Ben Stiller net worth is estimated to be around $200 million as of 2024. Ben Stiller is an American actor, filmmaker, and comedian born on November 30, 1965. He’s the son of famous comedians Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. Stiller was part of the “Frat Pack,” a group of popular comedic actors. His films have earned over $2.6 billion in North America averaging $79 million per film. Over his career, Stiller has won several awards including an Emmy a Directors Guild Award, a Britannia Award, and a Teen Choice Award.
Stiller started by writing and starring in mockumentaries. His TV show “The Ben Stiller Show” which he produced and hosted from 1990 to 1992 on MTV won him an Emmy for Outstanding Writing. He also appeared in notable TV shows like “Friends,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Arrested Development,” and “Extras,” earning a nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series.
Transitioning to film Stiller made his directorial debut with “Reality Bites.” He directed and starred in several successful movies including “The Cable Guy,” “Zoolander,” “Tropic Thunder,” and “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.” He also starred in popular comedies like “There’s Something About Mary,” “Along Came Polly,” and “Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story.”
He is well-known for his roles in franchise hits like the “Meet the Parents” series, the Madagascar films, and the “Night at the Museum” series. His independent film work includes “Flirting with Disaster,” “The Royal Tenenbaums,” Noah Baumbach’s “Greenberg,” “While We’re Young,” and “The Meyerowitz Stories.”
Ben Stiller has focused on television. He directed the acclaimed Showtime series “Escape at Dannemora” in 2018 earning a Directors Guild Award and two Emmy nominations. In 2022, he directed and executive produced the Apple TV+ series “Severance” which also received two Emmy nominations.
Ben Stiller in Brief
Full Name | Benjamin Edward Stiller |
Date of Birth | November 30, 1965 |
Place of Birth | New York City, New York, USA |
Occupation | Actor, Comedian, Director, Producer |
Height | 5 feet 6 inches (170 cm) |
Spouse | Christine Taylor |
Children | Ella Olivia Stiller, Quinlin Dempsey Stiller |
Net Worth | $200 million |
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What is Ben Stiller Net Worth in 2024?
Ben Stiller is an American actor, filmmaker, and comedian with a net worth of $200 Million as of 2024, according to Celebrity Net Worth. The main source of Ben Stiller’s net worth primarily comes from his successful career in Hollywood as an actor, comedian, producer, and director.
He has starred in numerous box office hits such as “Meet the Parents,” “Zoolander,” and “Night at the Museum.”
Beyond acting, Stiller has earned substantial income from producing and directing films through his production company, Red Hour Productions.
His involvement in various aspects of filmmaking, along with occasional endorsements and voice acting roles, has significantly contributed to his wealth. Overall, it’s his diverse talents and ventures in the entertainment industry that have built his substantial net worth.
Ben Stiller’s Early Life and Education
Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller was born on November 30, 1965, in New York City and grew up on the Upper West Side. His father Jerry Stiller was a comedian and actor from a Jewish family with roots in Poland and Galicia. His mother Anne Meara was an actress and comedian from an Irish Catholic background who converted to Reform Judaism after marrying Jerry. Although they were not very religious they celebrated both Hanukkah and Christmas and Stiller had a Bar Mitzvah.
As a child, Ben Stiller often visited his parents on set including appearances on “The Mike Douglas Show” when he was just six years old. He described his upbringing as unconventional with lots of travel and late nights. His older sister Amy Stiller has acted in many of his films like “Reality Bites” and “Zoolander.” Stiller showed an early interest in filmmaking making Super 8 movies with his sister and friends.
Stiller made his acting debut at age nine on his mother’s TV show “Kate McShane.” In the late 1970s, he performed with NYC’s First All Children’s Theater taking on roles such as Clever Jack in “Clever Jack” and “The Magic Beanstalk.” Inspired by Second City Television he became interested in sketch comedy. During high school, he was also the drummer for the band Capital Punishment which released an album in 1982 and reunited in 2018 for a new EP.
Stiller graduated from the Calhoun School in 1983 and started performing in cabarets. He then studied film at UCLA but left after nine months to return to New York City where he pursued acting classes auditions and sought an agent.
Ben Stiller’s Career
Early work
At around 15, Ben Stiller landed a small role with one line on the soap opera “Guiding Light.” He later admitted he wasn’t happy with his performance. In 1986, he joined the Broadway revival of “The House of Blue Leaves” which won four Tony Awards.
While working on the play, Stiller made a funny mockumentary starring John Mahoney. The crew liked it leading Stiller to create a short film called “The Hustler of Money” a parody of “The Color of Money.” This short caught the eye of “Saturday Night Live” which aired it in 1987 and then hired Stiller as a writer in 1989. Meanwhile, he had a small part in Steven Spielberg’s “Empire of the Sun.”
Stiller worked on “Saturday Night Live” as a performer but left after four episodes due to a disagreement over making more short films. He then created Elvis Stories a mockumentary about Elvis Presley sightings featuring a cast of friends including John Cusack and Mike Myers. This success led him to produce “Going Back” to Brooklyn a music video parody for MTV.
The Ben Stiller Show
MTV liked this work and offered him a 13-episode show “The Ben Stiller Show” which mixed comedy and music videos. Despite its cancellation after one season, it led to another series on Fox in 1992 also titled “The Ben Stiller Show.” This show was well-received won an Emmy and included writers like Judd Apatow.
In the early 90s, Ben Stiller took on minor film roles and directed “Reality Bites” in 1994 which he also co-starred in. The film did well at the box office but had mixed reviews. He appeared in “Heavyweights” and had an uncredited role in “Happy Gilmore.” He then starred in “If Lucy Fell” and “Flirting with Disaster.”
In 1996, Stiller directed “The Cable Guy” featuring Jim Carrey. The film had mixed reviews but connected Stiller with future co-stars Jack Black and Owen Wilson. He also created the character Derek Zoolander for MTV which eventually became a film.
Comedic work
Ben Stiller’s 1998 film “There’s Something About Mary” was a huge hit. That year he also appeared in several dramas and parodied the Backstreet Boys at the Music Video Awards. In 1999, he starred in “Mystery Men” and hosted a segment on WWF RAW is WAR.
Stiller returned to directing with “Heat Vision and Jack” in 2000 which was not picked up by Fox. That same year he starred in “Meet the Parents” which was a major success and led to two sequels. He also made a short film parodying “Mission: Impossible II” for MTV.
In 2001 he directed “Zoolander” starring as the title character which featured many celebrity cameos. He continued working with Owen Wilson in “The Royal Tenenbaums” and had mixed results with films like “Duplex” and “Nobody Knows Anything!”
Ben Stiller appeared in “Starsky & Hutch Dodgeball” and “Meet the Fockers” in 2004. He also voiced a character in “Madagascar” which led to two sequels. In 2006, he starred in “Night at the Museum” which performed well at the box office.
Stiller’s later projects include “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” and he played Michael Cohen on “Saturday Night Live” in 2018-2019.
Frat Pack
Ben Stiller is seen as the leader of the “Frat Pack” a group of actors including Jack Black, Will Ferrell, and Owen Wilson who often collaborate on films. Stiller himself has appeared in 20 of the 35 key Frat Pack films. Despite this, he has dismissed the “Frat Pack” label as “completely fabricated.”
Ben Stiller’s Personal Life
Ben Stiller had relationships with several actresses in his early career including Jeanne Tripplehorn, Calista Flockhart, and Amanda Peet.
In May 2000, Stiller married actress Christine Taylor in a beachside ceremony in Kauai Hawaii. They met in 1999 while filming a TV pilot for Fox. They starred together in movies like “Zoolander,” “Dodgeball,” “Tropic Thunder” and “Zoolander 2” as well as TV shows such as “Arrested Development” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” They both adopted a vegetarian diet for health reasons.
After 17 years of marriage, they separated in 2017 but reconciled during the COVID-19 lockdown. They live in Westchester County New York and Manhattan and have two children: Ella Olivia (born 2002) and Quinlin Dempsey (born 2005). Ella graduated from The Juilliard School with a degree in acting in May 2024.
Philanthropy and Advocacy
In 2001, Ben Stiller competed in “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” and won $32000 for Project ALS. He supported charities like Declare Yourself the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation and the Starlight Starbright Children’s Foundation. In July 2018, he was named a Goodwill Ambassador for UNHCR.
Stiller often impersonates celebrities like Bono and Tom Cruise and cites Robert Klein, George Carlin, and Jimmie Walker as comedy inspirations. He’s a Trekkie and named his production company Red Hour Productions after a time of day from Star Trek.
Politics
Stiller visited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in 2022 calling him his “hero.” He also visited other Ukrainian cities to raise awareness about the refugee crisis. Russia imposed sanctions on Stiller due to his support for Ukraine.
A supporter of the Democratic Party, Stiller has donated to various campaigns including those of John Kerry, Barack Obama, John Edwards, and Hillary Clinton.
Health
Stiller has bipolar disorder and was diagnosed with prostate cancer in June 2014. He was declared cancer-free in September 2014 after surgery.
Ben Stiller’s Awards
Ben Stiller has received numerous awards for his work in entertainment. He won an Emmy for “Outstanding Writing for a Variety Music or Comedy Program” for “The Ben Stiller Show.” He’s also been recognized at the Teen Choice Awards where he won the “Choice Hissy Fit” award for his role in Zoolander and has been nominated twelve times.
At the MTV Movie Awards, Stiller won three times: “Best Fight” for “There’s Something About Mary,” “Best Comedic Performance” for “Meet the Parents,” and “Best Villain” for “DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story.” He also received the MTV Generation Award in 2009 and the “Wannabe Award” at the Kids’ Choice Awards in 2007.
Ben Stiller was honored by Princeton University in 2005 as an honorary member of the Class of 2005. In 2007, he received the Hasty Pudding Man of the Year award from Harvard’s Hasty Pudding Theatricals for his contributions to entertainment. In 2011 he won the BAFTA Britannia Award for Excellence in Comedy.
Stiller was nominated for Best Actor at the 40th Saturn Awards in 2014 for “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.” He won the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Movies for Television and Limited Series in 2019 for Escape at Dannemora.
In 2016, Ben Stiller set a Guinness World Record for the longest selfie stick measuring 8.56 meters at the premiere of “Zoolander 2.”
Ben Stiller Real Estate
In 2016, Ben and Christine paid $15.3 million for a condo in New York City’s West Village. They had sold their old NYC condo in 2013 for $9 million, which was $1 million less than what they paid for it in 2008. They kept their $15.3 million condo until October 2022, when they sold it for $14.5 million.
In 2011, they sold their longtime LA home for $7.3 million to Jason Statham. Jason sold it two years later for $9.2 million to Johnny Galecki from “Big Bang Theory.”
Ben and Christine still own a 14-acre property in Hawaii, bought in 2002 for $8.5 million, and a 33-acre property in Chappaqua, New York, bought in 2010 for $10 million.