forbes reported that Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss each have a net worth of $1.1 billion as of February 2023. They both invest in cryptocurrency, and they were able to do so early on after they, along with fellow HarvardConnection co-founder Divya Narendra, settled with Zuckerberg for $20 million in cash and a sizable share in Facebook.

In 2014, they cofounded Gemini, which processes around $200 million in trades every day, according to Forbes. Tyler is the CEO of the company while Cameron serves as its president.

In 2019, Forbes reported that Scarlett Johansson had earned $56 million, making her that year's highest-paid actress in the world. Although she's commonly known for her role as Black Widow in the Marvel movies, her versatile acting skills have earned her roles in dramas like "Marriage Story" and dark comedies like "Jojo Rabbit." In fact, the roles earned her two Academy Award nominations in one year, only the 12th actor to have achieved this. She was nominated for best actress in "Marriage Story" and best supporting actress in "Jojo Rabbit," although did not win either award.

Her twin brother, Hunter, who earned a master's of public administration in nonprofit management at New York University, is the founder and CEO of a nonprofit organization, Solar Responders, which aims to provide first responders with access to solar panels in the wake of natural disasters. His work has earned him public-service awards.

"His career has spanned overseeing physical home reconstruction for Hurricane Sandy victims to leadership roles in fundraising for social and environmental impact organizations, nonprofits, and political campaigns," according to his organization's website.

Scarlett, who is also involved in the organization, told People in 2020, "If there is a truly altruistic person I know in my life, it's my brother. He reminds me to be a better person all the time. I'm incredibly proud of him."

Born in Orange, New Jersey, Mark and Scott Kelly are the world's first identical twin astronauts.

After receiving his bachelor's of science in marine engineering and nautical science from the United States Merchant Marine Academy in 1986, Mark went on to get his master's in aeronautical engineering from the US Naval Postgraduate School in 1994. He then served as a Navy pilot.

Scott received his degree in electrical engineering from the State University of New York Maritime College in 1987. He later studied aviation systems at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and ultimately earned his master's of science in 1996.

The twins became NASA astronauts in 1996. They went on a total of seven missions to space, although they never went together.

"Scott flew first," Mark told Time magazine in 2014, "but I flew twice before he got his second flight. Then I flew my third before he did."

Mark Kelly retired from the position in 2011: During his 15-year run as an astronaut, he spent over 50 days total in space and traveled over 20 million miles. In 2020, following the death of John McCain, he began representing Arizona as a US senator. He is married to Gabby Giffords, a former Congresswoman from Arizona and survivor of a 2011 assassination attempt.

After Mark retired, Scott continued at NASA. In 2015, he became the first American astronaut to embark on a space mission as long as 340 days. He then broke another American record, having spent the most cumulative time in space: 520 days.

Scott retired from the agency in 2016, and the following year he published a memoir, "Endurance: A Year in Space, A Lifetime of Discovery," in which he shares details about his life as an astronaut.

Although they were initially known solely as the daughters of former president George W. Bush, Jenna and Barbara have found success of their own in the past two decades.

As the founder and chair of Global Health Corps, which aims to provide support to leaders in global health, Barbara has dedicated much of her life to solving healthcare issues across the world. She is also the executive-in-residence at Eric Schmidt's Schmidt Futures, which aims to solve global problems through building networks of innovators.

Jenna is a correspondent at NBC News and an anchor at the "Today" show, where she founded a wildly popular book club called "Read With Jenna."

In 2017, Jenna and Barbara co-authored a No. 1 New York Times bestseller, "Sisters First: Stories from Our Wild and Wonderful Life," a memoir in which they share details about their time in the White House and their relationship.

Not only are the Marcus twins identical, but they both have incredible athletic abilities that they've each taken to the NBA.

Markieff Morris was just traded to the Dallas Mavericks from the Brooklyn Nets, while Marcus Morris plays for the LA Clippers. Markieff had previously signed a one-year, $2.9 million contract with the Nets, while in 2020 Marcus reportedly agreed to a four-year, $64 million contract with the Clippers.

Although they now play for different teams, the Morris brothers started playing basketball together in Philadelphia in high school. They also played together in college for the Kansas Jayhawks, and they were once again teammates on Phoenix Suns. Before Markieff went to the Brooklyn Nets, he played for the Los Angeles Lakers, representing the same city as Marcus.

The Morris brothers are self-made stars. Marcus highlighted the twins' resilience when an NBA reporter asked about the time the Morris' family home caught on fire when they were in high school.

"There was really no complaining from us," he explained. "One thing is we don't feel sorry for ourselves. That's how we were raised. When that happened, we were like, well, let's take this basketball thing more seriously. And it all worked out in the end."

The Hochschorner twins, from Slovakia, started out paddling on flat water as youngsters because their parents and older sister also took part in the sport, Pavol told Olympics.com in 2012. They progressed to slalom canoeing in 1996, when they were teenagers.

"Then the very well-equipped Water Sports Park was opened in Cunovo, just a couple of kilometres from our apartment in Bratislava," he added. "We had excellent training conditions there and within two years we became the European Champions."

Now, the Hochschorner twins are the first Slovakian athletes to win three gold medals in the Olympics. They won gold at three consecutive summer Olympics: Sydney in 2000, Athens in 2004, and Beijing in 2008. Four years later, in London, they earned a bronze medal.

Between 2000 and 2015, the Slovak Canoe Association named Peter and Pavol Canoeists of the Year nine times. They were voted Slovakia's Athletes of the Year in 2009 and 2011.

In the span of four years — between 2000 and 2004 — they won the ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup multiple times, and they won an ECA European Championship as well as the World Championships.

As children, prior to their acting days, Tia and Tamera were founding members of a R&B group, "Voices." Their first single, "Yeah, Yeah, Yeah!" was released in 1992, just two years prior to their acting debut, and claimed the 72nd spot on the Billboard Hot 100.

After acting alongside one another on children's programs like "Sister, Sister" and "Twitches," the Mowry twins were the subject of a reality show, "Tia & Tamera."

They have continued working on the small screen, although on different shows. Between 2013 and 2020, Tamera was a co-host on "The Real", an all-female panel show in which the hosts discuss their varied experiences as women.

By 2015, Tia had her own Cooking Channel series, "Tia Mowry at Home," on which she taught recipes to celebrity guests. The show and her interest in cooking spawned two cookbooks and a cookware line available in stores including Target, Amazon, and Walmart. She also shares cooking videos on her YouTube channel, which has nearly 1 million subscribers.

The sisters have also worked on books together. In 2015, Tia and Tamera co-authored "Twintuition," a middle-grade book (that later grew into a four-part series) which chronicles the adventures of twins Cassie and Caitlyn who can see into the future.

The pop-culture influence of the Mowry twins persists today. In 2018, artists Doja Cat and Rico Nasty released a song titled "Tia Tamera."

The Sprouse twins are best known for their 2005 acting debut on "The Suite Life of Zack & Cody" and, later, their roles on its spinoff, "The Suite Life on Deck." TV Guide reported that, as children and teenagers, the Sprouse twins each made around $20,000 per episode.

Cole is now best known for his role as Jugghead Jones on the hit show "Riverdale," and he has won three Teen Choice Awards for his performance.

In 2020, Dylan played the role of Trevor in "After We Collided." He now owns a successful meadery in Brooklyn, New York, which brought in over $1 million in revenue in 2019, its second year of business, according to Forbes.

Both twins made Forbes' 30 Under 30 list in 2020.

In addition to starring in movies like "The Butterfly Effect," "Jobs," and "What Happens in Vegas," Kutcher has also had a lucrative TV career on shows including "That '70s Show" and "The Ranch." His role on "Two and a Half Men" earned him $700,000 an episode and the title of the highest-paid sitcom actor on TV. Forbes reported he earned $26 million in 2014, when he was among Hollywood's top 100 earners for the year.

Kutcher is also a notable tech investor, having invested in companies such as Airbnb and SeatGeek. In 2013, he also started working as a product engineer at Lenovo.

While his twin brother is not an actor, he has made a successful career out of advocacy. Michael, who has cerebral palsy, delivers motivational speeches throughout the country. He is a spokesperson for both the Cerebral Palsy Foundation and Joshin, and he aims to inspire and empower people with disabilities. He has spoken at Capitol Hill, the Centers for Disease Control, and the National Institute of Health.

One of Benji and Joel Madden's bands, Good Charlotte, had seven songs reach the Billboard Top 100, and they won multiple awards between 2003 and 2007, including an MTV Music Video Viewers Choice Award for their song, "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous."

But while they started as a rock duo, playing in Good Charlotte and The Madden Brothers, their success extends beyond their musical talents. The Madden twins are now business partners — they've developed clothing lines (such as MADE) and co-founded multiple music production companies (including MDDN, Dead Executives, and Veeps).

In January 2023, it was announced that the Madden twins would become the co-chairs of Psychedelic Water, a brand of bottled water that contains mild hallucinogenic qualities.