Billy Bob Thornton Net Worth

Billy Bob Thornton is an American actor, musician, screenwriter, film director, and producer. Thornton came from a humble beginning before he became the Hollywood star that he is today; when Thornton moved to Los Angeles in the early 1980s, he had to work as a waiter, fast food manager, telemarketer, and offshore wind farmer just to make ends meet.

Thornton began his career as a musician while working as a waiter in L.A. he met director and screenwriter Billy Wilder one day by sheer chance and took up his advice; Thornton’s career in the show business had catapulted. Thornton’s big break came when he co-wrote and starred in the 1992 thriller One False Move — he had since cemented himself in Hollywood.

Thornton won numerous awards in his four decades in show business, including the Academy award, Golden Globes, Oscar, and many other accolades. In October 2004, he was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Thornton values his privacy; when he’s not working, he prefers to stay away from the spotlight, hence his distaste for celebrity culture.

What is Billy Bob Thornton’s Net Worth?

Billy Bob Thornton’s primary source of earnings is from appearances in films and television series. One of Thornton’s recent works was starring in the legal drama TV series Goliath, where he reportedly earned $350,000 per episode. At the peak of his career, Thornton made an average $12 to $18 million per year. As of September 2022, Billy Bob Thornton has a net worth in the neighborhood of US$45 million.

Who is Billy Bob Thornton?

Billy Bob Thornton’s real name is William Robert Thornton. He was born on August 4th, 1955 in Hot Springs, Arkansas. His father, William Raymond “Billy Ray” Thornton, taught history in high school and a basketball coach — he passed away when Billy was 18. His mother, Virginia Roberta, was a psychic. Billy is the oldest of three siblings, his younger brothers are Jimmy Don and John David — the Thornton brothers were raised in a Methodist household.

Early Life

Billy Bob Thornton had a rough childhood, it would be fair to say he lived in poverty — they lived in a shack with no electricity or plumbing, and frequently moved from place to place within the state of Arkansas.

Thornton was a skilled baseball player in high school, he wanted to become a professional baseball player when he trialed out for the Kansas City Royals in the Major Baseball League. Unfortunately, injury hindered his chances. After a short stint laying asphalt for the Arkansas State Transportation Department, he enrolled at the Henderson State University to study psychology, longing to pursue a career in acting; Thornton dropped out just after two semesters and decided to move to Los Angeles.

Thornton devised a plan with his childhood friend, Tom Epperson, that they’ll pursue a career in the entertainment industry. Upon arriving in LA in the mid-1980s, Thornton got turned down in most auditions he went to; to make ends meet, he worked at fast-food restaurants and as a telemarketer. Thornton met director and screenwriter Billy Wilder one day while was a waiter at a professional function; he had the opportunity to have a one-on-one conversation — the advice given by Wilder to Thornton was not to be ambitious on becoming an actor but rather make a name as a screenwriter — Thornton heeded this advice to heart.

Career

Throughout the 1980s, Billy Bob Thornton got cast in minor roles in film and television, his big break came in 1992 when he co-wrote and starred in the crime-thriller film One False Move, playing the role of the villain — the movie paved the foundation for Thornton into Hollywood. The success led Thornton to land supporting roles in numerous films, including Indecent Proposal (1993), On Deadly Ground, Bound by Honor (1993), Tombstone (1993), and On Deadly Ground (1994).

The significant turning point in Thornton’s career was in the 1996 indie film Sling Blade, in which he wrote, directed, and starred. The film was a huge success, it was widely praised and received international acclaim. The film had a microscopic budget of $1.2 million and ended up raking in a whopping $34.1 million at the box office, and bagged him an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. At this stage, Thornton had established himself as a genuine celebrity and was flooded with offers.

In innumerable films, Billy Bob Thornton appeared; the most notables ones are Armageddon (1998), A Simple Plan (1998), Monster’s Ball (2001), Bandits (2001), The Man Who Wasn’t There (2001), and Bad Santa (2003). The Michael Bay Armageddon had a budget of $140 million and impressively raked in $553.7 million at the box office — this hasn’t yet accounted for sales of DVDs and other syndications.

In terms of television roles, Thornton appeared in the comedy-crime-drama series Fargo, the lead role in Goliath, which ran for 4 seasons from 2016 to 2019 in a total of 32 episodes, in which Thornton reportedly earned $350,000 per episode. The TV roles earned him numerous accolades, including Golden Globe and Emmy nominations. For nearly 40 years in the film industry, Billy Bob Thornton appeared in at least 60 films, and Thornton never made it a secret that he disliked being typecast.

Music Career

Billy Bob Thornton was a musician before becoming an actor. He was the drummer of a blues rock band called Tres Hombres. As a solo artist, Thornton has released four solo albums: Private Radio (2001), The Edge of the World (2003), Hobo (2005), and Beautiful Door (2007). In addition, Thornton is the vocalist of the rock band Boxmasters.

Personal Life

Billy Bob Thornton has been married six times, divorced five times, and has four children by three women.

Thornton’s first wife was Melissa Lee Gatlin, who married in 1978 and divorced in 1980; she filed for the divorce and cited it was because of Thornton’s infidelity — they had one child together. His next two marriages to actress Toni Lawrence and Cynda Williams lasted only two years, from 1986 to 1988 and 1990 to 1992, respectively.

In 1993, Thornton married Playboy model Pietra Dawn Cherniak, they divorced in 1997, and Thornton fathered two children. Cherniak accused Thornton of domestic violence. Thornton dated actress Laura Dern for two years, from 1997 to 1999, he was engaged to be married, but for some reason, they parted ways. Out of all his wives, his marriage to Angelina Jolie in 2000 was the most controversial one — perhaps it was the 20 years age gap or the provocative physical appearance of Jolie, and she was at the peak of her fame in that period when she starred in the Tomb Raider series. The public frenzy and scrutiny somewhat overwhelmed the couple; they separated in 2002 and finalized their divorce in 2003. In 2014, Billy Bob married his sixth wife, makeup effects crew member Connie Angland whom he had dated for 11 years.

Real Estate

In 2000, Billy Bob Thorton and his ex-wife Angelina Jolie bought a property in Beverly Hills from Slash, the guitarist from Guns N’ Roses, for $3.7 million. In 2013, Thornton made a profit of $4.3 million by selling the property for $8 million.

In 2008, Thornton purchased a property in the Point Dume neighborhood of Malibu for $2.35 million. One usually expects property would appreciate in value with time, but this is not the case for Thornton, he made a loss of $250,000 as the best offer he received was $2.1 million.

Billy Bob Thornton FAQs