How much is Morgan Freeman worth?
| Net Worth: | $200 Million |
|---|---|
| Profession: | Professional Actor |
| Date of Birth: | June 1, 1937 (age 85) |
| Country: | United States of America |
| Height: | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
About Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman is an esteemed actor who rose to fame after starring in the multi-award-winning movie, Driving Miss Daisy (1989). The actor has since become so prestigious in the industry thanks to starring in some of the most well received movies of all time. He starred in three movies that are in IMDB’s list of “Top 20 Movies of All Time”; The Shawshank Redemption, The Dark Knight, and Seven, with two of them even being in the top five, and has featured in many Academy Award winning films such as Invictus, and Million Dollar Baby.
Freeman is also known for his prominent role as Luscious Fox in the billion dollar The Dark Knight franchise, as well as for his dramatic roles. A full twenty years after his role as Detective Somerset in Se7en (1995), Freeman won the “Vintage Performance by an Actor” for his performance at the first Vintage Film Awards. Freeman is also well known for his narrating of dozens of movies, TV shows, and documentaries thanks to his iconic and instantly recognizable voice.
Though Freeman is one of the most famous actors alive today and his voice is instantly recognizable, the actor didn’t start getting major movie roles until he was in his late 40s. However when he did, he was delivering some of his greatest acting performances far earlier into his career than most other actors; and by the time he hit his pace in the 1980s, Freeman was delivering some of the greatest acting performances of all time.
His performance as Fast Black in Street Smart (1987) is ranked #77 on Premiere magazine’s list of “100 Greatest Performances of All Time”. The American Film Institute’s list of “100 Most Inspiring Movies of All Time” also features three movies that he starred in; Driving Miss Daisy (1989) at #77, Glory (1989) at #31 and The Shawshank Redemption (1994) at #23.
Driving Miss Daisy was released in 1989 when Freeman was 52 years old. His performance was so spectacular that it helped the film win Academy Award for “Best Picture” as well as earn himself a nomination for “Best Actor”. Despite also being nominated for Street Smart two years earlier, it was Driving Miss Daisy that caused Freeman to be more fully recognized and led to being cast in movies like Unforgiven and the Stephen King film adaptation, The Shawshank Redemption.
Since then, throughout the rest of the 1990s, and into the 2000s, and 2010s, Freeman scored dozens of roles, many of which have become classics, such as Seven, as well as massive box office earners like Bruce Almighty; the Jim Carrey comedy in which Morgan Freeman plays God.
In 2003, Freeman starred in another Stephen King film adaptation, Dreamcatcher. In 2004, Clint Eastwood cast Freeman in Million Dollar Baby. A movie about an an ill-tempered old coach, Frankie, who reluctantly agrees to train aspiring female boxer Maggie. The role of Frankie is played by Clint Eastwood, Freeman plays the role of Eddie “Scrap Iron” Dupris.
Perhaps most famously, Freeman played Luscious Fox, Batman’s supplier of gadgets in The Dark Knight trilogy in the Christopher Nolan Batman franchise. A franchise that has become a multi billion dollar success. All three of the movies were insanely popular and are often talked about as the greatest Batman movies to date. Each movie achieved better success at the box office than the last. Batman Begins made $371.9 million worldwide, but its two sequels, The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises just about joined the billion dollar movie club. Freeman previously acted alongside another Batman: Michael Keaton in Clean and Sober (1988).
Freeman’s Total Net Worth
In an interview when promoting the action movie Olympus Has Fallen, Freeman seemed to elude to a large paycheck for playing the part of Allan Trumbull. Likely in the region of $10 million dollars on the frontend and a percentage of the box office profits. He also returned for two sequels, London Has Fallen and Angel Has Fallen.
Not only that, but many of his other movies have also been so successful that they have spawned sequels, such as Now You See Me 2, Ted 2, Evan Almighty, and of course The Dark Knight Trilogy. In addition to his acting work, Freeman is also a notable producer. After producing films like Invictus in the 2000s, he has since produced over 180 episodes for four different TV series. In total, it is estimated that he has earned $450 million dollars from his work in acting and producing.
Outside of acting, Freeman has scored several endorsement deals, most notably as an ambassador for Visa. When including his endorsement deals, with his voice work in advertising and all of the appearances that he has made as himself, it is estimated that he has earned another $35-50 million. Therefore his total career income is estimated at around $492.5 million dollars.
Of that amount, $34-60 million is expected to have been paid in business related costs. The remainder, $445.5 million, will have been taxed at around 45% as Freeman has resided mostly between the states of Mississippi and New York, but has also resided in California. After tax, it is estimated that his career earnings are at around $245.02 million dollars, having paid $200.48 million dollars in taxes.
Morgan Freeman married Jeanette Adair Bradshaw in 1967 and they divorced twelve years later, in 1979. They have two children together, Deena and Morgana Freeman, and it is likely that $2-3 million will have gone in Jeanette’s direction as part of a settlement and spousal and child support. Morgan later married Myrna Colley-Lee in 1984 and when they divorced twenty-six years later, in 2010. Freeman was ordered to pay one of the highest divorce settlements in Hollywood history. While some have reported that amount paid Jeanette as $400 million that is essentially considered impossible because that figure would represent more than Morgan Freeman’s net worth at the time. The more plausible amount, is the reported $175 million after the split. However, that figure likewise sounds high, it is being estimated here as having been no more than $150 million.
In his personal life, it is estimated that Freeman may have spent $14-25 million dollars of his career earnings, including gifts and donations and so on, but also probably possesses assets valued at around $8-10 million, not including investment assets but including items like donations and possessions like artwork that were not purchased as an investment. In his investments, he may have earned investment returns of around $99-150 million dollars.
Therefore, it is estimated that Morgan Freeman has a net worth of over $200 million dollars. A lot less than it would have been if not for the split with his second wife, but not bad at any rate, considering Morgan arrived in Los Angeles, California in 1959 and his first job was as a clerk typist. In 2003, he was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Summing-Up
There’s a reason why Freeman has come to own a 124 acre ranch and multiple private jets. Thanks not only to inheriting his golden voice through genes, but also to being an extraordinarily gifted actor and making the right movie choices, Morgan Freeman has a net worth of $200 million.
