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Larry David's Net Worth In 2024 Is Pretty, Pretty Good! How He Made a Fortune From 'Seinfeld' and 'Curb Your Enthusiasm'
If we had Larry David's net worth, we'd have a hard time curbing our enthusiasm about it. The Curb Your Enthusiasm star and Seinfeld creator, however, is unamused and unimpressed by his material wealth—and also hates discussing it.
"I don't have anything near what I'm reputed to have. My wife got half of it, the whole thing is ridiculous, and yet people are obsessed with the fact that I've made millions of dollars from syndication," he griped to Rolling Stone in 2011. "It's okay for all these other people you've interviewed to have it, but not me? Jerry's not getting asked about how much money he has. Only I am. It comes down to, 'Jerry deserves it, he starred in it, you got lucky!'… It doesn't suit me, that's why, it's uncharacteristic for a person with my personality to have it, that's what's askew, right? Something's off, and I agree with you. I shouldn't! It's an anomaly!"
We think he earned his fortune fair and square. Here's Larry David's net worth, how he amassed it—and how much it's estimated to be.
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How did Larry David get famous?
David was born and raised in Brooklyn and attended the University of Maryland College Park, getting his bachelor's degree in history. After college, he served for five years in the Army Reserve.
Once discharged, David pursued standup comedy while working a series of odd jobs to make ends meet. In 1980, David got his first comedy writing and acting job for the ABC variety show Fridays. He met Michael Richards while working on the show, which ended in 1982. In 1984, David wrote for Saturday Night Live, meeting Julia Louis-Dreyfus on that show. David then wrote for and performed in Way Off Broadway, a Lifetime show also featuring future co-host of The View Joy Behar.
David and Jerry Seinfeld first developed the concept for Seinfeld in 1989, working up a pilot called The Seinfeld Chronicles. NBC picked up the show—and the rest is history.
What is Larry David's net worth in 2024?
Larry David's net worth in 2024 is estimated at a whopping $450 million. However, David himself has said that many estimates of his fortune are "ridiculous" and "absurd." He also noted in an interview with CBS News that he lost about half of his wealth following his 2007 divorce.
"It's unseemly, I don't have that kind of money!" he said. When asked if he was upset that his ex-wife, Laurie David, got so much money in their split, he was incredibly compassionate and diplomatic. "No, after what I put her through I want her to be happy," he admitted. "It's not an easy job to be with me. I don't think of other people."
Related: Larry David on Bringing Curb Your Enthusiasm Back, Playing Bernie Sanders and More
Is Larry David richer than Jerry Seinfeld?
David is not nearly as rich as Seinfeld: The comedian, actor and beloved sitcom namesake is worth a massive $925 million according to Celebrity Net Worth. This is thanks obviously to Seinfeld and its residuals: He isn't just paid for creating, producing and writing in the series, but also for starring in every episode of his eponymous show, giving him a monetary leg up over David. (David also stepped down from the series after its seventh season, although he returned to write the much-maligned series finale.) Like David, Seinfeld earned $75 million for selling Seinfeld to Netflix in 2019.
How is Larry David so rich?
David's wealth comes largely from Seinfeld, which he co-created, wrote, produced and occasionally appeared in, as well as the syndication from the series: As of 2013, Seinfeld reportedly netted over $3 billion in syndication earnings. While Seinfeld was in production, David and the titular star each had a 7.5 percent back-end share (similar to box office points for movies), which increased to 15 percent during the series' peak. In 1998, Seinfeld was sold to syndication for a whopping $1.7 billion, netting David a massive $250 million. In 2015, when Hulu obtained streaming rights for Seinfeld, he made $80 million, plus another $75 million just four years later when Netflix got streaming rights to the series, per The Hollywood Reporter.
Curb Your Enthusiasm also made David wealthier. That said, the comic-genius curmudgeon isn't thrilled to speak publicly about his earnings, nor the speculated estimates of his fortune.
Are Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld still friends?
Seinfeld and David are still close pals despite David's exit from Seinfeld. In 2012, David appeared on Seinfeld's show Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee, in which they looked back fondly on their iconic sitcom days. Seinfeld (and the rest of the Seinfeld cast) have also appeared on Curb Your Enthusiasm.
Is Larry David rich in Curb Your Enthusiasm?
David's character on Curb Your Enthusiasm is a fictionalized version of himself post-Seinfeld. As such, his Curb character is, in fact, quite wealthy. David told Rolling Stone that he wishes he were more like his onscreen persona, joking, "The character really is me, but I just couldn't possibly behave like that. If I had my druthers, that would be me all the time, but you can't do that. We're always doing things we don't want to do, we never say what we really feel, and so this is an idealized version of how I want to be. As crazy as this person is, I could step into those shoes right now, but I would be arrested or I'd be hit or whatever."
Is Larry David married in real life?
David was married to wife Laurie from 1993 until 2007; she is the ex-wife he mentions when discussing losing some of his Seinfeld fortune in his divorce. He and Laurie share daughters Romy and Cazzie David. In 2020, Larry married Ashley Underwood after dating for several years. They met at a birthday party in 2017 for Sacha Baron Cohen.
How much money does Larry David make from Seinfeld reruns?
The bulk of David's fortune comes from Seinfeld reruns, syndication and streaming rights. In 1998, the show's syndication rights sold for a then-unheard of $1.7 billion, with David getting a massive $250 million payday. Hulu obtained streaming rights for Seinfeld, netting David $80 million in 2015. In 2019, when Netflix acquired streaming rights to Seinfeld, David reportedly got $75 million in the deal.
Related: Seinfeld Turns 30! Celebrate the Sitcom About Nothing With Over 100 Quotes from the Show
Was Larry David ever in a Seinfeld episode?
David has appeared in five Seinfeld episodes, but never for long.
His first onscreen appearance was in Season 2, Episode 23, "The Heart Attack." While Jerry watches a film on TV, The Flaming Globes of Sigmund, the film-within-the-show stars David, wearing a silver costume and speaking with a thick, cartoonish Austrian accent. David next appeared in Season 4, Episode 2, "The Trip Part 2." Season 4 took place in California, when the group moves to Hollywood to pursue various ventures; David plays one of Kramer's neighbors.
In Season 4, Episode 23, "The Pilot," David appears in an uncredited role as a Greenpeace volunteer on a raft.
David had a memorable role as George Costanza's caped-crusader lawyer in Season 6, Episode 4, "The Chinese Woman."
David's last appearance onscreen in Seinfeld is in Season 7, Episode 10, "The Gum." David plays a street vendor who doesn't accept Costanza's cash. In addition to his visual onscreen appearances, David provided his voice to numerous episodes, often as George Steinbrenner. You can see and hear his most memorable moments below.
Why did Larry David quit Seinfeld?
David felt immense pressure to make Seinfeld great. Seinfeld said that every season around episode 13 or 14, David would say he didn't want to do it anymore, but that he'd always talk David back into it. However, David recalled that around 1996, he really did feel done and hoped that everyone else felt the same way that he did—but he was alone in his desire to walk away from the series.
"[David] always saw the doing of Seinfeld as a very stressful thing. If it broke, it was going to be he and Jerry that broke it, but I think he took on more of that responsibility," Alexander revealed on the WTF With Marc Maron podcast in 2018.
David admitted that when the first episode of Seinfeld filmed without him, he had second thoughts about leaving, but got over it relatively quickly, especially after returning to voice Steinbrenner.
How much does Larry David make a year?
Thanks to syndication, royalties, merchandise and video sales, David makes an estimated $40 million to $50 million per year from Seinfeld alone.
