(FORTUNE Magazine) – Is Sylvester Stallone really worth four times as much as Meryl Streep? The average moviegoer may not think so, but Hollywood does. Salaries for top movie actors have exploded in recent years, with Stallone getting $20 million to write and star in the upcoming Rocky V. Although none of the leading ladies are crying poverty, in relative terms they're getting stiffed. While exact salary figures are hard to get, industry sources say that the highest-paid actress is Barbra Streisand, who gets $6 million per movie. Streisand, who hasn't had a hit since Yentl in 1983, boosts her take by producing and directing as well as acting. Streep and Jane Fonda, who each get $5 million per movie, are behind her (see table). Overall, women in the Screen Actors Guild earn an average of $8,895 per year, 38% less than men. (The average includes earnings for bit players in commercials and industrial films.) Timothy Blake, who heads SAG's women's committee, says the predominance of action and adventure films has limited the number of roles available to women. Says she: ''It puts women in a bad negotiating position.'' Although male- oriented films have pulled in big bucks at the box office this summer, the studios can't argue that films with female stars always fare worse. On average, Cher's last five films have grossed $48 million each, vs. $40 million for Stallone's. A few top actresses are beginning to demand equal pay for equal work. Sigourney Weaver fought hard to get a man-size salary for her star role in the upcoming science fiction action film Aliens III. Weaver reportedly will earn $4 million, plus a percentage of the profits.M.A.

CHART: NOT AVAILABLE CREDIT: JIM MCMANUS CAPTION: NO COMPARABLE WORTH IN MOVIES