Brendan Fraser could surely use some of those treasures from The Mummy right about now. Celebrities might be some of the richest people in the world, but even they go broke sometimes. While most celebrities tend to squander their fortunes in a reckless manner, other celebrities go broke from more serious things. Mel Gibson, for example, got blacklisted (sort of) for some questionable behavior and lost half his net worth.
Fraser didn't exactly get blacklisted either, but a scandal did have a hand in depreciating the number of roles he got, and after health problems, and other legal struggles that forced him to quit acting, his net worth didn't look so pretty. During his prime time as one of the biggest actors in the business, Fraser used to be worth $45 million, well that has since been chopped in half following a slew of health issues that led the actor to step away from acting for quite some time. Additionally, his 2008 divorce has cost him tens of thousands per month, and without his hefty paychecks he once received, Fraser had to request to lower his alimony. Things only got worse after Brendan Fraser was caught up in a number of lawsuits, one of which against the Hollywood Forum Press Association.
Updated on February 13th, 2023 by Abigail Thomas: With that in the past, however, Fraser has made an incredible comeback to Hollywood. His movie The Whale was critically acclaimed and he is now nominated for the Oscar Award for Best Actor. The film did require him to gain a significant amount of weight, which caused some fans to worry for his health and mental state. Despite this, Fraser certainly returned to acting in a big way, and fans are looking forward to his upcoming projects.
He Didn't Really Fall Off The Face Of The Earth
Despite some press saying his career had taken a "nose-dive," Fraser never technically stopped acting. If you take a look at his IMDb page, he had at least one credit for every year since making it onto the scene in 1991. Just because he quit making high-profile action films like The Mummy for a bit, doesn't mean he didn't act at all.
Tribeca Film called him "the movie star that Hollywood forgot" in 2014, but he had five credits the year before. They just weren't notable credits, certainly not the kind of credits that got him famous in the '90s. There was a couple of reasons for these lower-profile roles though.
One of the biggest reasons was his health had declined heavily by the time Fraser made the third Mummy film. He told GQ that he was virtually "put together with tape and ice...I was building an exoskeleton for myself daily."
Then came several surgeries. "I needed a laminectomy. And the lumbar didn't take, so they had to do it again a year later." He also wound up having a knee replaced, a couple of surgeries on his back, and vocal chord surgery as well. To say his action fighting days were over was an understatement, but with fewer action films came fewer paychecks and less money.
During this time Fraser was "going through things that mold and shape you in ways that you're not ready for until you go through them," ultimately putting a halt to the character he was used to playing.
He Couldn't Afford To Pay Alimony
On top of the medical issues, Fraser also started facing financial issues. TMZ reported back in 2013 that Fraser had filed documents asking for a lower alimony payment, which was $50,000 a month, to ex-wife Afton Smith.
They'd met in 1993 at a barbeque thrown by Winona Ryder, married in 1998, had three kids, and divorced by 2009. He claimed that since he wasn't making blockbusters anymore due to his health, he, therefore, didn't have the money to continue his alimony payments, which was, in fact, true!
Fraser couldn't make the payments because he was losing $87,320.01 a month due to child support ($25,000/month), his mortgages (over $5,000), property tax (over $6,000), and income tax ($34,132.52). Oh, and we can't forget his gardening expenses that took a $5,200 chunk. He was roughly earning $205,704.04 a month, but had to pay about $112,803.25 in "professional expenses."
Ultimately, this left Fraser with about $92,900.79 a month, which isn't bad per se, but low enough for him to lose half his net worth. He also reportedly received an additional "$25,800.28 from interest" a month.
There was also the back and forth legal battle between himself and his ex-wife. According to court documents and testimonies, Fraser cited that he expected to make $0 in 2009, the same year their divorce was finalized.
In 2013, however, Smith called him out on this, allegedly accusing him of fraud because they'd found out that he had over $20 million in assets and had allegedly concealed $9 million in movie contracts. Things weren't looking good.
He May Have Gotten Fewer Roles Because Of An Awkward Scandal
One of the reasons Fraser's career took a nose-dive according to him, is because of a scandal involving him and a Hollywood executive. During a Golden Globes luncheon organized by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association in 2003, Fraser said he was assaulted by Philip Berk, an ex-president of the HFPA.
Berk allegedly pinched Fraser's butt, but Fraser said it got even more appropriate than that. The experience left him mentally scarred for a while. He kept silent for years and found himself retreating from mainstream Hollywood. When he wanted to return he wondered if he'd been blacklisted. He blames the Berk incident as the main cause of his fewer roles.
"I don't know if [the incident] curried disfavor with the group, with the HFPA," he said, "but the silence was deafening."
More legal battles within the business cropped up too. Fraser was set to play the titular role of William Tell, but when it didn't get picked up Fraser sued producer Todd Moyer in 2012 for "breach of contract and fraud," basically because they promised him the movie would start filming when it wasn't being picked up, and he didn't get his upfront money.
In return, Moyer sued Fraser over "TWO physical attacks" where Fraser was allegedly intoxicated. Both legal battles fizzled out without any coverage revealing their outcomes but we can guess that both took a toll on Fraser's wealth.
How Much Is Brendan Fraser Worth Today?
Although Brendan Fraser has seen some tough times within his career and personal life, the actor is still worth a whopping $20 million! While his net worth did get split in half, the star is not only rolling in dough, but he's also expected to make more now that he's back in the acting scene.
Fraser was cast in the CW's Professionals and has an ongoing role in the television show Doom Patrol. He played the lead role in the 2022 film The Whale, for which he has been nominated for the Oscar Award for Best Actor. The actor continues to land roles, especially now that his health is back in order, which will only increase his net worth moving forward.
During an interview, Brendan even got emotional when discussing the publics desire to have him back on-screen. With fans rooting for Fraser and his comeback, it's clear that the actor will be just fine!