What Was Bob Hoskins' Net Worth?
Bob Hoskins was a British actor and film director who had a net worth of $4 million at the time of his death in 2014. Bob Hoskins left school at the age of 15 and took a series of menial jobs before taking up acting at the Unity Theater in 1969. He soon went on to appear in a number of British films and television series before crossing over to international audiences. During his long and admired career, Hoskins was probably most famous for his roles in movies like "Mermaids," "Mona Lisa," "Who Framed Roger Rabbit," "Snow White and the Huntsman," and "Hook." For his work in 1986's "Mona Lisa," Bob won several prestigious awards for Best Actor, including a BAFTA and a Golden Globe. He was also nominated for an Academy Award but lost out to Paul Newman for his role in "The Color of Money." Unfortunately, Bob's career was cut short in August 2012 when he announced his retirement due to an ongoing battle with Parkinson's disease. He died on April 29, 2014, due to complications from pneumonia at the age of 71.
Early Life
Bob Hoskins was born Robert William Hoskins on October 26, 1942, in Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, England. He was the son of Elsi Hopkins, a cook and nursery school teacher, and Robert Hoskins, a bookkeeper and lorry driver. His parents moved to London shortly after he was born. He attended Stroud Green Secondary School, where he struggled as he was dyslexic. At the age of 15, he decided to leave school with a single O-level, the qualifying exam taken by students in England. He began working as a porter, lorry driver, plumber, and window cleaner. Bob began an accountancy course but did not complete it. He then spent six months on a kibbutz in Israel and two years tending to the camels of a Bedouin tribe in Syria.
Career
Hoskins began his acting career in 1968 at the Victoria Theatre in Stoke-on-Trent, playing a servant named Peter in "Romeo and Juliet." The following year, while waiting in the bar at Unity Theatre, London, for his friend, the actor Roger Frost, he was asked to spontaneously audition for a different play. He landed the part, with his friend Frost becoming his understudy. Later that year, Bob joined the Bolton Octagon Theatre outreach troupe, which became the Ken Campbell Roadshow.
Hoskins began his career in London theatre by playing Alfred Doolittle in a West End production of Bernard Shaw's "Pygmalion" at the Abbey Theatre in 1974. He also appeared in a Royal Shakespeare Company production of Eugene O'Neill's "The Iceman Cometh" at the Aldwych Theatre in 1976. In 1981, he co-starred with Helen Mirren in "The Duchess of Malfi" at the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester.
His first big television role came in 1974 when he was cast in "On the Move." In 1978, Bob appeared in the six-part drama "Pennies from Heaven." He appeared in the film "The Long Good Friday" in 1980, which was well-received by critics. In 1981, he appeared in Johnathan Miller's BBC Television Shakespeare production of "Othello." In 1985, he had a role in Terry Gilliam's film "Brazil." The following year, he appeared in "Mona Lisa." For his work, he earned a Cannes Award, a Best Actor Golden Globe, a BAFTA Award, and an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.
In 1987, Hoskins was slated to be a last-minute replacement for Robert De Niro in case De Niro decided not to accept the role of Al Capone in "The Untouchables." For his patience relating to ultimately not appearing in the film, the director mailed him a check for $200,000. A year later, in 1988, he portrayed private investigator Edward Valiant in the live-action/animated family blockbuster film "Who Framed Roger Rabbit." He was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for his performance and won a British Evening Standard Award.
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Throughout the early 1990s, Hoskins appeared in films like "Mermaids," "The Favour, the Watch, and the Very Big Fish," "Shattered," "Hook," "The Inner Circle," and "Passed Away," among others. In 1995, he was cast as J. Edgar Hoover in the film "Nixon." The cast of the film was nominated at the Screen Actors Guild Awards in the Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture category.
In the latter half of the 1990s, Bob appeared in "Rainbow," "Michael," "The Secret Agent," "Cousin Bette," and "Twenty Four Seven." For the latter film, he won the European Film Award for Best Actor. In 1999, he appeared in "Felicia's Journey" and won the Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role.
In the 2000s, some of the films he appeared in include "Enemy at the Gates," "Last Orders," "Where Eskimos Live," "Maid in Manhattan," "The Sleeping Dictionary," "Den of Lions," "Beyond the Sea," and "Unleashed." In 2005, he appeared in "Mrs. Henderson Presents" as Vivian Van Damm. He received nominations at the Golden Globes and the British Independent Film Awards for his performance. In 2006, he had roles in "Paris, je t'aime," "The Wind in the Willows," "Hollywoodland," and "Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties." His performance in the 2007 film "Ruby Blue" won him the Oxford International Film Festival award in the Best Actor category. His final film role was in "Snow White and the Huntsman" in 2012.
Personal Life and Death
Hoskins's first wife was Jane Livesey. They had two children together – Alex in 1968 and Sarah in 1972. The couple subsequently divorced, and Bob later started dating Linda Barnwell. Bob and Linda married and had two more children – Rose in 1983 and Jack in 1986. Hoskins spent his time at his homes in London and East Sussex. He was a vocal critic of Tony Blair despite being a Labour Party supporter for most of his life. Later in his life, Bob's wife persuaded him to give up alcohol.
In 2011, Hoskins was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. He retired from acting in August 2012. Bob died of pneumonia at a London hospital at the age of 71 on April 29, 2014. He was survived by his wife, Linda, and his four children. Following his death, a number of actors paid tribute, such as Stephen Fry, Helen Mirren, and Samuel L. Jackson. Hoskins was buried in Highgate Cemetery in London.
