Reese Witherspoon is easily one of America’s most beloved modern film icons by a significant margin, thanks to her contributions to some of the most memorable movies in the past three decades. By extension, this also makes her one of the wealthiest actresses in the business, especially from the success of theLegally Blonde franchise, which is slated to add a prequel, courtesy of Amazon Prime.
Renowned as one of the most bankable stars in Hollywood, Witherspoon was born on 22 March 1976 in New Orleans, Louisiana, US. She made her acting debut as a teenager in the film The Man in the Moon(1991), which to this day is one of her most critically acclaimed works with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 91 per cent.
The movies Freewayand Fear(both 1996), in which Witherspoon starred alongside Mark Wahlberg and Brooke Shields, respectively, brought her to the attention of major filmmakers.
After a few more films and TV appearances, 1999 proved to be the breakthrough year for Witherspoon. She starred opposite Sarah Michelle Gellar and Ryan Phillippe in the sleeper hit Cruel Intentions(1999) and established herself as an actor of repute with her inspiring performance as Tracy Flick in the black comedy Electionthe same year. For the latter, she earned her first major acting nod — a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy.
International acclaim and A-list status came when Witherspoon starred as Elle Woods in the comedy film Legally Blonde (2001). Based on Amanda Brown’s 2001 novel of the same name, the story revolves around a blonde girl who gets into Harvard Law School to win back her love but ends up realising her own outstanding potential as a lawyer. The film became immensely popular and gave birth to the franchise of the same name, while bolstering other teen films that draw from a similar formula.
Witherspoon continued building on the success of that movie and starred in other similar hits. Although acting has been her main source of income, she built a successful business as a producer as well, which has been adding to her net worth over the last few years.
On the personal front, she was married to her Cruel Intentions co-star Ryan Phillippe from 1999 to 2007. Their two children are Ava Elizabeth Phillippe and Deacon Reese Phillippe. She was later married toJim Toth from 2011 to 2023 and has a son, Tennessee James Toth, with him.
All about Reese Witherspoon: Net worth, salary and business
Net worth of Reese Witherspoon
The first question that comes to mind when we talk about the net worth of Reese Witherspoon is whether she is a billionaire.
Though it has been speculated that Reese Witherspoon has a net worth exceeding USD 1 billion, the actor has clarified that she isn’t.
Speaking to the media at the INBOUND Conference in September 2023, Witherspoon said, “I didn’t. They’re wrong. That’s enormously flattering and if I ever touched the bottom of whatever Oprah’s magic golden boots do, I would be so lucky.”
Then why were the speculations of her becoming a ‘billionaire’ doing the rounds of the media?
It all started in August 2021 when Forbes published a report, stating Witherspoon is the world’s richest actress. At the time, Forbespegged her net worth at USD 400 million.
Two years later, in 2023, the net worth of Reese Witherspoon rose by 10 per cent to reach USD 440 million. As a result, she was placed at No.59 on Forbes’ list of America’s Richest Self-Made Women. The list included the likes of Shonda Rhimes, Taylor Swift, Madonna and Rihanna. Even though many of the names placed above did have acting credentials, it was only Witherspoon whose primary profession was acting. This made her the richest self-made actress in America.
It is noteworthy that Witherspoon had a net worth of USD 200 million in 2020. What led to her net worth doubling over just one year by 2021 was the sale of a majority stake in her production company Hello Sunshine to a Blackstone-backed media company for USD 900 million.
According to Forbes, Witherspoon had around 40 per cent stake in the production company. Following the sale, she retained ownership of at least 18 per cent. The sale of her part of the stake resulted in Witherspoon earning USD 120 million after taxes.
Salary as an actor and other earnings
The Forbesreport noted that Reese Witherspoon is one of the highest-paid celebrities in Hollywood. She was paid USD 1.2 million per episode for producing and starring in Apple TV+’s The Morning Show (2019–present).
Reports suggest that her co-star, Jennifer Aniston, received the same amount. Interestingly, Witherspoon played Jill Green, the sister of Aniston’s iconic character Rachel Green, in two episodes of the unforgettable sitcom Friends in 2000.
Her income from films has varied over the years. However, reports suggest that she currently earns around USD 35 million per movie, including the earnings from acting and production. Her paychecks in the early years of her career hovered between USD 200,000 and USD 250,000. For Sweet Home Alabama, she earned around USD 12.5 million followed by USD 15 million for Legally Blonde 2. Her salary as an actor has remained around USD 15 million on average.
But it is as a producer that Witherspoon boosted her earnings. The box office returns of the films and TV shows made under the banner of her company made substantial contributions to her net worth.
Her first production house was named Type A. It was founded sometime in 2000. In 2012, Witherspoon merged her production house with Bruna Papandrea’s Make Movies banner to form Pacific Standard. It was this banner which produced the Oscar-nominated mega hit Gone Girl(2014) and the critically acclaimed Wild(2014) beside the HBO drama series Big Little Lies(2017–2019).
Gone Girlearned USD 167 million worldwide. Wild, in which Witherspoon played the lead role, earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Actress and earned USD 52 million on a budget of USD 15 million. The first season of Big Little Lieswon a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Limited Series apart from several other accolades.
Witherspoon gained full control of the production house after splitting up with Papandrea in 2016 and made it a subsidiary of Hello Sunshine, a company she co-founded the same year with Seth Rodsky and Otter Media.
The production company’s focus is on telling female-oriented stories through film, television and digital channels. The digital arm includes Reese’s Book Club, a celebrity book club run by Witherspoon through which she introduces books by female writers on the official Instagram account of the platform, which has a following of 2.9 million (as of 16 May 2024).
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The book club has been credited with boosting the sales of the featured books and making authors such as Delia Owens, Celeste Ng and Megan Miranda famous worldwide. According to the August 2021 Forbes report, 42 out of its 50 picks had made it to the New York Times Bestsellers list.
Some of the books were turned into films and TV shows by Witherspoon’s production house. Among them, the most famous is the film Where the Crawdads Sing(2022). Based on Owens’ book of the same name, it earned USD 144.3 million worldwide on a USD 24 million budget.
Besides her production company, Witherspoon also owned a fashion and lifestyle brand, Draper James. The brand was created by her in 2015 and named after her grandparents as a tribute to her Southern roots. It quickly became famous, growing to three retail stores in the US. In 2022, it entered into an exclusive partnership with Kohl’s nationwide and kohls.com.
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In September 2023, private equity group Consortium Brand Partners acquired a 70 per cent stake in the company for an undisclosed amount. Witherspoon remains a partner and board member, ensuring a revenue-generating stream contributing to her net worth.
She has also been the global ambassador of Avon Products since 2007 and serves as the honorary chair of Avon Foundation, the charitable arm of the cosmetics company.
Top box office movies of Reese Witherspoon
According to box office data tracker The Numbers, the total worldwide gross of all the movies that Reese Witherspoon has been part of comes to around USD 2 billion.
Her highest-grossing movie is Sing (2016), an animated film that earned USD 631 million worldwide. It is followed by Sing 2(2021) with USD 404 million and Monsters vs. Aliens(2009) with USD 381 million.
Her highest-grossing live-action film is Walk the Line (2005), which earned USD 187 million at the worldwide box office. Witherspoon played singer June Carter opposite Joaquin Phoenix, who played music icon Johnny Cash. Her performance in the film won her an Academy Award for Best Actress.
Sweet Home Alabama(2002), Four Christmases(2008) and This Means War (2012) are her three other films that have earned over USD 150 million worldwide.
Legally Blonde(2001), the film that made Witherspoon a global star, earned USD 141 million. Its sequel, Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde (2003), earned slightly less at USD 125 million but was still a hit as it was made on a budget of USD 45 million.
Assets owned by Reese Witherspoon
The richest actress in the world by net worth, Reese Witherspoon is expected to lead a lavish lifestyle. Of course, a look at her property portfolio certainly suggests that she indeed lives like a queen.
One of her earliest known residences was a historic 28,330 sq metre ranch in Ojai, California. It was bought by her in 2006 for around USD 4 million. This was where she married Jim Toth. She tried to sell it in 2012 for USD 10 million but was forced to let go of it for only USD 5 million the following year because of a downturn in the market.
She bought a mansion in the Pacific Palisades neighbourhood of Los Angeles for USD 12.7 million in 2014 but sold it in 2020 for USD 17 million — USD 3 million less than its asking price in 2016.
Before selling her Pacific Palisades mansion, Witherspoon bought Zuma Farms in the hills of Malibu in 2019. She spent USD 6.25 million to get it in her portfolio. After selling her Pacific Palisades mansion, she also sold the Malibu property for USD 6.7 million.
Witherspoon realised a substantial value on a property she owned in Brentwood, Los Angeles when she sold it for USD 21.5 million in 2022. Though it was USD 4 million less than the asking price, the property was originally purchased by her for only USD 15.8 million two years ago.
Witherspoon holds multiple properties in Nashville, Tennessee, which is her hometown. These include a 16,187 sq-metre property she purchased in 2022 for USD 18 million. The property has a 1,394 sq-metre mansion, a swimming pool, a tennis court and a separate guest house on the grounds. She also owned another mansion in Nashville, which she bought for USD 3.7 million in 2018 and sold for USD 7.3 million in 2022.
Outside of the US, Witherspoon owns a multi-million-dollar mansion in the Bahamas, details of which are unclear.
(Hero and Featured images: Reese Witherspoon/@reesewitherspoon/Instagram)
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
– Is Reese Witherspoon a billionaire now?
No, Reese Witherspoon is not a billionaire by net worth. She has categorically refuted the rumours that her fortune is more than USD 1 billion, as some speculate.
– Why is Reese Witherspoon so rich?
Reese Witherspoon has been performing since her teenage years. She is an accomplished actor who has delivered a string of box-office hits over the last two decades. While her salary as an actor is a major contributor to her net worth, it is also her successful production house which has helped her earn several millions of dollars more.
– How much is Reese Witherspoon’s husband worth?
Jim Toth, her ex-husband, is reportedly worth USD 20 million, which is roughly around 4.5 per cent of the net worth of Reese Witherspoon.
