Robin Williams — $50 Million
The beloved comedian, who tragically passed on way too soon, made an enormous fortune for himself. Thanks to his wonderful comedy style and charming personality, Williams quickly ascended in his career. Beginning as a stand-up comedian and mime, Williams eventually landed a comedy series, “Mork & Mindy,” which was so immensely popular that it garnered him international fame.
Though Robin Williams is known for his comedic roles, he was also a talented and multi-faceted actor, playing serious roles such as John Keating, the teacher in “Dead Poet’s Society,” and Sean in “Goodwill Hunting.” Other famous and beloved roles included Mrs. Doubtfire in “Mrs. Doubtfire” and the genie in “Aladdin.” Known for his range and ability to become the roles he was portraying, Williams was an incredibly talented artist. Upon his sad and tragic death, Williams left his $50 million to his three children. He continues to be missed among his many fans and friends.
Sandra Bullock — $280 Million
Sandra Bullock has had a long and successful career and continues to star in box office hits to this day. She’s named one of Hollywood’s top 20 actresses in terms of net worth. She’s been in the business for an impressive 30 years and has earned the salary to prove it. In 2014, Bullock was named one of Forbes’ Highest-Paid Actresses. Her impressive fortune comes from hit films like "Miss Congeniality," "The Blind Side," "Oceans 8," and the Netflix film, "Bird Box."
Not only is she a talented actress, Bullock actually owns her own production company, Fortis Film. The company has made numerous projects including the movie "Practical Magic" and "George Lopez," the television series. Bullock isn’t greedy with her money, either. After Hurricane Harvey hit, Bullock donated $1 million to the American Red Cross to help get aid to those in need.
Matt Groening — $600 Million
You may not have heard Matt Groening’s name before, but you’ve almost certainly seen his work before. The television shows he’s created are so famous that they play on network television almost every night. Groening is the mastermind behind super hit shows like "The Simpsons" and "Futurama."
"The Simpsons" is the longest-running primetime TV series that has ever existed. You’d be very hard-pressed to find someone that hasn’t watched or at least heard of it. Not only does Groening have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his masterwork, but he has also won a total of 12 Emmy awards for "The Simpsons," so far.
Chelsea Handler — $40 Million
Comedian Chelsea Handler has created a huge following for herself since she entered the talk show world in 2007, with her television show, "Chelsea Lately." Multi-talented and business savvy, Handler continues to appear on the radar with her various comedic pursuits. Interestingly, one of the reasons behind the popularity of her initial show comes from the fact that producers posted clips of the show on YouTube, which in turn ended up garnering a huge fan base.
Though you might imagine the majority of Handler’s fortune comes from her television career, she actually has amassed most of her wealth from her hugely successful writing career. Since the year 2005, Handler has written five books. They cover a wide variety of subjects but are all creative nonfiction and hold Handler’s extra special touch — her wonderful sense of humor. Of those five books, four have hit the New York Times bestseller list and even reached number one. Three of them have even been turned into television series.
Jerry Seinfeld — $950 Million
Like many comedians, Jerry Seinfeld started from small beginnings. He tried for years to make it big as a stand-up comedian and eventually hit the jackpot after creating the famous television sitcom, "Seinfeld". Since then, Jerry Seinfeld has blossomed into one of the most successful and highest-paid comedians of all time. Though Seinfeld made quite a fortune during the show’s filming, the majority of his wealth from the sitcom came after it was finished airing. His co-creator Larry David and himself receive enormous paychecks each time a re-run of "Seinfeld" airs, which as you might imagine, is quite a lot.
Not only has Jerry Seinfeld made a fortune from his namesake sitcom, but he has also brought in huge paychecks for himself from his work as an author, public speaker, and advertising endorser. In 2017, Seinfeld earned $69 million due to his smart partnership with Netflix. He probably never guessed he would land this much success when he was starting off as a stand-up comedian, but life can be pretty funny that way.