Introduction

Kevin Spacey is an American professional actor, singer, and producer with an estimated net worth of $-2 Million.

Net Worth History

At the very peak of his career, estimates of Kevin Spacey’s net worth reached as high as $100 million, but based on recent information, those estimates were likely much higher than his actual wealth. Many sources now believe that his net worth peaked at somewhere between $50 million and $70 million. However, this was before the $30.9 million judgment was awarded against him for breaching his contract with Media Rights Capital on House of Cards.

Since then, Spacey’s financial situation has unraveled, with the majority of his acting projects being canceled, almost shutting the doors on his Hollywood career. In 2024, Spacey was interviewed in a nearly 2-hour-long episode on Piers Morgan Uncensored. Piers asked Kevin, “Where do you live now?” and he broke down in tears, stating that his Baltimore home was being foreclosed upon. He was also asked whether he was facing bankruptcy, and Spacey mentioned he’d come close to filing multiple times. Finally, he revealed that he was in debt by several million dollars. 

As a result of all this recent information, it’s clear that Spacey has lost his entire fortune and now has a negative net worth, which is estimated to be roughly $-2 Million. His response to the situation is that he’s going to “get back on the horse” and rebuild his career.

Acting Career

Kevin Spacey began his acting career in 1981 when he made his first professional stage appearance in Henry VI, Part 1. Over the next few years, he gained prominence as a stage actor and became very popular for his acting skills. Following his enormous success as a stage actor, he ventured into film and television.

Spacey appeared in minor roles in several films in the late 1980s, including Wiseguy (1988), L.A. Law (1992), and The Usual Suspects. He had his big breakthrough in 1999 when he starred in American Beauty. His portrayal of the character earned him much critical acclaim and made him a superstar in Hollywood.

Spacey’s success continued in the new millennium, and he starred in many movies such as ‘The Shipping News’ (2001), ‘The United States of Leland’ (2004), ‘Recount’ (2008), and ‘The Men Who Stare at Goats’ (2009).

In 2013, he played the leading role of “Frank” in the successful drama series ‘House of Cards. Three years later, he played the leading roles in ‘Elvis & Nixon’ and ‘Nine Lives’. In 2017, he started shooting the movie ‘All the Money in the World’.

House of Cards Salary

Spacey earned roughly $380,000 per episode for the first two seasons of House of Cards, which paid him $5 million apiece. For seasons three through five, his salary was increased to roughly $690,000 per episode, which earned him $9 million apiece. Kevin earned a total base salary of $37 million from the show.

Media Rights Capital Lawsuit

While filming for House of Cards in 2017, multiple members of the production crew came forward accusing Spacey of sexual harassment and inappropriate conduct. As a result, Media Rights Capital, the show’s production company, launched an internal investigation into the allegations and later fired Spacey from the show. They alleged that Kevin had broken MRC’s standards of workplace conduct, which became the basis for their 2019 lawsuit.

At the time, production for Season six of House of Cards was well underway, and two of the intended thirteen episodes had been fully produced. MRC had a licensing agreement with Netflix for the sixth season, but due to the forced firing of Spacey, they were only able to make eight episodes in total, leaving the streaming platform short. This resulted in the MRC forfeiting millions of dollars in licensing fees, and in their eyes, Spacey was entirely to blame.

The lawsuit was filed in 2019, with MRC seeking damages from Spacey personally, alleging that he breached his contract. In 2021, the suit moved into arbitration, and MRC was awarded $29.5 million in damages, plus an additional $1.4 million in legal fees, bringing the total to $30.9 million. Spacey, of course, appealed the decision, citing that it was his contract that had been breached, and not the other way around. However, in August 2022, Judge Red Recana upheld the original judgment.

Highest-Grossing Movies

In recent years, Spacey has become best known for his role in House of Cards. However, many of his earlier films performed well at the box office. His highest-grossing film was 2006’s Superman Returns, which earned $391 million worldwide. The second-highest was for his voice role as Hopper in A Bug’s Life (1998), which grossed $363 million. It was the highest-grossing animated film and fifth-highest overall of the year.

Spacey’s role as Lester in American Beauty (1999) provided the most significant return on investment, with the film grossing $356 million on a measly $15 million budget. Some of his other films to make the list include Se7en ($327 million), Baby Driver ($227 million), and Horrible Bosses ($210 million).

Here’s a complete list of Kevin Spacey’s ten highest-grossing movies:

1. Superman Returns – $391 Million (2006)
2. A Bug’s Life – $363 Million (1998)
3. American Beauty – $356 Million (1999)
4. Se7en – $327 Million (1995)
5. Austin Powers in Goldmember – $297 Million (2002)
6. Baby Driver – $227 Million (2017)
7. The Social Network – $225 Million (2010)
8. Captain Phillips – $219 Million (2013)
9. Horrible Bosses – $210 Million (2011)
10. Outbreak – $190 Million (1995)

Matt Groening is an American professional writer, cartoonist, producer, and animator with an estimated net worth of $600 Million

Earnings History

While The Simpsons has existed since the late 1980s, not much was known about Matt Groening’s earnings from the show until recently. In 2022, Forbes listed Groening and James L. Brooks with estimated annual incomes of $105 million each. While both creators receive a salary every year for serving as executive producers on the show, it’s the streaming deals that are responsible for the bulk of this figure.

When The Walt Disney Company acquired 20th Century Fox and several of its assets for $71 billion in 2019, all thirty seasons of The Simpsons were added to the Disney+ platform. In 2024, it was reported that the show had already generated over $1 billion through the deal, increasing Brooks and Groening’s earnings to an estimated $135 million in 2024.

While this is just two years’ worth of earnings for Groening’s four-decade-long history in the industry, it still accounts for $240 million in income. 

Before Wealth & Fame

Growing up in Portland, Oregon, it didn’t take long for Matt Groening to become obsessed with drawing and comics. While attending Lincoln High School, he would regularly fill his class notebooks with his doodles and cartoon drawings. After graduating from Lincoln, Groening enrolled at The Evergreen State College in Washington. 

Before creating The Simpsons, Groening moved to Los Angeles, California, and worked several jobs to support himself. The most notable of which was his job at Licorice Pizza, which was once a popular chain of record stores. He also worked as a deliveryman for a portable toilet company.

The Simpsons

If you couldn’t already tell from Groening’s earnings, The Simpsons is the primary reason for his success and wealth, and it all began in 1986. Groening was offered an opportunity by James L. Brooks to pitch short-form animated content for The Tracey Ullman Show. At the time, he’d already developed a comic strip called Life in Hell, which was the project that gained Brooks’ attention.

When asked to adapt Life in Hell for a TV audience, Groening was reluctant, worrying he would lose ownership of the strip. With those worries in the back of his mind, he developed an idea on the spot, right before he was about to pitch it – a dysfunctional cartoon family loosely based on his own family. The characters were even named after his family members:

• Homer (his father’s real name)
• Marge (his mother’s name is Margaret)
• Lisa and Maggie (his sisters’ names)
• Bart (inspired by his older brother, Mark)

The idea was a hit, and the short-form content proved popular on The Tracey Ullman Show. Several years later, in 1989, the first official season of The Simpsons aired, featuring its debut episode, “Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire.”

By the end of the 1990s, the show had already aired eleven seasons and 235 episodes, gaining more and more popularity as the years went by. The show’s leading cast members could sense how big The Simpsons had become and began their first of many pay disputes. At the time, at least 23 of the characters were voiced by just six actors:

• Dan Castellaneta (Homer, Abe, Krusty the Clown, Barney…)
• Julie Kavner (Marge, Patty, Selma)
• Nancy Cartwright (Bart, Nelson Muntz, Ralph Wiggum, Todd Flanders) 
• Yeardley Smith (Lisa)
• Harry Shearer (Mr. Burns, Waylon Smithers, Ned Flanders…)
• Hank Azaria (Apu, Chief Wiggum, Moe…)

Real Estate

Malibu Home

In February 1996, Matt Groening paid $1.2 million for an 8,346-square-foot, four-bedroom, five-bathroom home in Malibu, California. The property, which sits on 1.27 acres, was initially built in 1965. In October 2006, Groening sold the house to Larry Sands for $9.75 million, making a substantial profit in just ten years of ownership.

However, we should mention that according to public records, when the property was sold, it was in Groening’s ex-wife’s name, which could potentially mean she received the property in the divorce proceedings. After considering agent fees and property taxes, Groening or his wife likely profited between $7 million and $7.5 million.

Venice Home

Matt and Deborah Groening also previously owned a 5,509-square-foot, five-bedroom, six-bathroom home in Venice, California. The last recorded sale price was $310,000 in June 1987. In a similar scenario to the Malibu home, the title was transferred into Deborah’s name in November 2006, but she is believed to still own the property. It’s now worth approximately $4.9 million.

Highlights

Here are some of the best highlights of Matt Groening’s career:

• Life In Hell (Comic Strip, 1977-2012)
• Wet Magazine (1978)
• The Tracey Ullman Show (1985)
• The Simpsons (TV-Show, 1989-present)
• National Cartoonist Society Reuben Award (2002) – Won
• Futurama (TV-Show, 1999)
• Hollywood Walk of Fame (2012)

Introduction

Katie Holmes is an American professional actress, producer, and director with an estimated net worth of $25 Million. 

Dawson’s Creek Salary

Several reports suggest that Katie Holmes earned approximately $30,000 per episode in the early seasons of Dawson’s Creek. However, the exact timeline has never been confirmed, and the same goes for the latter seasons, when she reportedly earned as much as $175,000 per episode. Based on this information, we can deduce that Holmes potentially earned $390,000 for Season One and $4.2 million for Season Six.

That said, her earnings for the seasons in between are a little harder to pinpoint. During this period, she starred in 91 episodes, and we estimate that her total earnings from seasons two through five likely landed somewhere between $7 million and $12 million. If this were the case, Holmes should have earned somewhere between $12 million and $17 million in total from all 128 episodes of Dawson’s Creek. However, these are just our best estimates and not to be taken as fact.

Divorce Settlement

After only six short years together, one of Hollywood’s most widely recognized couples, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, divorced in July 2012. Holmes officially filed for divorce on June 29, 2012, citing irreconcilable differences. A significant aspect of the divorce was the custody arrangement of their daughter, Suri Cruise, who was six years old at the time. Holmes was granted primary custody, while Cruise received generous visitation rights.

Details of the settlement revealed that Holmes would reportedly not receive spousal support from Cruise but would instead receive roughly $400,000 per year, approximately $33,000 per month, for the next 12 years in child support for Suri until Suri turns 18. In addition, Cruise would pay all of Suri’s health care and educational costs and set up a trust fund for her, which she could partially access at 18 but not fully until her thirties.

The divorce was notably quick, with the settlement reached just 11 days after Holmes filed. Both parties kept the settlement details confidential, common in high-profile divorces. Suri turned eighteen years old in 2024, and thus, Holmes is no longer receiving child support from Cruise.

Real Estate

In August 2014, Katie Holmes paid $3.8 million for a 6,200-square-foot, six-bedroom, seven-bathroom home in Calabasas, California. The property is situated on 0.48 acres of land at the very end of a private cul-de-sac, and features an outdoor pool and half-court basketball court. In November 2019, she relisted the property for sale, asking for $4.63 million. However, in early 2020, she reduced the price to $4.25 million and eventually let it go for just over $4 million.

Considering that agent commissions were probably at least $200,000, plus roughly $250,000 in total property taxes, Holmes likely lost several hundred thousand dollars on the sale.

Highest-Grossing Movies

Here’s a complete list of Katie Holmes’ ten highest-grossing movies:

1. Batman Begins – $375 million (2005)
2. Ocean’s Eight – $298 million (2018)
3. Jack and Jill – $150 million (2011)
4. Phone Booth – $98 million (2002)
5. The Giver – $67 million (2014)
6. Woman in Gold – $62 million (2015)
7. Logan Lucky – $48 million (2017)
8. The Gift – $45 million (2000)
9. Thank You for Smoking – $39 million (2005)
10. Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark – $38 million (2010)