Dustin Hoffman Net Worth

Dustin Hoffman is an American actor best known for his roles in The Graduate, Tootsie, and Rain Man. Having started his acting career in Hollywood in the early 1960s, Hoffman has more than 80 acting credits to his name.

However, it’s not just his work on the big screen that has contributed to his massive success. Dustin Hoffman’s net worth has also been impacted by his producing, directing, brand endorsement deals, and real estate investments. Read on to discover Hoffman’s most successful projects and trace his career from the beginning until now.

Early Life

Dustin Lee Hoffman was born in Los Angeles, California, on August 8, 1937. His father, Harry Hoffman, was a set decorator at Columbia Pictures and a furniture salesman. His mother’s name was Lillian Gold.

Hoffman has an older brother named Ronald. Hoffman comes from a Jewish family, but he did not have a religious upbringing. After graduating from Los Angeles High School, he attended Santa Monica College to study medicine. However, he dropped out after a year to pursue a career in acting and went on to join the Pasadena Playhouse.

Acting Career

In the one year, he was in college, Hoffman took an acting course, which spurred an avid interest in acting. However, he dropped his initial goal of becoming a classical pianist after realizing he didn’t have the talent for it. Instead, he struggled to find roles while working odd jobs to make a living.

Hoffman’s first acting projects were in a theater. He played his first role in a production of the Pasadena Playhouse, where he would meet and work with Gene Hackman. The two would later live together in New York City, along with Robert Duvall, where they continued to look for acting gigs.

In 1960, Hoffman snagged a role in an off-Broadway play, which led to his Broadway debut the following year. It was a small part of the production A Cook for Mr. General. Hoffman continued playing parts in off-Broadway productions all through the 1960s. In 1967, he had his film debut in The Tiger Makes Out, where he appeared with Eli Wallach.

The Graduate

In 1967, Hoffman lost out on a part in the Broadway musical The Apple Tree due to a lack of singing prowess. However, the rejection turned out to be a silver lining as director Mike Nichols cast him instead for the lead role in the film The Graduate. The film was a massive commercial success, raking in $150 million, which was unheard of at the time.

Since Hoffman was still a new face in Hollywood, he only got a salary of $17,000. However, he got something way better. he was a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Actor. He also won Most Promising Newcomer at the BAFTA and the Golden Globe Awards.

Midnight Cowboy

Hoffman’s next starring role came two years later, in 1969, when he got the role of Ratso Rizzo in Midnight Cowboy. Eager to show critics that his acting range was wider than most assumed, Hoffman gave another stellar performance. He earned his second nomination at the Academy Awards and the Golden Globes and won the BAFTA for Best Actor.

The film earned $44.8 million globally and was the first sizable boost to Dustin Hoffman’s net worth, as he was paid $700,000 for the flick.

Photo Credit: Twentieth Century Fox

John and Mary

Shortly after Midnight Cowboy, Hoffman would star in John and Mary, where he would win another BAFTA trophy. His salary also continued to increase as he was paid $425,000 for his work as John.

Throughout the 1970s, Hoffman would star in a number of box office hits and receive countless  Best Actor nominations. It began with Little Big Man in 1970, followed by Straw Dogs in 1971, and Lenny in 1975. And in 1976, he starred in two award-winning films – All the President’s Men and Marathon Man.

Kramer vs. Kramer

It was in 1979 when Hoffman really hit it big. He finally won his first Oscar for Best Actor for his heart-wrenching performance in Kramer vs. Kramer. The film co-starred him with Meryl Streep and earned over $106 million at the worldwide box office.

Additionally, this was the second sizable paycheck for Hoffman, as he was paid $2 million for his performance.

Tootsie

By this time, Dustin Hoffman’s net worth, as well as his fame as an actor, was improving rapidly. And when he got his fifth Oscar nomination for the blockbuster Tootsie in 1982, it only further confirmed his Hollywood A-list status. In the film, Hoffman played the role of a struggling actor. In many ways, it was pretty much a reflection of his own experiences during the early years of his acting career.

Hoffman’s salary for the role was $5.5 million, his biggest paycheck so far. It was also a significant portion of the film’s $21 million budget. However, the film more than made it back, with $177.2 million in worldwide ticket sales.

Rain Man

In 1988, Hoffman co-starred with Tom Cruise in another box office top-grosser drama film Rain Man. The film made an impressive $354.8 million against a budget of $25 million.

The film was also a sizable addition to Dustin Hoffman’s net worth. He earned $5.8 million for portraying Ray Babbitt. In addition, he also had a percentage of the backend earnings. But more importantly, he won his second Academy Award for Best Actor and also his fifth Golden Globe for his work in the film.

Hook

Hoffman’s next huge hit came in 1991 with the Steven Spielberg adventure film Hook. As Captain Hook, Hoffman starred opposite Robin Williams as Peter Pan and Julia Roberts as Tinkerbell.

Hook was another massive hit at the box office, making over $300 million globally on a budget of $70 million. Hoffman received a decent salary of $2 million plus a cut from the film’s box office earnings.

The rest of the 1990s had Hoffman starring in one commercial blockbuster after another. Some of his most notable films in the decade were Outbreak in 1995, which earned $190 million, and Sleepers in 1996, with earnings of $165.6 million.

Additionally, Hoffman also earned his sixth Oscar nomination for Wag the Dog in 1997, which made $64.3 million at the worldwide box office.

Meet the Fockers

With more than four decades of acting under his belt, Dustin Hoffman’s net worth continues to rise well into the new millennium. In 2004, he appeared in Meet the Fockers, his highest-grossing film at the time. It made over $522.6 million at the box office against a budget of $80 million.

Hoffman reprises his role as Bernie Focker in the 2010 Little Fockers. It was again a commercial success, making $310.6 million in theaters worldwide.

Kung Fu Panda Movies

The film franchise that had the most significant impact on Dustin Hoffman’s net worth would be the Kung Fu Panda movies. In 2008, Hoffman was chosen to voice the character of Master Shifu. He joined a star-studded cast that included Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Lucy Liu, and Jackie Chan.

The first movie had a huge production budget of $130 million, but it was nothing compared to the $632 million that it made at the box office. The sequel Kung Fu Panda 2 came three years later and raked in $665.7 million over a budget of $150 million.

The cast reunited once more for a third movie in 2016. With a budget of $145 million, it generated $521.2 million from moviegoers around the world. Hoffman’s voice work won him the Annie Award for Outstanding Voice Acting Award in a Feature Production in 2009.

Recent Work

In 2017, Huffman starred in Noah Baumbach’s The Meyerowitz Stories, which debuted on Netflix. Adam Sandler, Ben Stiller, Emma Thompson, and Adam Driver also starred in the flick. 

Hoffman’s most recent films include the drama As They Made Us, where he co-stars with Candice Bergen, and the comedy Sam & Kate, which also stars Sissy Spacek. 

Other Ventures

Besides being a multi-awarded actor, Hoffman had also dabbled with directing in the 2012 comedy-drama Quartet. He also produced the HBO series Luck which aired from 2011 to 2012.

Also adding to Dustin Hoffman’s net worth is a number of endorsement deals he’s done over the years with brands like Volkswagen, Sky Atlantic, Audi, Fiat, Telstra, and KappAhl.

Real Estate

A considerable amount of Dustin Hoffman’s net worth comes in the form of real estate investments. He once owned a massive triplex in the San Remo area in New York. The property, which covered 8,000 square meters, was listed on the market in 2002 with an asking price of $25 million. However, it didn’t sell until 2014, for an even $21 million to an unknown buyer.

In 2017, Hoffman and his son invested $3 million in a property development project in Hollywood Hills. Unfortunately, the project did not materialize and instead turned into a lawsuit, which Hoffman won.

Personal Life

Dustin Hoffman’s first marriage was in 1969 to actress Anne Byrne. Anne had a child from a previous marriage named Karina, whom Hoffman adopted. And in 1970, their daughter Jenna was born. However, Hoffman and Byrne’s relationship eventually fizzled and ended in divorce in 1980.

Today, Hoffman is happily married to his wife of 42 years, businesswoman Lisa Gottsegen. The couple first met when Dustin was 27 and Lisa was 10. They reconnected more than a decade later and tied the knot in 1980, shortly after Hoffman’s divorce. The couple now have four children together – Jacob, Rebecca, Maxwell and Ali – who are all actors.

Dustin Hoffman’s Net Worth 2022

As of 2022, Dustin Hoffman’s net worth is estimated at $100 million. And while his acting career is responsible for a sizable chunk of that number, his net worth is also greatly impacted by his producing, directing, brand endorsement deals, and real estate investments.

Fans of Hoffman can look forward to seeing him next in Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis, which also stars Audrey Plaza, Adam Driver, Shia LaBeouf, John Voight, and Forest Whittaker.

Additionally, he’ll lend his voice again to Master Shifu in Kung Fu Panda 4, Angelina Jolie, Jack Black, and Jackie Chan are also returning.