Burt Reynolds was an American actor, director and voice artist who had a net worth of $3 million dollars at the time of his death in 2018. Burt enjoyed an impressive film career over several decades that included an Academy Award nomination for his role in “Boogie Nights”. Burt’s net worth was much higher than $3 million at the peak of his career, but unfortunately he suffered from significant financial problems due to bad investments and over-spending. More details on this later in the article.
Early Life: He was born Burton Leon Reynolds, Jr. on February 11, 1936, in Lansing, Michigan. He attended Florida State University on a football scholarship. While at FSU, his roommate for a time was future college coach and ESPN analyst Lee Corso. Burt hoped to be named an All-American, but a car accident caused a knee injury that permanently sidelined his athletic aspirations. For a time he considered becoming a police officer. While taking some extra classes at a junior college, an English teacher encouraged Burt to audition for a play called “Outward Bound”. Burt landed the lead role and eventually won the Florida State Drama Award for the performance.
Career: Burt soon moved to New York City to continue acting in plays and purse roles in film and TV. In 1961 he landed his first movie roll in a film called “Angel Baby”. It was 1972’s “Deliverance” that made him into a star. He became internationally famous in the 70s and 80s thanks to appearances in hit movies like “Smokey and the Bandit”, “The Longest Yard” and “The Cannonball Run”. Later in his career he was notable for projects like “Boogie Nights”, “Without a Paddle”, and “Burn Notice”. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting actor for his role in Boogie Nights. Of course, there were times when Burt Reynolds’ career was marred by career flops and personal setbacks. He was married twice. The second marriage to actress Loni Anderson ended in a bitter divorce that ultimately led to Burt declaring Chapter 11 bankruptcy. He accused her of cheating on him and in 1993 Burt agreed to pay Loni a lump sum of $234,794.13 plus $15,000 per month in support, after just 5 years of marriage.
Burt Reynolds died on September 6, 2018 at the age of 82 after reportedly suffering from a heart attack.
Financial Problems: By his own estimation, at the peak of his career Burt’s net worth topped $60 million. That’s $60 million after taxes in the 1980s. That’s the same as around $150 million today after adjusting for inflation. Burt bought several mansions in Beverly Hills, built a massive estate in Florida and bought a 160-acre ranch, also in Florida. He kept a stable of 150 horses at the ranch. He also bought a mansion in Georgia, a private jet and a helicopter. When he married Loni Anderson in 1988, he bought a new Beverly Hills mansion. In his prenup to the marriage, Burt listed his net worth at $15 million. So where did all the money go?
In the 1980s, Burt’s business manager convinced him to invest in a chain of family-style country restaurants called “Po’ Folks”. Burt and a partner bought 30 franchises and Burt guaranteed the leases personally. As it turned out, Burt and his partner were sold somewhat of a lemon. The parent company was a disaster and customers hated the food. Burt and his partner hired a consultant to help them sell the restaurants but somehow this “expert” actually convinced the two to invest in ANOTHER (different) chain of restaurants. Burt would later concede that this move took what could have been a $5-6 million write-off, and turned it into a $20-30 million loss for both men.
In 1990, Reynolds was so low on cash that he needed to borrow $4 million from CBS to help finance his lifestyle. He simultaneously agreed to star in the CBS show “Evening Shade” and assumed he would pay back the debt once the show was sold into syndication. When the show was canceled after four seasons, one season shy of earning syndication fees, Burt was left owing $3.7 million to the network.
In 1996, CBS sued him over the $3.7 million debt. This lawsuit forced Burt to declare Chapter 11 bankruptcy. His assets at the time totaled $6.65 million, and his debts $11.2 million. Some of the details from his bankruptcy were rather embarrassing. For example, Burt owed $121,000 to his toupee maker.
In November 2014 many news outlets reported that Burt was again experiencing severe financial problems. He was allegedly forced to sell off many of his prized possessions and movie memorabilia in order to satisfy nearly $10 million worth of debt. He was also reportedly facing foreclosure on his Florida home after failing to pay $1.2 million worth of his mortgage payments. Burt declined reports that he was broke and claimed that he was selling memorabilia because he no longer has any use for it and was sick of seeing his face everywhere.
| Net Worth: | $3 Million |
| Date of Birth: | Feb 11, 1936 – Sep 6, 2018 (82 years old) |
| Gender: | Male |
| Height: | 5 ft 10 in (1.8 m) |
| Profession: | Film Producer, Film director, Actor, Voice Actor, Television Director, Television producer, Screenwriter |
| Nationality: | United States of America |