What is Lauren Sánchez's Net Worth?
Lauren Sánchez is an American news anchor and entertainment reporter who has a net worth of $30 million. In 2019, Sánchez made headlines after starting a relationship with Jeff Bezos. Previously, Lauren was married to Patrick Whitesell. Lauren married Patrick in 2005. The couple reportedly separated sometime in 2018. Patrick is one of the two primary partners in the agency WME which owns the UFC as well as agencies IMG and Endeavor. Patrick Whitesell's net worth is north of $300 million thanks to his ownership stake in the agency.
Outside of her romantic life, Lauren has pursued a successful career as a news anchor, TV personality, and occasional actress. She is perhaps best known for her various appearances on the show "The View." In addition, she was formerly the co-host of "Good Day LA." Many entertainment fans may also recognize her as an anchor and correspondent for "Extra." Sánchez has appeared on a number of other shows in the past as well, such as "Larry King Live," "The Joy Behar Show," and "Showbiz Tonight."
Sánchez has frequently been referred to as one of the most beautiful women in the entertainment world, with particular attention being paid to her body. Outside of her various hosting and anchoring responsibilities, Lauren has been fairly active behind the camera. In 2016, she founded her own aerial film and production company called Black Ops Aviation. Sánchez is a licensed helicopter pilot.
Early Life
Lauren Wendy Sánchez was born on December 19th of 1969 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. At an early age, Lauren developed a keen interest in aviation, mostly due to her father's job as a flight instructor. She spent much of her childhood hanging around in hangar bays, watching various pilots and aircraft. Her father's hobby was rebuilding old planes, and she became involved with this passion as a young girl.
Although she was born in New Mexico, Lauren later attended El Camino College in California. During her time at university, she became closely involved in journalism, contributing to the college newspaper and eventually receiving a scholarship to attend the University of Southern California. She then spent her days studying as a communications major while interning at a local news station. Sánchez eventually graduated with a degree in communications.
Career
After interning at a local news station in Los Angeles, Lauren graduated from college and immediately began working as an anchor and reporter at a CBS affiliate in Phoenix. Following this, she landed a job as a reporter with "Extra," the well-known entertainment show. Sánchez changed course once again at this point, shifting her attention to the world of sports journalism and gaining employment with Fox Sports Net. During this period, she earned her second Emmy nomination while anchoring for shows like "Going Deep." She also served as a reporter for FSN's "Best Damn Sports Show Period" during this time.
By the late 90s, Sánchez was ready to return to the mainstream news world, and she earned an Emmy Award for her work with UPN 13 News. During this period, she appeared on a number of shows, perhaps most notably "The View." She ultimately finished as runner-up in this program. In 2005, her career took another major step forward when she became the new host of "So You Think You Can Dance." However, she left the show after a single season to spend more time with her first child.
Over the next few years, Sánchez became known for appearing on shows like "Good Day LA" and "Extra." In addition, Lauren has booked a considerable number of acting roles in movies like "Fight Club," "The Day After Tomorrow," "The Longest Yard," and "Ted 2." It should be noted that in every single one of these roles, she has played a news reporter of some kind.
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Relationships
Lauren's first notable relationship was with former NFL tight end, Tony Gonzalez. This relationship resulted in Lauren's first child. However, Gonzalez and Sánchez eventually went their separate ways, and Lauren married Patrick Whitesell in 2005. Whitesell is known for being a notable Hollywood agent and a founding partner of Endeavor Holdings, Inc. In addition, he is one of the two primary partners in another agency called WME. Both Endeavor and WME own a considerable portion of the UFC, which has proven to be a massively popular company. Due to the success of the UFC, Patrick's net worth is over $300 million.
Sánchez and Whitesell had two children together, the latter of whom was born in 2008. However, this marriage eventually ended in divorce. At around this time, Lauren was reported to be having an affair with Jeff Bezos. After the divorce was finalized, Sánchez officially became Bezos' girlfriend.
(Photo by Daniele Venturelli/Getty Images)
Jeff Bezos
On January 9, 2019, Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos announced that he and his wife of 25 years, MacKenzie, had separated and were filing for divorce. Later that same day it was reported that Lauren may be the cause of Jeff and MacKenzie's breakup. Sources reported that Bezos and Sanchez have been secretly dating for perhaps as long as a year. Bezos even hired Sanchez, who is a helicopter pilot, to work at his space exploration company Blue Origin to film aerial shots. Jeff apparently made his divorce announcement after learning that the Trump affiliated National Enquirer was about to release a bombshell expose on the couple including photos.
Controversy
In 2019, Jeff Bezos claimed that publisher American Media, Inc. had attempted to blackmail and extort him due to his alleged affair with Sánchez. He laid out the details of this incident in a much-publicized blog post, although no criminal or civil charges were filed.
Real Estate
In 2006, Patrick and Lauren two paid $11 million for a Beverly Hills mansion. In 2017, they paid $4.5 million for the vacant lot next door to expand their yard. That lot was previously owned by the late director Tony Scott who bought in 2003 for $800,000. Tony's widow sold the lot for $2.85 million to a real estate developer who then sold it to the Whitesell/Sanchezes for $4.8 million. That's a $2 million profit for holding the lot for ONE WEEK. Patrick and Lauren must have really wanted to own it!
In November of 2021, it was reported that Bezos and Sánchez had purchased a "sprawling" manor in Hawaii together. Situated along the coastline of Maui on La Perouse Bay, the residence was previously owned by the co-founder of a major energy company. The private transaction was completed between Bezos and this individual for $78 million. The home itself sits on a 14-acre lot, and the main residence spans 4,500 square feet. There is also a separate guesthouse that spans 1,700 square feet. In addition, the property boasts a 700-square-foot pool. The main residence features an outdoor kitchen, a teak deck, a waterfall, and stunning views of the ocean. Another highlight is a private white sand beach.
