| Real Name: | Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger |
| Birthday: | July 30, 1947 |
| Net Worth: | $400 million |
| Height: | 188 cm |
| Occupation: | Austrian-American Actor, Businessman, Former Politician, Professional Bodybuilder |
It is safe to say Arnold Schwarzenegger earned a lot in his lifetime. Born in a small village in Austria, he is now one of the most famous people in America. How did he get there?
From bodybuilder to an actor to a politician, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s estimated assets are over $400 million as of June 2020. At the peak of his career, he earned more than $30 million per movie. Let’s take a look at his career and earnings.
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Career Ups and Downs
Arnold is from Austria. Born in the small village of Thal, Austria, his father was the local chief of police. In 1960, at the age of 13, his soccer coach took him to the local gym. There, he introduced the young boy to the world of bodybuilding. His father wanted him to join the police, and his mother wanted him to attend a trade school. But Arnold had other plans.
What got Arnold into bodybuilding was an idea. He learned that winners of the Mr. Universe competition had successful acting careers in Hollywood. So, he set his sight on “becoming the most famous professional bodybuilder in the world”. And did it.
In 1965, he won the Junior Mr. Europe contest. And in 1967, at the age of 20, Arnold won Mr. Universe becoming the youngest person to do it. He won the title three more times.
In September 1968 he moved to America with $27,000 to his name. Schwarzenegger was 21 years at the time. He saved the money from winning competitions. After arriving in Hollywood, he started making small investments in real estate. By the time he was 25 years old, Arnold was a real estate millionaire. And that was before he was a famous actor.
Arnold is still in the real estate business. He owns a vast real estate portfolio of commercial properties in Southern California. Today, his portfolio’s estimated assets is more than $100 million. And that is without his personal home.
In 1970, Schwarci won his first Mr. Olympia title. During his career, he earned a couple of more. After the first Mr. Olympia, Arnold made it to the movies. He got cast in the feature movie Hercules in New York. He then appeared in Conan the Barbarian. But everything changed with the 1984 blockbuster, The Terminator. For his work on the first Terminator movie, Arnold earned $75,000.
In the 1980s, Arnold played in some comedic movies like The Twins with Danny DeVito and Kindergarten Cop. And in the 1990s, he got back to Terminator. In total, Arnold has 74 credits as an actor. Fun fact: he won a Golden Globe for Best Acting Debut in a Motion Picture for his first big role in Stay Hungry. Since then, he doesn’t have any significant awards.
Arnold retired from acting after winning Governor of California election. He returned to acting in January 2011 after leaving office. His most famous role after coming back is The Expendables. He also returned to the Terminator franchise with Terminator Dark Fate in 2019.
Net Worth
Can you guess the movie that brought the biggest paycheck? It is Twins. The comedy featuring Danny DeVito earned Arnold a whopping $35 or $40 million. Before the movie, Arnold, Danny, and director Ivan Reitman agreed to take zero salary from the studio. In exchange, they asked 40% of the movie rights, which is 13.33% each. The movie earned $215 million worldwide at the box office alone.
In an interview in March 2014, Arnold said that he earned more from Twins than from any other movie. And that is the same for DeVito and Reitman as well. Let’s assume they made between $35 and $40 million for the movie. Adjust it for inflation and that is between $70 and $80 million today. Here are some other notable salaries by Arnold.
Fun fact: He had only 700 words of dialogue in Terminator 2, equating to $21,429 per spoken word.
- $2 million for Commando
- $11 million for Total Recall
- $12 million for Terminator 2 and Kindergarten Cop
- $15 million for True Lies, Junior, and Last Action Hero
- $20 million for Jingle All the Way and Erase
- $25 million for Batman & Robin, Collateral Damage, and The 6th Day
- $29 million and 20% royalty on gross profits for Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s fortune is more than $400 million as of June 2020. It is no surprise how he earned it with this type of salary.
Political Career
Arnold Schwarzenegger is a long-time member of the Republican Party. In a convention in 2004, he made a speech about why he supports the party. And in 2003, he shocked the nation on the Tonight Show. He announced he will run for Governor of California. And he won it. He served as Governor from 2003 to 2011.
In the run-up to the election, he released his financial disclosure. In 2003, his Arnold Schwarzenegger fortune was $200 million. He runs all movie income through an LLC called Oak Productions Inc. in Santa Monica, California. He said that his run as Governor cost him more than $200 million in potential movie wages.
Personal Life
Arnold got married to Maria Shriver, a niece of President John F. Kennedy in 1986. They have four children together. Their relationship ended in 2011. News broke out that Arnold fathered a son years earlier with the family’s housekeeper. The divorce took six years to settle.
In September 2015, Arnold replaced Donald Trump as host of The New Celebrity Apprentice. The show aired during the 2016-2017 TV season. And in the show, Arnold used phrases such as “you’re terminated” and similar quotes from The Terminator and Predator.
In March 2017, following criticism from Trump, Arnold announced he will not return for another season. In January of the same year, Arnold posted a funny idea on Instagram. He said “Hey Donald, why don’t we switch jobs? You take over TV because you are an expert in ratings, and I take over your job. This way, people can finally sleep comfortably again”.
