Isaiah Washington Net Worth

What is Isaiah Washington's Net Worth and Salary?

Isaiah Washington is an actor who has a net worth of $500 thousand. Isaiah Washington  became most widely known for his role as Dr. Preston Burke in the first three seasons of the television series "Grey's Anatomy." Isaiah was fired from the show after he allegedly made a homophobic slur towards co-star T.R. Knight.

He later played Thelonious Jaha in the science-fiction series "The 100." Washington has also appeared in numerous films, including "Crooklyn," "Mixing Nia," "Bulworth," "True Crime," and "Corsicana," the lattermost of which was also his directorial debut.

Landlord Dispute

In March 2009, a landlord of a property in Venice, California sued Isaiah over allegedly owing $100,000 in rent. Washington reportedly had not paid rent on the property in over five months. At one point there was even talk of a possible eviction.

Early Life and Education

Isaiah Washington IV was born on August 3, 1963 in Houston, Texas. As a teenager, he went to Willowridge High School. When Washington was 13, his father was murdered. At the age of 19, he joined the US Air Force, and was assigned to Clark Air Base in the Philippines. After that, Washington served two years at Holloman Air Force Base in Alamogordo, New Mexico. He went on to complete his formal education at Howard University.

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Film Career

Washington made his feature film debut with a small part in the 1991 comedy "Strictly Business." Three years later, he played Vic in "Crooklyn," the first of his collaborations with writer-director Spike Lee. Washington would subsequently appear in Lee's films "Clockers," "Girl 6," and "Get on the Bus." Meanwhile, he had roles in such other films as "Stonewall" and "Dead Presidents." In the late 1990s, Washington appeared in "Love Jones," "Mixing Nia," "Bulworth," "Out of Sight," and "True Crime," among other films. Kicking off the 21st century, he was in two action films directed by Andrzej Bartkowiak: "Romeo Must Die" and "Exit Wounds." Washington subsequently starred in the direct-to-video release "Hood Rat." He followed that with roles in the caper comedy "Welcome to Collinwood," the supernatural horror film "Ghost Ship," the action comedy "Hollywood Homicide," the drama "This Girl's Life," and the Western horror film "Dead Birds." Washington also starred in the direct-to-video releases "Wild Things 2" and "Trois: The Escort," both in 2004.

In 2005, Washington appeared in the comedy "The Amateurs." He acted infrequently on film over the subsequent years, with his few credits including "The Least of These" and "Hurricane Season." In 2011, Washington starred in the science-fiction film "Area Q," and in 2012 starred in the drama "The Undershepherd." He went on to appear in multiple films in 2013, including the crime films "Blue Caprice" and "Go for Sisters" and the Nigerian adventure film "Doctor Bello." In 2014, Washington starred in the drama "Blackbird." His credits over the remainder of the decade included "Dead Trigger" and "Keys to the City." In 2020, Washington appeared in the heist film "Cut Throat City," directed by RZA. The next year, he was in the Christian drama "God's Not Dead: We the People," the fourth film in the "God's Not Dead" series. Washington went on to make his directorial debut in 2022 with the Western film "Corsicana," which he also cowrote and starred in. He portrayed runaway slave, gunfighter, farmer, and Deputy US Marshal Bass Reeves.

(Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images)

Television Career

Washington got his start on television in the same year he debuted on the big screen, appearing in a 1991 episode of "Law & Order." The following year, he joined the cast of the ABC soap opera "Loving." Washington subsequently appeared in episodes of such shows as "Homicide: Life on the Street" and "NYPD Blue." He was also in the television films "Strapped," "Mr. and Mrs. Loving," "Soul of the Game," and "Joe Torre: Curveballs Along the Way." In 1996, Washington had recurring roles on the shows "New York Undercover" and "Living Single." Over the next two years, he appeared in episodes of "High Incident" and "Ally McBeal." In 2000, Washington had a recurring role in the first season of the Showtime series "Soul Food." He went on to appear in episodes of "Touched by an Angel" and "All My Children" in 2001. Washington became best known to audiences in 2005 when he began playing cardiothoracic surgeon Dr. Preston Burke in the new ABC medical drama series "Grey's Anatomy." For his role, he won two NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series. However, Washington was let go from "Grey's Anatomy" after the third season following reports that he called his costar T. R. Knight a homophobic slur. He would later return for a guest role in the tenth season in 2014.

After his dismissal from "Grey's Anatomy," Washington landed the recurring role of Antonio Pope in NBC's reimagining of the 1970s science-fiction series "Bionic Woman." Ultimately, the show was short-lived, airing eight episodes before it was canceled. Washington went on to have a guest role in the A&E series "The Cleaner" in 2008. His next main role came in 2014 when he began playing Thelonious Jaha in the post-apocalyptic science-fiction series "The 100," based on the book of the same name by Kass Morgan. Washington remained on the CW show until the beginning of the fifth season in 2018. Meanwhile, he appeared in episodes of "Blue Bloods" and "Bull," and played the recurring role of Rodney Barker in the fourth and final season of the Starz series "Survivor's Remorse." In 2020, Washington hosted the travel and cooking show "Isaiah Washington: Kitchen Talk" on Fox Nation. Also that year, he played the recurring role of Mayor Tydell Ruffin in the first season of the Starz series "P-Valley." For the second season in 2022, Washington was demoted to a guest role.

Personal Life

Washington is of West African descent, having taken a genealogical DNA test that revealed his maternal ancestry can be traced back to present-day Sierra Leone. He has traveled frequently to the country to donate medical supplies, build a school, and do other charity work. Washington became the first African-American to be granted full Sierra Leonean citizenship based on DNA.