Celebrity Net Worth: Keanu Reeves earns $39,473 a word for John Wick 4

In our fortnightly celebrity investment and wealth round-up, Priyanka Chopra Jonas joins a series A investment in Rob’s Backstage Popcorn and Venus Williams aces her way into the private equity world

Keanu Reeves reportedly earned between $1 million and $2.5 million for the first two movies in the John Wick franchise. Photo: Lionsgate

Keanu Reeves

Words are more valuable than ever, it seems, going by Keanu Reeves’s reported salary in John Wick: Chapter 4. The Hollywood superstar banked $15 million in pre-release takings for the film, according to Cosmopolitan magazine.

Although the film is the longest in the multimillion-dollar franchise at 169 minutes, Reeves’s character only utters 380 words, taking his income per word to $39,473.

But the role includes more than just dialogue and the actor performs a lot of his own stunts.

The film hits UAE cinemas in time for Eid Al Fitr. It raked in $150.1 million in box-office revenue around the world during its opening weekend, including $86 million in the US, according to film research website The Numbers.

Reeves reportedly earned between $1 million and $2.5 million for the first two movies in the franchise.

The Beirut-born Canadian has a fortune estimated at $380 million, according to wealth-tracking website Celebrity Net Worth.

Reeves, 58, has earned his fortune from an acting career that dates back to the mid-80s.

Films starring Keanu Reeves — in pictures

His films have grossed close to $4 billion, according to The Numbers. The total does not account for inflation.

The actor’s biggest salary comes from The Matrix franchise. The four films netted Reeves $250 million when upfront fees and his percentage of box-office takings are factored in, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Outside of acting, Reeves co-founded a production house called Company Films, and has launched a small press and a motorcycle company.

Reeves is notoriously reserved when it comes to his investments. He also appears in few endorsements, although in 2019 he fronted an Yves Saint Laurent fall-winter menswear campaign.

He owns an $8 million home in Hollywood Hills, Los Angeles. He purchased it in 2003 after years of living at the city’s Chateau Marmont hotel, paying close to $5 million, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The actor has a reputation for philanthropy. He has set up a cancer charity but it does not carry his name. In addition, he supports Peta, Stand up to Cancer and the SickKids Foundation.

Last year, he and his partner, artist Alexandra Grant, became advisers to the non-profit Futureverse Foundation, which promotes underrepresented artists.

Venus Williams

As tennis player Serena Williams focused on shattering records in recent years, her big sister Venus Williams has been playing a long game, focusing on her off-court passions and other life goals.

Now 42, the older Williams sister is serving out a midlife career shift into private equity.

Last month, she was appointed an operating partner of private equity firm Topspin Consumer Partners, the company said.

The tennis champion and entrepreneur will help Topspin and its consumer-focused portfolio companies in their marketing and brand exposure, identifying ways of enhancing value and helping to source new investment opportunities.

She has been working with Topsin since November, the company said.

“What resonated with me most about Topspin was the team’s deep understanding of consumer investing and genuine desire to help entrepreneurs and visionaries reach their full potential,” Venus said.

“I’ve learnt so much about navigating the competitive consumer landscape from my own ventures, and strongly believe this is the perfect opportunity for me to leverage my expertise to add value — whether it be helping the firm’s portfolio companies improve their marketing efforts or identifying up-and-coming businesses to partner with.”

Venus has been a rarer presence on tennis courts in recent years because of Sjogren’s syndrome, an autoimmune disease that causes fatigue, joint pain and dry eyes and mouth.

The four-time Olympic gold medallist and seven-time Grand Slam tennis champion has a net worth estimated at $95 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

She has earned slightly under half of that — $42.4 million — on court. The rest has come from a range of off-court activities.

Brand endorsements deliver between $5 million and $10 million a year, Celebrity Net Worth reports.

The former world number one has also founded several consumer brands, including lifestyle and activewear brand EleVen, plant-based superfood nutrition company Happy Viking and interior design company V Starr.

She is also chief brand officer of health brand Asutra and has launched a line of clean, mineral-based SPF products with retailer Credo Beauty.

She has nine portfolio investments, according to market intelligence platform CB Insights. Many of these are financial or investment companies.

Among the oldest is women-focused investment company Ellevest, commercial property ownership platform withco, as well as money she and her sister Serena ploughed into London-based social investing app Shares.

Priyanka Chopra Jonas

Actor and producer Priyanka Chopra Jonas has joined a $7 million fundraising round into Rob’s Backstage Popcorn, which is co-owned by her husband Nick Jonas and e-commerce consumer products good retailer The Naked Market.

The company will use the funds to expand distribution across the US, including into stores such as Walmart and Albertsons, Forbes magazine reported.

Rob’s Backstage Popcorn was first created by Rob Garbowsky, father of the Jonas Brothers’ manager Greg Garbowsky.

Last month, Chopra also launched Mumbai Nights, a new Indian-inspired flavour for the brand.

“Mumbai is my home — I’ve spent about 15 or 20 years of my life there. And it’s a very specific, alive, cosmopolitan, glamorous city. And to me, this flavour is that,” Chopra said in an online presentation ahead of the launch, EatingWell magazine reported.

Chopra and Jonas have a combined net worth of $70 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

The couple have made several joint investments together since marrying in 2018. Last July, they signed up to back French luxury ski and surfwear brand Perfect Moment.

They have also invested in alternative beverage brand Olipop and in HumanCo, which makes healthy, gluten-free, dairy-free and organic foods.

Chopra, 40, is one of the highest-paid actors in India.

She built a successful career in Hollywood after finding she was being “pushed into a corner” in Bollywood. The former Miss World has starred in more than 70 films, including Baywatch, The Matrix Revolutions and The White Tiger.

She revealed last month that she only achieved pay parity for the first time as an actor while filming the upcoming Amazon Prime series Citadel.

Robert Downey Jr

Iron Man actor Robert Downey Jr will take on a layered new role as strategist, board member and spokesman at online safety company Aura, the company said.

The multiyear partnership will see the actor pay particular attention to online safety for children.

Downey Jr made his first appearance for the brand at last month’s South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, where he moderated a discussion on online security.

“Honestly, the exponential growth of online crime, just in the last several years, is truly terrifying,” he said.

“It requires an innovative solution to protect our families, which is why I'm joining Hari [Ravichandran, founder and chief executive] and his team at Aura to tackle the crisis head-on.”

The Boston-based unicorn was valued at $2.5 billion in 2021, when it raised $200 million in series F funding. A unicorn is a start-up company valued at more than $1 billion.

Downey Jr, 57, has a net worth estimated at $300 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

The bulk of his earnings have come from his work as an actor and producer, in particular the Iron Man franchise.

From 2013 to 2015, he was the world’s highest-paid actor, Forbes magazine estimates.

His fee for the first Iron Man film was $500,000, but Downey Jr went on to earn a reported $345.5 million playing the superhero in various Marvel movies, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

The actor has several equity investments to his name, according to financial information platform Crunchbase.

These include security start-up 1Password, calendar-based social platform Saturn, classic car restoration company Kindred Motorworks, and AI platform Forethought, alongside actors Gwyneth Paltrow and Ashton Kutcher.

Downey Jr’s real estate portfolio is worth $50 million, Celebrity Net Worth calculates, with properties in Malibu, Venice and Manhattan Beach, all in California.