After Steven Spielberg divorced his first wife, Amy Irving, in 1989, he was already one of the most famous directors in Hollywood. His net worth by the time he married his second wife, Kate Capshaw, in 1991, was impressive, but so was hers. But now after being in the business for decades, their combined net worth is a whopping $3.5 billion.
The husband and wife met on the set of Spielberg's film Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom when Capshaw was cast as the damsel in distress, Willie Scott. While Spielberg raked in the millions and then the billions throughout his career, Capshaw has had successes on her own too.
Let's break down how they each got their respective net worths and that huge combined wealth they share.
Spielberg Had Humble Beginnings
With how many successful films Spielberg has had over his fifty-plus years in the business, it's hard to picture a time when there wasn't a Spielberg film in the movies. Not even our parents can picture a time when he wasn't such a household name.
The director/writer/ producer got his first experience in showbiz after working on a couple of television shows in the '60s and early '70s, until he directed the TV movie, Duel. Then he directed a small film you might have heard of called Jaws.
After successes with Jaws and then Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Spielberg thought he was experienced enough to take on a James Bond film, but producers shot him down...twice.
That didn't stop him from making an even bigger franchise with his buddy George Lucas. Even then, Spielberg put Bond references into Indiana Jones.
Then throughout the '80s and '90s, Spielberg was extremely busy. He made E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, The Color Purple, Empire of the Sun, Jurassic Park, Schindler's List, and Saving Private Ryan.
Now, Spielberg has directed and produced about 100 films and co-founded the successful production company, DreamWorks Studios.
When Spielberg brings up his Bond rejections all he can say is that they can't afford him now.
His Net Worth Has Been Debated
Spielberg's net worth is in the billions, that much we know. But the exact number has been disputed for some time. Celebrity Net Worth and Bloomberg claim his net worth could be as high as $7 billion while Forbes thinks it's somewhere near $3.6 billion.
While most of his wealth has come from his films, work with DreamWorks, and working with Universal Theme Parks, Forbes claims that a big chunk of his wealth has also stemmed from the sale of DreamWorks Animation to NBC Universal for $3.8 billion.
Celebrity Net Worth also cites his salary at $150 million. He tends to take a relatively small upfront salary of around $10 million in exchange for "backend points on the gross revenue," which would be paid when the film comes out.
He did this on films like Jurassic Park, which earned him $250 million, $150 million for the sequel, and $75 million for the third film, which he didn't even direct.
They also claim he is the second richest celebrity in Hollywood, after Lucas, who also made a similarly genius business move when he decided to keep his low salary in exchange for merchandising rights and rights to any sequels of Star Wars.
Spielberg also gets two and a half percent of all the profits of Star Wars due to a bet he made with Lucas in the '70s, and he's still reaping the benefits.
Capshaw Has Her Own Impressive Net Worth Outside Her Husband's
By herself, Capshaw is worth $100 million. Her career started in 1981 when she was cast on the soap opera The Edge of Night. Three years later she was cast as the female lead in Indian Jones and the Temple of Doom.
She also starred in films like Spacecamp, Power, The Quick and the Dead, Black Rain, Just Cause, and Love Affair.
Before she retired in the early 2000s, she appeared in the TV movies A Girl Thing and Due East. With Spielberg bringing in the billions she was able to afford retirement. Her husband might be worth more than her but she's done alright for herself.
The couple has lived in the same mansion in the Pacific Palisades since they married in 1991, and have bought properties worth millions in other parts of the country since.
But if the pair ever decided to get divorced, Capshaw would get a portion of her husband's wealth that he earned during the time they were married, making her even more wealthy than she is by herself. Let's hope that never happens though.
Capshaw and Spielberg have one of the longest marriages in Hollywood, which is a big deal in showbiz. With their combined net worth they can both enjoy retirement, but the day Steven Spielberg stops making movies will be a dark day.