How much is Ian Ziering worth?
| Net Worth: | $5 Million |
|---|---|
| Profession: | Professional Actor |
| Date of Birth: | March 30, 1964 (age 58) |
| Country: | United States of America |
| Height: | 6 ft (1.83 m) |
“I like the fact that I’m involved in a career that gives me so many different mediums to perform in.” Ian Ziering
About Ian Ziering
Ian Ziering, whose full name is Ian Andrew Ziering, is an American film actor, director, producer, and voice actor. His acting career started in 1981 during his late teenage years. The actor rose to prominence when he became a series regular on the television series Beverly Hills, 90210, where he remained from 1990 to 2000. Apart from this role, he’s also known for partaking in Biker Mice from Mars, Sharknado, and Swamp Thing.
“When I read the script for ‘90210,’ I thought, ‘Boy, this is very superficial,’ and it was. I mean, the pilot was all about the glitz and the glamour of Beverly Hills, the obnoxious kids, and the fish-out-of-water story of Brenda and Brandon Walsh. I couldn’t discern from that first script that the show would become very issue-oriented.” Ian Ziering
Ian Ziering gained popularity when he joined Beverly Hills, 90210, where he reprised the role of Steve Sanders. He was born on March 30, 1964, in Newark, New Jersey. He’s the youngest of three sons for Paul and Muriel Ziering. Ian was raised in both West Orange and Newark, New Jersey alongside his two older brothers – Barry and Jeff. He attended the West Orange High School, from which he graduated in 1982.
His parents saw his love for acting and signed him up for acting schools in New Jersey during the mid-late 1970s. In 1981, just a year before he graduated from high school, Ziering made his film and television debut. The first film, in which he took part in is the romantic drama Endless Love, which features Martin Hewitt, Brooke Shields, and also serves as the film debut of Tom Cruise. Later that year, in his television debut, he starred in the NBC soap opera The Doctors, reprising the role of Erich Aldrich in two episodes.
After graduating from the West Orange High School, he enrolled at the William Peterson University and focused his attention on his studies. After graduating from the university with a Bachelor’s degree in dramatic arts, Ziering returned to filming. He spent most of the late 1980s taking part in various series such as Guiding Light and ABC After school Specials, from which he earned an estimated $15,000 to $25,000.
In 1990, after defeating multiple actors in the audition process, Ian landed the role of Steve Sanders in the Fox teen drama Beverly Hills, 90210.
His very first appearance on the show was in the series pilot that aired on October 4, 1990. He remained on the show for the next decade, and his last appearance was in the final episode on May 17, 2000. Besides being one of the only two characters to appear in all 290+ episodes of the show, Ian Ziering earned an estimated $3 million from the role.
The remaining earnings contributing to his net worth came from his many other appearances on TV. Like Mighty Ducks, Godzilla: The Series, Son of the Beach, and Biker Mice from Mars.
“In this business, it’s important: if you consider yourself a journeyman actor like I do, you need to stay topical. So I’m always looking for projects that are challenging, that put me in a light that’s different from anything I’ve ever done before.” Ian Ziering
Ziering’s Total Net Worth
Despite Ian Ziering’s career dating back to 1981 in Endless Love, he was not well known about until being cast as Steve Sanders in Beverly Hills, 90210 in 1990. For the next ten years Ziering would appear in the role for a total of about 290 episodes. For the first two seasons there were 50 episodes and after a signing bonus likely to be $15,000 in total, including the signing bonus, it is estimated that Ziering earned no more than $65,000.
After season two and before season three Ziering’s contract would have been renegotiated on a per episode payment, likely to be in the region of $10,000 per episode. None of these figures are being adjusted for inflation. Seasons three, four and five, included a total of 94 episodes and therefore earned the young TV star $940,000.
For season six and seven it is likely he was paid $20,000 per episode making his earnings from the 63 episodes, $1.26 million dollars. For the final three seasons, seasons eight, nine and ten, it is estimated that he earned approximately $30,000 per episode. The last three seasons included 84 episodes, making his earnings $2.52 million. In total, Ian Ziering earned approximately $4.8 million.
When he Fox reboot came in 2019, BH90210, it was reported that Ian Ziering was to earn $75,000 per episode. It was only 6 episodes, but it still added $450,000 to his career earnings. When he was approached to appear in Sharknado he was offered $50,000 which he rejected. He finally accepted to an offer of $100,000. Ziering earned $200,000 for each Sharknado 2, 3 and 4. For Sharknado 5 and The Last Sharknado: It’s About Time he was paid a reported $500,000 for each performance. Ian Ziering earned a total of 1.7 million from his appearances in the Sharknado franchise.
From all of his other appearances, including Zombie Tidal Wave, Malibu Rescue, Swamp Thing, Lavalantula, and all of his 74 acting credits, excluding Beverly Hills, 90210, BH90210 and the Sharknado franchise, but including his producing and directing credits. Ziering has earned an estimated $3.5 million dollars. In total, Ian Ziering has earned $10 million from his acting career 1981-2022.
“Past success is no guarantee of future success, so I have learned to be an entrepreneur. I began to produce and direct my own projects.” Ian Ziering
In terms of taxes, Ziering has had average earnings of $213,000 per year. The tax brackets that he is in are not the highest but are up to 35% and 10% or more in California state tax. What is more some years his earnings have been so high to be taxed the full 37% and, in fact, in the 90s that figure would have actually been 39.6%. Actors usually don’t just have agents but also companies that manage their taxes and that includes legally optimizing Ziering for lower taxes. However he will have still paid some 40% over the years, considering he lived and worked in California. Even after tax deductions and other legal tax considerations. Therefore his after-tax earnings are $6 million, having paid $4 million in taxes.
Ian Ziering divorced Nikki Ziering his wife of five years in 2002. It is estimated that she was paid $1 million dollars. Overall however, Ziering has managed to sidestep lawsuits and seemingly kept himself in order, and, assumedly, also his finances. That said everybody who has had a career like Ziering’s will have lost some money, spent some money, incurred management and agent fees, and will have realized some investment gains. Ian Ziering’s net worth is, therefore, $5 million.
What made the BH90210 star so successful are his abilities to direct, produce, and star in several productions. Apart from starring in all ten seasons of Beverly Hills, 90210, he also became a director and producer. He produced eight different episodes, directed two, and wrote one. Other productions that he has directed and produced are Man versus Monday, Sharknado, and The Killer Deal. Also, before and after BH90210, he continued to star in different television series such as Mighty Ducks, Godzilla: The Series, Son of the Beach, and Biker Mice from Mars.
“There was such mass appeal for ‘Sharknado.’ It went over so well – not just here in the United States but globally – that it would be such a missed opportunity and a ripoff for the fans not to bring ‘Sharknado’ back.” Ian Ziering
Starring in box-office hits and commercially acclaimed films also helped Ian Ziering find success. In 1995, after not starring in films in more than 14 years, he starred in the martial arts Western film Savate. Other films that he’s known for appearing in are No Way Back, Mighty Ducks The Movie, Domino, and Tyrannosaurs Azteca.
Most recently, since 2015, he has been heavily included in the television movies Sharknado and Lavalantula, where he portrays the character of Finn Shephard. In addition to starring in Skarknado 3, 4, 5, and 6, he also directed and produced some of the films.
Summing-Up
Ian Ziering is now known as one of the original cast members of the teen series Beverly Hills, 90210, which remains one of the most-watched series of the decade. Ever since he joined the show, the actor has ventured into several roles in the film industry, including that of a director, producer, and writer. Currently, his net worth is estimated to be $5 million and he continues to take part in a variety of television films and series. In 2019, besides as himself, he also reprised his role as Steve Sanders in the BH90210 spin-off, which follows the lives of all original cast members.
