Whoopi Goldberg’s $20 Million Empire: How the “Sister Act” Star Quietly Redefined Hollywood Power.NH

Whoopi Goldberg is an American actress, author, comedian, political activist, singer-songwriter, and talk show host who has a net worth of $20 million. Whoopi Goldberg became famous in the mid-1980s and soon developed into one of Hollywood’s most reliable box office draws during the 1990s.

What is Whoopi Goldberg’s salary and net worth?

Recognized for her keen comedic timing and range in drama, Goldberg had a career that extended from film and television to theater and music. She is among the handful of performers in history to reach EGOT status, having won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony. Her Grammy in 1986 was for Best Comedy Recording, her Oscar in 1991 for Best Supporting Actress for “Ghost,” her Tony in 2002 for producing “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” and her Daytime Emmy in 2002 for “Beyond Tara: The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel.”

Her breakthrough came with Steven Spielberg’s “The Color Purple” in 1985, and she went on to appear in a series of box-office hits, including “Ghost,” “Sister Act,” and Disney’s “The Lion King.” In television, she has been a regular since 2007 on “The View,” where she is moderator and co-host. Aside from her acting career, Goldberg has been a vocal activist, philanthropist, and businesswoman, using her voice for such causes as LGBT rights, HIV/AIDS activism, and social justice.

Salary

Whoopi’s salary each year for co-hosting “The View” is $6 million.

Whoopi Goldberg was born Caryn Elaine Johnson on November 13, 1955, in New York City. She grew up in Manhattan’s Chelsea-Elliot neighborhood and attended St. Columba’s, a Catholic school. Fighting dyslexia, she later quit high school. In her younger years, she spent a brief time in East Germany, performing in theater productions before settling in Berkeley, California. She worked a succession of odd jobs, including waiting tables and laying bricks, while studying acting via the Blake Street Hawkeyes theatre cooperative. She also taught comedy and acting workshops while developing her craft in experimental theatre.

Film and Television Career

Goldberg made her screen debut in the 1982 experimental film “Citizen: I’m Not Losing My Mind, I’m Giving It Away.” She then created and developed her one-woman stage performance, “Whoopi Goldberg,” in 1983 based on a series of character monologues. The performance moved to Broadway, where it played for 156 performances and earned her national recognition.

Her big break came in 1985 when she was cast by Steven Spielberg as Celie in “The Color Purple.” Her performance led to an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. She played the role of Oda Mae Brown in 1990’s “Ghost” opposite Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore, which won her the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and established her as a leading star.

In 1992, she starred in the box-office hit comedy “Sister Act,” which earned over $200 million and gave rise to the sequel “Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit.” Goldberg was the first African American woman to host the Academy Awards in 1994, later hosting three more instances. She was featured in films such as “Corrina, Corrina,” “The Little Rascals,” and “Boys on the Side” during the 1990s. She also became a regular face in “Star Trek: The Next Generation” as Guinan.

In the 2000s, Goldberg ventured into producing, being executive producer of “Hollywood Squares” from 1998 to 2004. She also appeared in “How Stella Got Her Groove Back,” “Girl, Interrupted,” and “Rat Race.” Subsequent projects were Tyler Perry’s “For Colored Girls” (2010), Pixar’s “Toy Story 3” (2010), and Perry’s “Nobody’s Fool” (2018). She also conceived the Oxygen reality show “Strut” in 2016.

The View

Goldberg came aboard “The View” as moderator in 2007, succeeding Rosie O’Donnell. Her first appearance attracted 3.4 million viewers and raised ratings seven percent. Renowned for frank opinions, she has frequently made headlines, such as for being suspended in 2022 following comments regarding the Holocaust that infuriated critics across the country. Whatever controversies, though, she has been the hub of the show’s personality and was nominated for over 20 Daytime Emmys for her role there.

Other Ventures

Aside from television and acting, Goldberg has written a few books for adults and children. She has maintained stage work, both producing and sometimes acting in Broadway shows, such as a 2010 revival of “Sister Act.” She is an entrepreneur who co-founded Whoopi & Maya, a medical cannabis company catering to women’s health, which closed in 2020. In 2021, she introduced “Emma & Clyde,” a cannabis line in memory of her deceased mother and brother.

Accolades

Goldberg has received over 50 awards throughout her career. Along with her EGOT awards, she received a BAFTA and Golden Globe for “Ghost,” three People’s Choice Awards, and the esteemed Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2001. She was honored as a Disney Legend in 2017 and awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2001. She was reported to have been the highest-paid female actress in Hollywood during one phase of the 1990s.

Activism

Goldberg has been an activist for many years. She protested for LGBTQ rights and AIDS awareness in the 1980s, was awarded GLAAD’s Vanguard Award in 1999, and co-created Cyndi Lauper’s “Give a Damn” campaign in 2010. She also worked for Comic Relief, which raised money for homelessness and health-related issues, and is a member of the advisory council of the National Museum of American Illustration.

Personal Life

Goldberg has been wed three times: Alvin Martin (1973–1979), David Claessen (1986–1988), and Lyle Trachtenberg (1994–1995). She has one child, Alexandrea Martin, who also became an actress and producer. Goldberg was a 34-year-old grandmother, as well as a great-grandmother.

She has spoken publicly about her dyslexia, drug addiction, and PTSD from a plane crash she witnessed in 1978. Goldberg has also spoken publicly about her abortion experience in the anthology “The Choices We Made: Twenty-Five Women and Men Speak Out About Abortion.” She has dated top celebrities Ted Danson and Frank Langella, but said she has no intention of ever marrying again.

Her mother, Emma, passed on in 2010, and her brother, Clyde, also died in 2015.

Real Estate

Throughout her career, Whoopi Goldberg has had a high-end collection of homes in the United States. She bought a Pacific Palisades mansion in Los Angeles in 1993 for an estimated $2.6 million, which she then sold in 2018 for $8.8 million. She also owned a 745-acre estate in Marlboro, Vermont, that she put on the market for sale in 2012 for about $1.5 million. Goldberg previously owned a historic Victorian house in Berkeley, California, which sold in 2015 for slightly more than $2 million, and she had earlier owned a SoHo loft in Manhattan’s 101 Wooster Street building that sold in 2010 for around $3 million.