The world’s Richest Actor Jami Gertz (Photo Credit – Facebook)
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Jami Gertz—sound familiar? Well, it should. This Chicago-born actress quietly sits at the top of the wealthiest actors list, with a net worth of $3B (£2.45B). While everyone’s obsessed with Tom Cruise or Shah Rukh Khan, Gertz has been stacking her billions in the background, and we’re just now catching up.
Her journey to this mind-blowing fortune wasn’t your typical Hollywood rise. It all started in fifth grade when Gertz played Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz—and guess what? She loved it. So, she decided acting was her destiny. Fast forward to 1981, and she was starring in Endless Love. She went on to rock sitcoms like Still Standing and The Neighbors, making a name for herself in the acting world. But that’s not what made her billions.
In 1989, Gertz married Tony Ressler, a banker at the time. Gertz was the bigger earner when they met. “I made more money—way more money—than Tony when I met him,” she told Hollywood Reporter. “I paid for our first house. I paid for our first vacation. I married him because I fell in love with him.” That’s a power move right there.
Ressler, however, wasn’t just a banker. After their marriage, he co-founded Apollo Global, which later became Ares Management—one of the world’s most successful asset management companies. They handle assets of $125 billion (£98.81 million), and Ressler’s net worth is a staggering $11.1 billion (£8.77 million). Then, in 2015, Ressler purchased the Atlanta Hawks for $720 million (£569.15 million), and guess what? Gertz is a co-owner.
But don’t get it twisted. Gertz has always been clear—her billions didn’t just come from being Mrs. Ressler. She set the record straight: “Everyone thinks I married a rich guy, but little do they know.”
Now, Gertz and Ressler have become the ultimate power couple. They even attempted to buy the LA Clippers but lost to Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. “We were kicking the tires on the Clippers a while ago,” Gertz shared on The Rick Risen Show. “Grant called us and said the Atlanta Hawks are for sale, and I said, ‘Huh, never saw myself in Atlanta, but that sounds like something that might be interesting.’” Four days later, they owned the Hawks.
From acting gigs to business mogul status, Jami Gertz’s story teaches how to make your luck.
