Narrator: J.K. Rowling is a never-ending
vault of stories, so it's no surprise
that her fortune is similar.
The beloved "Harry Potter" author has done her best
to keep the details of her wealth
under the invisibility cloak,
but as of 2016, the New York Times
estimated her net worth
estimated her net worth at $1.2 billion after taxes.
at $1.2 billion after taxes.
Rowling, who is known to be private when it comes
to sharing financial details,
has denied being a billionaire,
and Forbes estimated her fortune
to be around $650 million in 2017.
Since the series started in 1997,
500 million copies of "Harry Potter" books have
been sold worldwide.
The last book in the series, "Harry Potter
and the Deathly Hallows," broke records
to become the fastest-selling fiction book of all time.
By the New York Times' estimate,
the "Harry Potter" novels have racked
in at least $7.7 billion,
and if J.K. Rowling took a standard authors royalty cut
of 15%, she would have made at least $1.15 billion,
and that's before accounting for the movie series,
which have also grossed $7.7 billion,
and if she received the standard
10 net percent participation,
then she likely earned $770 million.
And 2017 seems to be her best year to date.
10 years after the final "Harry Potter" book
and six years after the final film,
Rowling was the highest paid novelist in the world,
and Forbes ranked her as the third highest paid celebrity,
earning an estimated $95 million that year.
In 2018, she earned another $54 million,
so it's safe to say she hasn't lost any steam.
Rowling kept her fans reading and watching
with the production and script release
of "Harry Potter
and the Cursed Child" in London and New York
and the two "Fantastic Beasts" movies,
and while the new films have grossed far less
than the original series, the first "Fantastic Beasts"
made a worldwide gross of $814 million.
By Forbes' estimate, Rowling still received 10 million
for the less-loved spin-off.
Her magical wizarding world has also been expanded
through Universal Parks and Resorts
"Harry Potter" attractions
in Orlando, LA, and Japan.
Forbes estimates Rowling's received low double-digit
millions from the parks, and she's released
an entirely new book series
under the author name Robert Galbraith.
The first three Cormoran Strike books have sold
1.2 million copies,
earning $9.9 million.
Additionally, Rowling launched
her self-proclaimed "digital
heart of J.K. Rowling's wizarding world" website,
Pottermore, in April 2012.
Pottermore brought in $19 million in revenue in 2016.
Through multiple partnerships
to sell e-books and audiobooks.
Despite her huge success, Rowling's path
to a magical fortune took more
than a snap of her fingers.
In an interview, Rowling told Jon Stewart
that she spent a few years living in the UK
with government assistance as a single mother,
barely avoiding homelessness.
After her success, she says she's now happy
to stay in the UK and pay Britain's top tax rate of 45%.
Discussing taxes, Rowling said, "I'm indebted
to the welfare state.
When my life hit rock bottom, that safety net
was there to break the fall."
Taxes aren't the only way Rowling pays back.
Her charitable donations over the years
have reached at least $150 million.
Rowling founded the Anne Rowling
Regenerative Neurology Clinic
at the University of Edinburgh
with a $16 million contribution.
The clinic's named for her mother, who was diagnosed
with multiple sclerosis and passed away
before Rowling became a published author.
She's founded an international
children's rights organization,
the Lumos Foundation,
as well as the Volant Charitable Trust
to alleviate social deprivation across Scotland.
But it's worth asking: how does the author treat herself?
Well, she owns homes in Edinburgh, Perthshire,
and Kensington. Rowling sold her 19th century
Victorian mansion in 2012 for over $3.6 million.
She and her husband, Neil Murray,
had two interlinked, Hogwarts-like tree houses
for their children built in the yard
of their Edinburgh home for about $330,000.
The couple had to apply for planning permission
in order to knock down a $1.3 million house next door
to make room for the tree house.
And with countless movie premieres to attend,
Rowling splurges on designer dresses,
like this spring 2011 Oscar de la Renta gown.
With a third "Fantastic Beasts" movie
set for a 2020 release
and surely more lucrative projects on the horizon,
it seems J.K. Rowling and her fortune
aren't going to disappear.