What Is Julia Roberts' Net Worth and Salary?
Julia Roberts is a highly acclaimed American actress who has a net worth of $250 million. Julia Roberts has long been one of the highest-paid celebrities in the world. Between film salaries and endorsements, she easily earns $20-$40 million per year.
After first gaining notice in supporting or co-starring roles in films like, "Mystic Pizza" and "Satisfaction," she became an actress to watch with her Oscar-nominated performance in "Steel Magnolias." Then, in 1990, she became a massive breakout star. Her performance opposite Richard Gere in "Pretty Woman" catapulted her career into the stratosphere, and for the next decade, she was seemingly in a new hit movie every year. Between 1990 and 2000, Julia appeared in 21 films, including "Flatliners," "Hook," "Dying Young," "Sleeping with the Enemy," "The Pelican Brief," "Michael Collins," "Conspiracy Theory," "My Best Friend's Wedding," "Runaway Bride," "Notting Hill," and "Erin Brokovich," for which she won an Oscar. She has also appeared in such projects as "Ocean's Eleven," and its sequels, "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind," "Mona Lisa Smile," "Closer," "Fireflies in the Garden," and "Eat Pray Love".
Since 2009, Julia has served as the global brand ambassador for Lancome Paris. She earns $10 million per year from this one endorsement contract.
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Film Salaries
Julia Roberts, one of Hollywood's brightest stars, has commanded impressive salaries throughout her illustrious career, reflecting her bankability and star power. Starting with her early roles, Roberts was paid $50,000 for "Mystic Pizza" and saw a significant leap to $300,000 for her iconic role in "Pretty Woman." In "Steel Magnolias," she earned $90,000, and her salary further increased to $500,000 for "Flatliners." Although she took a scale payment of just $4,000 for a "Law & Order" appearance, her film roles in "Sleeping with the Enemy" and "Dying Young" netted her $1 million and $3 million, respectively.
During the 1990s, her earnings skyrocketed, with films like "Hook" ($7 million), "The Pelican Brief" ($8 million), "Mary Reilly" ($8.5 million), "Conspiracy Theory" ($11 million), "My Best Friend's Wedding" ($12 million), "Notting Hill" ($15 million), "Runaway Bride" ($17 million), and "Erin Brockovich" ($20 million).
In "The Mexican," she again earned $20 million, matched by another $20 million for "Closer." Her role in "Ocean's Eleven" brought in $10 million, while its sequel "Ocean's Twelve" netted her $5 million. "America's Sweethearts" and "Duplicity" paid her $15 million each. For "Mona Lisa Smile," she commanded a whopping $25 million. Roberts took home $10 million for "Eat Pray Love" and a unique payment structure for "Valentine's Day," where she got 3% of the gross, amounting to $3 million. Lastly, for "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind," she was paid on scale at $250,000.
For the Garry Marshall-directed 2016 film "Mother's Day," Julia earned $3 million. More impressively, she earned that amount for three days of work. That worked out to $750,000 per day of work. Perhaps even more impressively, when she starred in Garry Marshall's 2010 film "Valentine's Day," she earned $3 million for what turned out to be SIX MINUTES of screen time.
Julia Roberts Film Salaries:
- Mystic Pizza (1988): $50,000
- Steel Magnolias (1989): $90,000
- Pretty Woman (1990): $300,000
- Flatliners (1990): $500,000
- Sleeping with the Enemy (1991): $1 million
- Dying Young (1991): $3 million
- Hook (1991): $7 million
- The Pelican Brief (1993): $8 million
- Mary Reilly (1996): $8.5 million
- Conspiracy Theory (1997): $11 million
- My Best Friend's Wedding (1997): $12 million
- Notting Hill (1999): $15 million
- Runaway Bride (1999): $17 million
- Erin Brockovich (2000): $20 million
- The Mexican (2001): $20 million
- America's Sweethearts (2001): $15 million
- Ocean's Eleven (2001): $10 million
- Mona Lisa Smile (2003): $25 million
- Closer (2004): $20 million
- Ocean's Twelve (2004): $5 million
- Duplicity (2009): $15 million
- Valentine's Day (2010): $3 million for six minutes of screen time
- Eat Pray Love (2010): $10 million
- Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (Unspecified Year): $250,000 on scale
- Mother's Day (2016): $3 million for three days of work
The above films alone add up to $229,690,000 in earnings.
Early Life
Julia Fiona Roberts was born on October 28, 1967, in Smyrna, Georgia. Her parents, Betty Lou Bredemus and Walter Grady Roberts, met while performing in theatrical productions for the armed forces and co-founded the Atlanta Actors and Writers Workshop. They also ran a children's acting school in Decatur, Georgia, which counted the children of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King among their pupils.
After her parents' divorce was finalized in early 1972, Roberts moved to Smyrna, Georgia, where she graduated from Campbell High School. After graduation, she briefly attended Georgia State University before moving to New York City to pursue an acting career. Once in the city, she signed with Click Modeling Agency and enrolled in acting classes.
Julia's older brother, Eric Roberts, and niece, Emma Roberts, are also actors, although she was estranged from Eric for several years until 2004.
Acting Career
Julia Roberts' first big-screen appearance came in 1988 with the film "Satisfaction," which starred Liam Neeson and Justine Bateman. Other early projects of hers include appearances in the series "Crime Story" in a February 1987 episode, the independent film "Mystic Pizza" (1988), and a supporting role in "Steel Magnolias" (1989). For her performance in "Steel Magnolias," she received her first Academy Award nomination (for Best Supporting Actress) and first Golden Globe win (for Motion Picture Best Supporting Actress).
Her breakout role came in 1990 with a starring role opposite Richard Gere in "Pretty Woman." Her performance as an assertive freelance sex worker earned her a second Oscar nomination, this time for Best Actress, and her second Golden Globe win for Motion Picture Best Actress (Musical or Comedy). "Pretty Woman" achieved the highest number of ticket sales in the United States at the time for a romantic comedy, making $463.4 million worldwide. Julia received a fee of $300,000 for the film. Other notable projects of hers during the 1990s include "Flatliners" (1990), "Sleeping with the Enemy" (1991), "The Pelican Brief" (1993), "My Best Friend's Wedding" (1997) and "Notting Hill" (1999).
Roberts played real-life environmental activist Erin Brockovich in the film "Erin Brockovich" (2000), receiving $20 million for her work on the film. The film was a critical and commercial hit, making $256.3 million worldwide, and Roberts won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role. Thanks to her A-list status, she was one of the highest-paid actresses in the 1990s and was the first actress to make "The Hollywood Reporter's" list of the 50 most influential women in show business since the list's establishment in 1992.
Other notable films by Roberts include "Ocean's Eleven" (2001), "Ocean's Twelve" (2004), "Charlie Wilson's War" (2007), "Valentine's Day" (2010), "Eat Pray Love" (2010), "August: Osage County" (2013), "Money Monster" (2016) and "Wonder" (2017). More recently, she has appeared in the film "Ben Is Back" (2018) and her first regular television project in the series "Homecoming." In 2022, Roberts reunited with George Clooney for the romantic comedy "Ticket to Paradise," and in 2023, she starred in the movie "Leave the World Behind" based on the novel of the same name by Rumaan Alam.
For her 2003 film "Mona Lisa Smile," Roberts received a fee of $25 million, which was unheard of at the time. Her films have collectively brought in over $3.9 billion at the global box office, which means she is one of the most bankable actresses in Hollywood.
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Other Projects
Along with her sister, Lisa Roberts Gillan, and Marisa Yeres Gill, Roberts runs the production company Red Om Films. Through Red Om, she served as an executive producer of the first four films in the "American Girl" film series that were released between 2004 and 2008. She is an active supporter of several charities, most notably UNICEF. She became a spokeswoman for Earth Biofuels and a chair on the company's Advisory Board. She also has worked as a voice talent, narrating the 2000 documentary "Silent Angels," which is about the neurodevelopmental disorder Rett syndrome, and voicing Mother Nature in a 2014 short film for "Conservation International," which was intended to raise awareness about climate change.
Endorsements
In 2006, Julia earned $6 million to appear in a number of ad campaigns for the clothing brand Gianfranco Ferre.
In 2010, she signed a five-year, $50 million contract to be the global brand ambassador for cosmetics brand Lancome Paris. She has renewed that contract several times.
Personal Life
Roberts has had a number of high-profile relationships with actors like Jason Patric, Liam Neeson, Kiefer Sutherland, Dylan McDermott, and Matthew Perry. She married country singer Lyle Lovett on June 25, 1993. They separated in March 1995, divorcing soon after.
She met cameraman Daniel Moder on the set of her 2000 film "The Mexican." At the time, she was dating actor Benjamin Bratt, and Moder was still married to Vera Steimberg. After Moder's divorce from Steimberg was finalized, he and Roberts wed on July 4, 2002, in Taos, New Mexico. Together, Roberts and Moder have three children.
In March 2012, Roberts famously insured her smile for $30 million.
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Real Estate
In 2003, Julia paid $6.4 million for a seaside Malibu property. She proceeded to tear down the existing 6,000-square-foot house and built an eco-friendly solar-powered mansion in its place. She owns another estate in Malibu, for which she paid $6.84 million. She also owns a $30 million mansion in nearby Los Angeles.
In 2010, Julia paid $4 million for a co-op in NYC's West Village. She owns a ranch in Taos, New Mexico, which was the location of her wedding to Daniel Moder.
In 2011, Julia paid $13.37 million for a property along Kauai's Hanalei Bay in Hawaii. She listed the home for sale in April 2015 for a little under $30 million. In November 2016, she sold the property for $16.2 million. The buyer was Mike Fleiss, who earned his fortune as the creator of the "The Bachelor/Bachelorette" reality television franchise.
In 2020, Roberts and Moder paid $8.3 million for a Victorian-style home in San Francisco. They sold this property in October 2023 for $11.25 million. Below is a video tour.
