The world’s richest actor has finally addressed the story people keep repeating about how she ended up with a fortune of around $3 billion.

When people talk about wealthy actors, they usually think of huge movie deals, massive back-end payouts, and long careers filled with blockbuster hits.

For example, Keanu Reeves is often mentioned as one of the highest-paid actors, with reports saying he landed a deal worth about $156,000,000 for The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions.

Tom Cruise also sits near the top of the list, with paydays that can go beyond $100 million for certain projects, especially when he gets a percentage of the profits.

Robert Downey Jr. is another big name, after earning multiple deals worth tens of millions for his work across the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which turned into one of the biggest franchises in entertainment history.

But if someone wants to see truly massive wealth connected to acting, it helps to look outside of Hollywood too, like Bollywood, where Shah Rukh Khan reportedly has a net worth of around $1.4 billion, according to the BBC, which puts even stars like Tom Cruise at roughly $600 million into perspective.

Even with those numbers, though, Khan still doesn’t take the top spot when it comes to the richest actor on the planet.

Gertz had a successful acting career, but that’s not where she made most of her fortuneParas Griffin/Getty Images for STARZ

That title is often linked to Jami Gertz, an actor who built her name in TV and film and is now estimated to be worth around $3 billion.

Gertz has worked steadily in entertainment for years, with roles in shows like Ally McBeal and Square Pegs, and she stayed familiar to audiences through a mix of TV appearances and movie work.

Still, while her acting career is real and long-running, the bigger part of her wealth comes from business success tied to investments and ownership ventures she shares with her husband, including holding stakes connected to the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks.

Over time, people started pushing a simple theory online, claiming she only became a billionaire because she married into money.

Gertz has spoken about those assumptions before, and she made it clear she doesn’t like the way her story gets reduced to one lazy explanation.

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, she said: “Everyone thinks I married a rich guy.”

“But I made more money – way more money – than Tony when I met him.”

“I paid for our first house. I paid for our first vacation. I married him because I fell in love with him.”

She also pointed out that her life doesn’t fit the usual script people expect from someone in the spotlight, and she understands why some people don’t know what to do with that.

The actor and businesswoman previously said: “I get it. It’s not your everyday Hollywood actress tale.”

Gertz owns a large stake in the Atlanta Hawks basketball teamAllen Berezovsky/Getty Images

Gertz was born in Chicago, and she later became a familiar face for Atlanta Hawks fans too, especially when she appeared as the team’s ambassador at the NBA Draft Lottery in 2018, which caught many viewers off guard.

Some fans didn’t recognize her right away, while others were surprised to learn she played a real role in the organization beyond just being a celebrity connected to ownership.

Her husband, Tony Ressler, also spoke about how involved she is behind the scenes and how she helps shape decisions in ways many people don’t see from the outside.

Ressler said: “I’m very active on the business and player personnel decision‑making. But Jami steps in when it comes to so many parts of the business that I did not appreciate or have any experience in.”

Ressler is an investment banker who co-founded Apollo Global Management and later launched Ares Management, which helped build the kind of wealth that reaches far beyond entertainment paychecks.

He also praised the way she connects with the team’s audience and the broader community, suggesting her presence matters more than people assume.

Speaking about Gertz, he said: “I think it’s fair to say that she makes a better impression on our fan base than any of us in the organization.”