Taraji P. Henson Net Worth: How Much Does She Make?
A talented actress and singer, Taraji P. Henson has a net worth of $12 million. Her career has been a combination of talent, versatility, and determination. Her film debut came in “Streetwise” (1998), and her roles in “Hustle & Flow” (2005) and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (2008) earned her nomination for Best Supporting Actress in the Academy Awards. A major box-office success and critical acclaim were earned by her portrayal of Katherine Johnson in “Hidden Figures” in 2016.
The television career of Henson is equally impressive. Her co-starring roles in CBS dramas “Person of Interest” from 2011 to 2013 and Fox dramas “Empire” from 2015 to 2020 are both impressive.
In 2015, she received a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama for her portrayal of Cookie Lyon, as well as Primetime Emmy nominations. As a guest star in “Abbott Elementary” (2023) and as a role in “Taken from Me: The Tiffany Rubin Story”, she also received Emmy nominations .
She was listed in 2016 as one of Time’s 100 most influential people, recognizing her impact both on and off the screen. A New York Times bestseller, “Around the Way Girl,” further demonstrated her diverse talents that same year. Having received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2019, Henson has been an icon in the entertainment industry for decades.
Aside from producing and hosting holiday specials for Fox, Henson has starred in notable films such as “Proud Mary” (2018), “Tyler Perry’s Acrimony” (2018), “Ralph Breaks the Internet” (2018), and “What Men Want” (2019). She demonstrated a skill for taking on challenging and transformative roles in “The Best of Enemies” (2019) as civil rights activist Ann Atwater.
Taraji P. Henson Net Worth: Salary list
Taraji P. Henson’s known salaries are as follows:
- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008) – $150,000
- The Family That Preys (2008) – $500 000
- Empire (2015-2020) – $175,000 per episode
As part of her career, Taraji has always spoken out about Hollywood salary disparities. Taraji was the third-billed actor on the cast of the 2008 film “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” behind Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett, who both earned salaries between $5-10 million. She was initially offered $100,000 for the role. However, she rejected the studio’s initial offer and sought $500,000.
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After the studio agreed on $150,000, Taraji revealed that after taxes and a significant portion to her managers and agents, she only netted $40,000 for her work on the movie. In a 2021 interview with “The Real,” Taraji discussed the salary she earned for Benjamin Button:
“When you start making that kind of money, Uncle Sam takes 50 percent, so let’s do the math. So that leaves me with 75 [thousand], then I have to pay another thirty percent to my team who did all the work to get me that job. So, I don’t pay them 30 percent of the 75 [thousand], no, no, no, I pay them 30 percent of the 150 [thousand]. So what does that compute to?“
Tyler Perry paid Taraji $500,000 for her role in “The Family That Preys” in 2008.
Using Taraji’s previous math, she would have earned roughly $4.65 million if she earned $175,000 per episode for the show’s entire run, 102 episodes.
What are Taraji P. Henson’s earnings?
Aside from her lucrative acting career, Taraji P. Henson makes a substantial amount of money from endorsements and strategic investments.
Acting
Henson earns most of her income through her successful acting career. She gained fame for her performances in Baby Boy, Hustle & Flow, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Among the films that contribute to Henson’s net worth are Hidden Figures and What Men Want, as well as her role as Cookie Lyon in Empire, earning $175,000 per episode.
Endorsements
MAC Cosmetics, where Taraji P. Henson launched a limited-edition makeup collection based on her iconic characters, is another major source of income for Taraji P. Henson through endorsements. Besides generating substantial revenue and enhancing her public image, these collaborations provide a lucrative revenue stream that complements her acting earnings.
Investing
The actress has also made smart investments in her money to make her wealth grow. Her portfolio consists of stocks, bonds, and real estate, which diversifies her income and ensures financial stability. She owns a $6.45 million mansion in the Hollywood Hills and a condo in Chicago. Additionally, her production company, TPH Entertainment, produces films and TV shows that amplify diverse voices, highlighting her entrepreneurial spirit.
The Early Years
Her grandmother and two siblings were especially close to Taraji Penda Henson when she was born in Washington, D.C. on September 11th, 1970. It is said that Taraji means hope in Swahili, whereas Penda means love.
Henson graduated from high school in 1988, and after attending North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, she studied electrical engineering there. A number of jobs paid for her tuition, including those at the Pentagon and aboard cruise ships, as she paid for her acting education at Howard University.
The career path
Her first break came when she played Tyrese Gibson in the 2001 film Baby Boy, which put her on the map, and in 2005 she appeared in Hustle & Flow.
Multiple awards were won for the film, in which she played the love interest of the main character.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button was her first film to be nominated for Best Supporting Actress in 2008. Her next film was Tyler Perry’s The Family That Preys, followed by I Can Do Bad All By Myself in 2009. Despite poor reviews, the remake of The Karate Kid in 2010 was a commercial success.
After her Emmy Award-winning performance in Taken From Me: Tiffany Rubin Story, Henson appeared in Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man in 2012 and its sequel in 2014. She is perhaps best known for her 2016 film Hidden Figures, which has received many awards nominations. In 2018, Taraji P. Henson starred in films like Proud Mary and Acrimony before taking on a voice role in Disney’s Ralph Breaks The Internet.
Over the years, Henson has appeared in a wide variety of television shows, including the reboot of Mel Gibson’s film What Women Want. Henson was a guest star on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and House, as well as recurring roles on shows like The Division and Boston Legal. She is perhaps most famous for her recurring roles on Empire. As a result of her work on Empire, Taraji P. Henson won the Golden Globe for Best Actress in 2016, showing her wide recognition for her acting abilities.
Personal Life
A 1994-born son, Marcell, is the son of Henson, whose father died in 2003. In 2014, the police detained her son, who was found in his car marijuana and Ritalin without a prescription. Henson initially complained that her son was racially profiled, but retracted her statements and apologized to police shortly afterward.
She had previously appeared nude for PETA in 2011 and later in 2013 (non-nude) in an effort to avoid developing stomach cancer.
Real Estate
Her condo in Chicago was purchased in May 2015 for $1.5 million. She sold it in 2018 for about the same amount as she paid. In 2017, she purchased two units in the same building and listed them in August 2024 for $3.3 million. One unit could also be purchased for $1.9 million and the other for $1.4 million.
Her first property, in Glendale, was purchased in 2002 for $431,000. In 2016, Taraji purchased a mansion in the hills above Hollywood for $6.45 million.
