They dubbed to conquer

Sylvester Stallone is rich, and so — you have to admit — is life. Here's a guy who has three misfires in a row (with Assassinsabout to become a fourth), and not only does his salary get bumped up to $20 million per movie, he's given a three-picture deal with a major studio. Only in Hollywood, right?

Wrong. It's the bucks he's raking in overseas that give Stallone his financial cred. In fact, he's joined a growing list of actors whose movies are often in greater demand abroad than in their native land. ''For a long time, every one of my films has performed as well or better overseas,'' says Michael Douglas, whose foreign-market clout earned him a $15 million paycheck for the upcoming The American President.

The bottom line: More movie tickets are now sold outside North America than in it. As a result, ''Anytime we make a movie, we try to think of the world as our audience,'' says Peter Chernin, chairman of Fox Filmed Entertainment. Which makes the actors below doubly valuable.

Leading men

At the top of the heap are the stars who appeal to both sexes at home and abroad: Tom Hanks (Forrest Gump grossed another $347 million overseas), Tom Cruise (Interview With the Vampire's foreign tally beat its $105 million domestic gross by $11 million), Harrison Ford (The Fugitive's overseas earnings totaled $185 million), and Mel Gibson (Lethal Weapon 3 topped its $145 million stateside take by $30 million). Just behind them, with stronger international followings than domestic, are Kevin Costner (Wyatt Earp, A Perfect World, and Waterworld did better outside the United States) and Michael Douglas (Basic Instinct and Disclosure far exceeded their American box office numbers).

Action Jacksons

Sylvester Stallone leads this group (Cliffhanger, Demolition Man, and The Specialist all did $100 million-plus overseas, roughly doubling their take here), followed by Arnold Schwarzenegger (True Lies took in $146 million at home and $219 million abroad). In a Die Hard sequel, Bruce Willis is box office gold (With a Vengeance more than doubled its domestic gross). Steven Seagal, on the other hand, ''does not translate well to foreign audiences,'' says Variety's Leonard Klady. ''They can tell, subtitled or dubbed, that he has no personality.''

SLAPSHTICKERS The love affair between Jerry Lewis and the French aside, comedy hasn't traveled as well as action and drama, with only Robin Williams (Mrs. Doubtfire) and Whoopi Goldberg (Sister Act) turning dubbed yuks into bucks in the last few years. That all changed with Jim Carrey, whose The Mask added $200 million to its $120 million stateside total — enough to make him rival any muscled superman.

Elder Statesmen

In Europe, wrinkles can be sexy, and Clint Eastwood (The Bridges of Madison County), Sean Connery (First Knight), Dustin Hoffman (Outbreak), and Jack Nicholson (Batman) still draw like the youngsters.

The Feminine Mystique

The select female group includes Jodie Foster (The Silence of the Lambs), Demi Moore (Disclosure), Michelle Pfeiffer (Batman Returns), Julia Roberts (Pretty Woman), and Sharon Stone, whose Sliver and The Specialistgrosses improved with subtitles.

New Kids on the Block

Vaulting into the foreign big time are Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock (Speed), Brad Pitt (Interview), and John Travolta, who's making an international comeback with Pulp Fiction. Guess the deluxe Quarter Pounder really does translate to Royale With Cheese.