How much is Mike Myers worth?
| Net Worth: | $200 Million |
|---|---|
| Profession: | Professional Actor |
| Date of Birth: | May 25, 1963 (age 59) |
| Country: | Canada |
| Height: | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) |
About Mike Myers
The proud carrier of the Orden of Canada, Canada’s second-highest medal in merits, Michael John Myers is an actor, producer, writer, and comedian. Even if often confused with the fictional horror character, Mike is the complete opposite of Michael Myers. As he once stated, he prefers wigs to facemasks. His parents were immigrants from England, most specifically Liverpool. Mike Myers is a Liverpool fan to this day and has competed in various charity soccer matches.
His father was an insurance agent and his mother worked for the Royal Air Force. He has two brothers Peter and Paul. They spend most of their lives living in Toronto, where Mike graduated from college in 1982.
Mike Myers has been around TV or movie from an early age. When he was two years old he was filmed for his first commercial.
Ten years later, at 12 years old he made his first real acting appearance on a TV show called King of Kensington. But Mike also loved comedy. Ever since he graduated from high school he hung around various comedy sketch troupes. The first comedy group he was a part of was the Canadian The Second City touring company.
Later, a few years after he was done with college, he moved to the UK. He joined the UK branch of the Second City comedy group. He also worked on various children shows in the United Kingdom. The most notable example of such a show was the Wide Awake Club. He didn’t stay in the UK for a long time. After just two years be moved back to Toronto. There he rediscovered the Second City and in 1986 he became a regular mainstay in their performance The Second City Theater. But, always at skittish, Mike Myers moved to Chicago two years later. There he worked with both The Second City but also the Improv Olympics.
He has always had a knack for creating various characters. Even in his early Toronto and Chicago days, he had formed a foundation of what would become his Wayne Cambell character. Some variations of that character appeared on various Canadian and small American TV variety shows. But it would not be until he joined Saturday Night Live, and where he would work with Dana Carvey that that sketch and character would really take off.
Mike’s star started to shine brightly once he got under the wing of Lorne Michales, the brains behind one of the greatest variety TV shows of all time Saturday Night Live. Mike auditioned a couple of times but finally joined the program in 1989.
He would stay with SNL for 6 years, until 1995. He and Dana Carvey would perfect his Wayne Campbell character and introduce the public to their timeless sketch Wayne’s World. Dana would play Wayne’s sidekick Garth. To describe the sketch with one word, you’d have to call it excellent.
The sketch soon got a life of its own and became a movie. Unlike some half baked ideas, the movie was a large sketch, largely thanks to the strong artistic, uncompromising at times, nature that Myers and Carvey bestowed upon it. The movie also helped relaunch the popularity of the band Queen in the 90s. Based on the fact that Wayne’s World, the movie, was one of the biggest box office hits banking $183.1 million, a sequel followed soon after.
After takingg a hiatus from acting, Mike Myers returned to film with the Austin Powers movie franchise. This new project once again showed and proved just how much of a comedic genius Mike Myers really is. He played both the protagonist Austin Powers, a sex-crazed secret agent from the 1970s, and the antagonist Dr. Evil. The first movie was a huge success, both critically and commercially and it spawned two more sequels, grossing a combined $675 million dollars.
The younger generation might know him best as the voice of Shrek, the protagonist of one of the most successful animation franchises in the world; played alongside Eddie Murphy who did the voice of “Donkey”.
For his contribution to culture, Mike Myers has been rewarded both the Canadian and the American Walk of Fame Star. Later in life, he published a book about Canada, its history, and pop culture, aptly named, Canada.
Mike Myers found what he was passionate about early in life. Always an eccentric, restless soul, he wandered from place to place, country to country to perfect his craft as an actor. Even when he was living in the suburbs of Toronto, he wanted to be in front of the lights, in front of the cameras. He worked as early as two years old where he was filmed for a commercial, and as a teen, he was knew what his future should look like.
In addition to his precocious attitude, Mike Myers had a unique blend of comedic and creative talents from the start. He created two of the best comedies of the last 30 years. Both of them are based on characters that he envisioned in his youth. But he also met the right people at the right time. Without Lorne Michaels, maybe Wayne’s World would never have happened. Without Dana Carvey, maybe Wayne’s World would never have become so popular and as iconic as it did, especially the second movie, where Garth and his romantic interests play a much larger role.
But, his fearlessness to go from place to place, start from scratch many, many times shows that without proper risks taken, and risks judged, you unlikely be a great success.
Myers’ Total Net Worth
Mike Myers started out earning what was a major paycheck for him at the time, $1 million dollars for Wayne’s World in 1992. The movie was such a marked success that he was later paid $3.5 million dollars to reprise the role. Then, for Austin Powers, he was paid another $3.5 million for the first film, $7 million dollars for the second and $25 million for the third. A similar trend that he repeated for Shrek, where he was paid $3 million dollars followed by $10 million dollars and then $15 million dollars for the final two movies.
Overall, it is estimated that Myers’ total career earnings are around $325 million dollars. That is including his substantial writing work, as well as his other behind the scenes work like producing and directing, as well as all of the appearances that he has made as himself.
After tax, it is estimated that Myers’ career earnings are at around $178.75 million, having paid $146.25 million dollars (45%) in taxes.
Mike Myers married Robin Ruzan in 1993 and they later divorced thirteen years later, in 2006. The couple did not have any children together but the years that they were together were high earning years for Mike including major payments for his roles in Austin Powers and Shrek. It is likely that the judge considered the support that Robin was providing as help in Mike’s career and, it is estimated, that she was cut a check for $15 million dollars.
Mike Myers later married Kelly Tisdale in 2010 and they remain together. They have three children together, Spike, Sunday Molly and Paulina Kathleen Myers. In his personal life Mike has kept it easy, he hasn’t been in any legal trouble and has likely kept a keen eye of his finances.
Myers has been active in real estate, buying and selling properties mostly in New York. However he also bought a $1.65 million property in Colchester, Vermont, in 2014. Previously in 2007, he bought an $8 million dollars property in SoHo, New York City and today it is likely worth two thirds more than that. In 2017, he bought a 4-bedroom condo in Tribeca, New York City for $14.68 million dollars.
It is estimated that Myers’ investments in securities have earned him more than he has in real estate. All told, it is likely that Myers is up on his investments by around $45 million dollars, even after deducting costs and losses. He will have spent some of his career earnings as well, likely around $9-10 million. Leaving Mike Myers with a net worth of about $200 million dollars.
Summing-Up
Mike Myers has achieved both the Canadian and American dream. A child of two hardworking immigrants, he took an unusual path to achieve the top in his industry. He was a genius with a restless soul. But above all, he is a man who’s artistic integrity means the world to him. From when he worked with a small comedy troupe in Toronto, to the times where he was at the helm of the biggest comedies of the last few decades, he knows how things needed to be for them to succeed.
Mike Myers is a great example that believing in yourself, your goals, and your ideas, can shape your life in incredible ways and give you a mesmerizing career.
