Joseph Gordon-Levitt Net Worth

What is Joseph Gordon-Levitt's Net Worth and Salary?

Joseph Leonard Gordon-Levitt is an American actor, director, and producer who has a net worth of $35 million. Joseph Gordon-Levitt began his acting career starring in many commercials. He rose to prominence in the 1990s as Tommy Solomon on the hit sitcom "3rd Rock from the Sun," where his comedic timing and charm made him a standout among an ensemble cast. After stepping away from Hollywood to attend Columbia University, Gordon-Levitt returned to acting with a deliberate focus on independent films, earning critical acclaim for performances in "Mysterious Skin" and "Brick." His transition into mainstream success came in the late 2000s and 2010s with starring roles in "500 Days of Summer," "Inception," "Looper," "The Dark Knight Rises," and "Don Jon," the latter of which he also wrote and directed.

Beyond acting, Gordon-Levitt is the founder of HitRecord, an online collaborative media platform that has produced everything from short films to published books and Emmy-winning television. His career is defined by a willingness to alternate between big-budget blockbusters and smaller, riskier projects, reflecting both artistic integrity and box office appeal. With his mix of creative entrepreneurship, versatility, and critical recognition, Gordon-Levitt has carved out a unique and enduring place in modern Hollywood.

Early Years

Joseph Leonard Gordon-Levitt was born on February 17, 1981, in Los Angeles, California. He grew up in a Jewish family with parents who were both socially and professionally active. His father, Dennis, worked in broadcasting, while his mother, Jane, was politically engaged, having once run for U.S. Congress. Creativity was very much in the family's DNA. His maternal grandfather, Michael Gordon, was a well-known Hollywood filmmaker who directed classics such as the 1950 film "Cyrano de Bergerac." Joseph grew up with his older brother, Dan, who was a photographer and fire-spinner until his untimely death in 2010.

By the late 1990s, Joseph was balancing school and acting work. In 1999, he graduated from Van Nuys High School in Los Angeles. Shortly afterward, he attended Columbia University in New York, where he studied history, literature, and French poetry before eventually leaving to pursue acting full-time.

Career

Joseph Gordon-Levitt's career began when he was just four years old, performing in local theater productions. At one of these performances, he was spotted by an agent and quickly began working as a child actor. His earliest appearances were in television commercials, promoting products such as Sunny Jim peanut butter, Cocoa Puffs, Pop-Tarts, and Kinney Shoes.

By the time he was six, Joseph had already appeared in made-for-TV movies, and at age ten he earned recurring television work. He landed early roles on shows like "Dark Shadows" and in films such as Robert Redford's "A River Runs Through It" (1992). He soon gained additional visibility with projects like "The Powers That Be," "Switching Parents," and the Disney family movie "Angels in the Outfield" (1994).

In 1996, Gordon-Levitt won the role that would make him a household name: Tommy Solomon in the hit sitcom "3rd Rock from the Sun." Playing an alien disguised as a teenager, his quirky performance was central to the show's success across its six-season run. During this time, he also made guest appearances, including a memorable turn on "That '70s Show," and he starred in popular teen movies such as "10 Things I Hate About You" (1999) and "Halloween H20: 20 Years Later" (1998).

Transitioning into the 2000s, he proved his versatility by voicing the lead character Jim Hawkins in Disney's ambitious animated film "Treasure Planet" (2002). Although the movie underperformed financially despite a massive budget, it became a cult favorite and showcased Joseph's voice-acting talents.

After briefly studying at Columbia, Gordon-Levitt returned to acting with a more selective and artistic approach. He earned strong reviews for roles in independent films such as "Manic" (2001), "Mysterious Skin" (2004), and the noir-inspired "Brick" (2005). Other work from this period included "Latter Days," "Havoc," and "Shadowboxer." His breakthrough into more serious adult acting came with the 2007 thriller "The Lookout," in which he played a brain-injured hockey player caught up in a bank robbery plot.

The late 2000s marked his rise to leading-man status. He appeared in "Stop-Loss" (2008) and the romantic hit "500 Days of Summer" (2009), co-starring Zooey Deschanel, which became a defining film of his career. Around the same time, he balanced lighter projects with action-heavy roles, playing Cobra Commander in "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra" (2009).

His biggest leap came with Christopher Nolan's 2010 blockbuster "Inception," where he co-starred alongside Leonardo DiCaprio. The film grossed nearly $830 million worldwide and cemented Gordon-Levitt as a major Hollywood star. He went on to collaborate with Nolan again in "The Dark Knight Rises" (2012), playing Gotham police officer John Blake. That same year, he headlined the sci-fi hit "Looper" and portrayed Robert Todd Lincoln in Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln."

In 2013, Gordon-Levitt made his directorial debut with "Don Jon," a romantic comedy-drama he also wrote and starred in, opposite Scarlett Johansson and Julianne Moore. He continued taking diverse roles, from the mountaineering drama "The Walk" (2015) to the political thriller "Snowden" (2016), where his portrayal of Edward Snowden was widely praised even though the film itself earned mixed reviews.

In the years that followed, he expanded into streaming and ensemble projects. He starred in Netflix's sci-fi action film "Project Power" (2020) and played a key role in Aaron Sorkin's historical drama "The Trial of the Chicago 7" (2020), which was nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. He also appeared in the Apple TV+ series "Mr. Corman" (2021), which he created, wrote, directed, and starred in, further showcasing his multi-hyphenate talents.

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HitRecord & Other Projects

In addition to his acting career, Joseph Gordon-Levitt has made a significant mark as an entrepreneur and creative innovator. In 2005, he co-founded HitRecord, an online collaborative media platform that allows artists, musicians, writers, and filmmakers from around the world to create projects together. What began as a small side project eventually grew into a thriving production company that has released short films, music, books, and even television programming.

HitRecord gained mainstream recognition with the launch of "HitRecord on TV," a variety show that aired on Pivot in 2014. The show won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Creative Achievement in Interactive Media, validating Gordon-Levitt's vision of community-driven creativity. The platform has since continued to grow, producing content for major partners such as YouTube, Netflix, and Ubisoft, with Gordon-Levitt actively encouraging fans to contribute and collaborate.

Beyond HitRecord, Gordon-Levitt has also pursued directing, writing, and producing, with projects like his 2013 directorial debut "Don Jon" demonstrating his ability to craft personal and inventive stories. He has been a vocal advocate for democratizing creativity in the digital age, often speaking about how technology can empower artists to bypass traditional Hollywood gatekeeping. Through both his artistic work and his entrepreneurial ventures, Gordon-Levitt has built a career that blends mainstream success with a passion for independent, collaborative storytelling.

Personal Life

In 2014, Joseph Gordon-Levitt married Tasha McCauley, founder of the tech company Fellow Robots. They have two children together. Tasha comes from a notable lineage. Her mother is the adopted daughter of billionaire real estate developer Melvin Simon, who, alongside his brother, Herbert Simon, co-founded the Simon Property Group. Originally established in the 1960s as Melvin Simon & Associates, the company rapidly expanded by building strip malls and shopping centers throughout the Midwest. In 1993, Simon Property Group went public, and three years later it merged with DeBartolo Realty Corporation in a landmark $3 billion deal. The merger created the largest real estate investment trust (REIT) in the United States, combining two pioneering families in the American mall business. Today, Simon Property Group is not only the largest shopping mall operator in the country, with ownership stakes in premier retail centers like The Forum Shops at Caesars in Las Vegas and King of Prussia Mall in Pennsylvania, but it is also one of the most valuable REITs in the world. Beyond retail properties, the Simon brothers also became majority owners of the NBA's Indiana Pacers in 1983, a franchise they still control.

Tasha McCauley has forged an impressive career of her own in technology and innovation. After co-founding Fellow Robots, a company focused on developing cutting-edge robotics for retail and logistics, she went on to take leadership roles in research and development across the tech sector. She has lectured on topics ranging from artificial intelligence to sustainable technology and has served as an adjunct professor at Singularity University. In addition, McCauley was appointed to the board of directors of OpenAI, serving until November 2023, where she helped guide one of the world's most influential artificial intelligence research labs during a period of rapid growth and global attention. Her work in both robotics and AI has established her as a respected voice in the intersection of technology, ethics, and business.

Real Estate

In 2015, Joseph purchased a home in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles for $3.25 million. The vintage, ranch-style house dates back to the 1940s and features a number of chic, retro amenities. After making changes to the pool area and yard, Joseph listed the property in 2019 for $3.85 million. He accepted $3.08 million a few months later.

In 2008, he paid $1.4 million for a home in the Silver Lake area of Los Angeles. In May 2023, Joseph paid $4.6 million for a home in Pasadena, California. The home is over 100 years old and spans 7,600 square feet.

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