Anthony Zuiker Net Worth

What is Anthony Zuiker's net worth and Salary?

Anthony Zuiker is an American television creator and executive producer who has a net worth of $200 million. Anthony Zuiker earned the vast majority of his net worth by creating the American television crime franchise "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation." According to his 2011 divorce case, at that point Anthony was earning $25,000 every time one of his shows aired for the first time. He earned much more when his shows are sold into syndication. His ex-wife claimed that between 2000 and 2010 alone Anthony earned $75 million off the first CSI series and was earning $20-30 million per year in total.

Zuiker is the producer for all the entire CSI franchise which includes "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," "CSI: Miami," "CSI: Cyber," "CSI: Vegas" and "CSI: NY." In addition to producing he also assisted in the writing of the movie "Terminator Salvation." He has written several books, including "Level26: Dark Origins," which was released on September 8, 2009. The second book, "Level 26: Dark Prophecy" was released on October 14, 2010.

Early Life

Anthony Zuiker was born on August 17, 1968 in Blue Island, Illinois. His family moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, when Anthony was only six months old. His mother Diana took a job as a blackjack dealer and his father was a Maitre d' at several restaurants. Anthony graduated from Chaparral High School in 1986. Today the school's theater is named the Anthony E. Zuiker Theater.

He attended Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona for three years then transferred to the University of La Verne in La Verne, California before finally graduating from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. In college he was involved in competitive forensics and he even advanced all the way to the semifinals at the national speech tournament.

While living in Los Angeles after college, Anthony began writing screenplays. His first script was a movie called "The Runner." He eventually sold the scrip to Showtime for $25,000. Amazingly that script – his very first! – was turned into the 1999 film "The Runner" starring Courteney Cox and Jon Goodman, among others.

CSI

Zuiker's breakthrough came when he conceived the idea for a crime drama centered around forensic science, inspired by his fascination with real-life criminal investigations.

Anthony would later explain that he conceived of the idea for the series while working as a taxi driver in Las Vegas and coming home to his wife who suggested they watch a show called "The New Detectives" on the Discover Channel. He had come home from work and intended to go play basketball, but his wife insisted he stay and watch:

"I decided to stay, and that changed everything."

He had never written for television before.

His concept eventually found its way to an executive at Jerry Bruckheimer's production company. CBS bought the idea and, "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," premiered in 2000.

The show's unique blend of science, drama, and procedural storytelling struck a chord with audiences worldwide, becoming an instant hit. "CSI" spawned multiple spin-offs, including "CSI: Miami" and "CSI: NY," solidifying its place as one of television's most successful franchises.

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Anthony Zuiker's Divorce

Anthony Zuiker and his first wife Jennifer were married in 199. They separated sometime around 2010 or 2011. Their divorce was highly-contested and lasted from 2011 until 2014.

In her filings at the time, Jennifer revealed in court documents that Anthony earned $25,000 per episode of CSI that airs. Keep in mind that there were three different CSIs on TV at that point, airing 24 episodes per season. Anthony earned $25,000 multiplied by three, multiplied by 24 = $1.8 million per year. And that doesn't count the vastly more lucrative syndication profits Zuicker is entitled to every year. It was also revealed in court documents that Zuiker has earned close to $75 million off CSI since 2008 alone and his annual income is $20-30 million.

In September 2014, the divorce was finalized. Jennifer Zuiker was awarded half of all profits Anthony earns from the three CSI shows he created while they were married. She will not receive any profits from shows he creates from this point on. Jennifer will not receive any spousal support, despite requesting $170,000 a month to support her standard of living, because a judge determined that the CSI profits should be more than enough. Anthony will however pay $10,000 a month in spousal support for their three children.

In 2013 Anthony married a school teacher named Michelle Territo.

Michelle and Anthony Zuiker (Photo by Phillip Faraone/Getty Images)

Real Estate

In 2012 Anthony paid $7.5 million for a mansion in Malibu. He sold this home in December 2019 to NBA player Chandler Parsons for $9.25 million. Just a few months later Anthony bought a new home in Malibu. In an interesting reversal, this time an NBA player was the seller! The seller of the $12.15 million Broad Beach oceanfront home was Kevin Durant. In February 2024 Anthony sold this home to Roc Nation CEO Jay Brown for $15.3 million.

In 2018 Anthony paid $6.3 million for a 12,000 square foot lakefront mansion on 1.5 acres in Lake Arrowhead, California. In February 2023 Anthony paid $6 million for a home in Henderson, Nevada.