Almost a Billionaire! How Jerry Seinfeld Became the World’s Richest Comedian
Did you know that Jerry Seinfeld's astonishing wealth doesn't stem from endorsements or production deals like many other celebs? Instead, a large portion of his fortune comes from the iconic '90s sitcom "Seinfeld" including earnings during the show's original run and a lucrative syndication deal. Thanks to the show, his stand-up specials and continuous income from Netflix, Jerry is now on the verge of becoming a billionaire.
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What is Jerry Seinfeld's net worth?
Jerry Seinfeld, the American comedian, television producer, actor, and avid car collector, boasts a net worth of $950 million, as per Celebrity Net Worth. His immense wealth primarily comes from the legendary sitcom, "Seinfeld" considered one of the most profitable shows in television history, particularly in terms of syndication royalties. Seinfeld holds a 15% ownership stake in the show's backend equity points, leading to substantial earnings not only from his base salary during the show's run, but also from continuous global syndication sales long after the series ended.
Early life and career
Jerry Seinfeld, born on April 29, 1954, in Brooklyn, grew up in Massapequa, New York. His passion for stand-up comedy developed during his time at Queens College, and he began performing at open mic nights. After college, Jerry spent nearly 15 years as a stand-up comedian before achieving television success. His breakthrough came in May 1981 with a highly successful appearance on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson," leading to more appearances on "The Tonight Show" and "Late Night with David Letterman."
Earnings form "Seinfeld"
Jerry Seinfeld's per episode pay for "Seinfeld" underwent significant increases over the seasons. He started with $20,000 per episode in the first season, then jumped to $40,000 for seasons 2 and 3. Subsequently, he negotiated $100,000 per episode for seasons 4, 5, and 6 when the show gained immense popularity. As "Seinfeld" continued to soar, Jerry Seinfeld secured an impressive raise to $500,000 per episode for seasons 7 and 8. For the final season, he became the highest-paid person on television with an astonishing $1 million per episode.
Although NBC offered him a staggering $5 million per episode to continue, Jerry declined preferring to end "Seinfeld" while it was still at its peak.
The royalties
At the beginning of "Seinfeld," both Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David owned 7.5% of the show's backend equity points. Later, during negotiations with NBC, they doubled their ownership stake to 15% each. When the show was sold into syndication in 1998, generating $1.7 billion in revenue, both Seinfeld and David received windfalls of $255 million each. Over the years, their earnings from salary, DVD sales, merchandise and syndication deals have totaled at least $800 million each.
The deal with Netflix & Hulu
In 2015, when "Seinfeld" sold to Hulu for $180 million, Seinfeld and David each earned $27 million. They continue to earn $40-50 million annually from syndication sales and show royalties. From June 2017 to June 2018, Seinfeld earned $60 million and from June 2018 to 2019, he earned $40 million.
When "Seinfeld" sold to Netflix for $500 million in September 2019, both Seinfeld and David earned $75 million.
Seinfeld's $100M car collection
Jerry Seinfeld is one of the world's most prominent private collectors of Porsches. He owns approximately 150 vehicles, of which 45 are Porsches. While filming Seinfeld in Los Angeles, he stored his collection in a hangar at the Santa Monica airport. In 2002, Jerry purchased a property on the Upper West Side of Manhattan for $1.4 million and invested an additional $500 thousand to construct a spacious garage capable of housing numerous cars.
Real estate (or rather, car estate)
Jerry owns a luxurious $32 million estate in East Hampton, a $4 million townhouse in New York City and a $4.5 million warehouse in California, which he uses to casually store his cars. Jerry's cars have a more lavish home than most of us could ever dream of!