What is Hugh Laurie's Net Worth and Salary?
Hugh Laurie is a British actor, musician, and comedian who has a net worth of $45 million. Hugh Laurie is best known for his starring role in the Fox medical drama "House," which aired 177 episodes over eight seasons between 2004 and 2012. For the role, Hugh won two Golden Globes and numerous Emmy nominations. Outside of his work on "House," he is also known for his comic work as one half of Fry and Laurie and on the television shows "Blackadder" and "Jeeves and Wooster." He also appeared on 20 episodes of "Veep," and 20 episodes of "Chance."
In addition to his television work, Laurie has appeared in various films, including "Sense and Sensibility" (1995), "101 Dalmatians" (1996), "The Man in the Iron Mask" (1998), and "Stuart Little" (1999). His performances in these films further demonstrated his versatility as an actor, comfortably moving between genres.
Laurie is also an accomplished musician with a particular passion for blues and jazz. He has released two albums, "Let Them Talk" (2011) and "Didn't It Rain" (2013), both of which received positive reviews. His musical talents have added another dimension to his already multifaceted career.
Beyond acting and music, Laurie has authored the novel "The Gun Seller" (1996), showcasing his skills as a writer. He has also been involved in various charitable causes, particularly relating to health and education.
"House" Salary
For several of the mid-series seasons, Hugh earned $300,000 per episode of "House." That worked out to around $7 million per season. At his peak, Laurie made $700,000 per episode. That worked out to $16 million per season. He earned that much for at least three seasons.
Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Early Life and Career Beginnings
James Hugh Calum Laurie, better known as just Hugh Laurie, was born on June 11, 1959, in Oxford, England. He is the youngest of four children. His father, William George Ranald Mundell "Ran" Laurie, was a physician and won an Olympic gold medal in the coxless (pairs) rowing category at the 1948 London Games.
Laurie was raised in Oxford and later attended Eton College. He then continued his education at Selwyn College, Cambridge, following in the footsteps of his father. While there, he studied anthropology and archaeology. Another way in which he followed in his father's footsteps was his participation in competitive rowing while at school and university. He was a member of the junior coxed pair that won the British national title in 1977 and was a member of the British Youth Team at that year's Junior World Rowing Championships. At his peak athletic career, he trained up to eight hours a day. However, he had to leave rowing after suffering from glandular fever. Subsequently, he joined the Cambridge Footlights, a dramatic club at the university.
Acting Career
Along with other members of the Footlights, including Ben Elton, Robbie Coltrane, Stephen Fry, and Emma Thompson, Laurie was selected to write and appear on "Alfresco," a new sketch comedy show for Granada Television. It ran for two series. Then, he and Fry began working together as a duo throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Their writing and acting partnership with Fry led to multiple comedic television series jobs, including the "Blackadder" series, the BBC sketch comedy series "A Bit of Fry & Laurie," and "Jeeves and Wooster."
He began to gain larger roles in film in the mid-1990s, with roles in such projects as "Sense and Sensibility" (1995), "101 Dalmatians" (1996), "The Man in the Iron Mask" (1998), and "Stuart Little" (1999). Simultaneously, he remained active on television, appearing on shows such as "Tracey Takes On…" (1996), "Friends" (1998), and "The Bill" (1998). In 2004, he would begin the role that would make him a star, as Dr. House on "House M.D.," which ran until 2012. For "House," Laurie had to use an American accent. Reportedly, his American accent was so convincing that after watching his audition tape, the show's executive producer Bryan Singer (unaware at the time that Laurie is British) said Laurie was the perfect example of the kind of "compelling American actor" he was looking for.
Laurie went on to star as Tom James on the television series "Veep" from 2015 to 2019 and as Eldon Chance in the TV series "Chance" from 2016 to 2017. Beginning in January 2020, he is one of the leads on the HBO show "Avenue 5". In addition to his acting roles on screen, Laurie has appeared in a long list of voice acting roles. He voiced the character Dr. Cockroach in the DreamWorks animated films "Monsters vs. Aliens" (2009), "B.O.B's Big Break" (2009), and "Monsters vs. Aliens: Mutant Pumpkins from Outer Space" (2009). He has 100+ acting credits to his name, including more than 20 awards. Laurie has won Golden Globe Awards for House M.D. in 2006 and 2007 and for The Night Manager in 2017. He also won two Screen Actors Guild Awards for "House."
(Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images)
Other Work
Outside of acting, Laurie has pursued many other kinds of projects. He first began taking piano lessons when he was six years old, and in addition to the piano, he also plays the guitar, drums, harmonica, and saxophone. He is a vocalist and keyboard player for Bank From TV, a charity rock group based in Los Angeles. He released his own blues album "Let Them Talk" with Warner Bros. Records in France on April 18, 2011. It features collaborators like Tom Jones and Irma Thomas, among others. His second album, "Didn't It Rain", was released in the United Kingdom on May 6, 2013. He has shown off his musical talents in some of his acting projects, including several episodes of "House."
Additionally, Laurie is a published author. His first novel, "The Gun Seller," was published in 1996. A sequel to the popular was announced under the title of "The Paper Soldier" and was originally scheduled to be released in September 2009. However, as of June 2020, it has not yet been published and is on hold indefinitely.
Personal Life
In 1989, Laurie married theater administrator Jo Green. Together, they have two children. Stephen Fry was Laurie's best man at his wedding and is also the godfather of his children. In May 2007, Laurie was awarded the honor of Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his services to drama. In 2018, this honor was advanced to a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE). In October 2016, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
