| Real Name: | Gabourey Sidibe |
| Birthday: | May 6, 1983 |
| Net Worth: | $6 million |
| Height: | 165 cm |
| Occupation: | American Actress |
Gabourey Sidibe is an American actress famous for her role in the movie Precious and The TV show Empire. Gabourey has a few more acting jobs and appearances contributing to her wealth.
Let’s take a look at her career path, earnings, and life journey. As of June 2020, Gabourey Sidibe’s wealth is over $6 million.
Career Summary
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Gabourey spent her early days in Harlem. Her mother was an R&B and gospel singer. Alice Tan Ridley appeared on the fifth season of America’s Got Talent in June 2010. Her father is from Senegal and drives a cab.
Sidibe lived with her aunt, a noted feminist activist. Gabourey got an associate degree from Borough of Manhattan Community College. Before starting her acting career, she worked as a receptionist in The Fresh Air Fund’s office.
Sidibe got her acting debut in the movie Precious. She played the main character, Claireece Precious Jones, a 16-year old mother of two kids. The movie got her a few nominations and awards, including a Golden Globe nomination. She also got an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.
Following her acting debut in Precious, Gabourey appeared in the movies Yelling to the Sky, Tower Heist, and more.
In April 2013, she joined the cast of the third season of American Horror Story. She portrayed Queenie, a young witch. Sidibe returned to the show for the fourth season as well, this time as a secretarial school student, Regina Ross.
In 2015, she joined the cast of the Fox musical series, Empire. Portraying Becky Williams is her biggest success since Precious. This role also helped her land a couple of television awards nominations.
In the first season, she had a minimal role, but slowly her character got more and more time on the screen. So far, Gabourey portrayed Becky Williams in 90 episodes of Empire.
In the meantime, she starred in the Hulu series Difficult People. On January 6, 2016, she appeared in the penultimate episode of American Horror Story: Hotel, reprising her Queenie character. She sat out the next two seasons Roanoke and Cult, before returning to the show in 2018. Again, she appeared as the character Queenie in the eighth season of the show, Apocalypse.
In June 2015, Sidibe announced she will write a memoir and publish it in 2017.
Awards and Achievements
Before getting to the world of Hollywood, a critic told Gabourey to quit. He told her Hollywood is so much appearance and looks, and less talent. Well, Sidibe is a true example that you can make it in Hollywood no matter the looks. Beauty is not how you look but who you are from the inside. The American actress embraced diversities and faced them with courage.
That is how she won the Independent Spirit Awards for Best Actress for her appearance in Precious. She also won Best Actress Award at Black Reel Awards and Boston Society of Film Critics.
Her role in Precious also earned her a Golden Globe and Academy Award nomination.
How a Movie Changed Her Life
Precious is her biggest role to date. And it is the movie responsible for her life journey and career path. Before joining the movie, she worked as a phone sex operator. Gabourey was 24 years old. Precious was her first acting role.
Nowadays, she says “It had better change my life for the better. That’s what I prayed for”. And the movie managed to do that. She got Golden Globe and Academy Award nomination. And it showed the world her talent.
Yet, financial success didn’t come with the success of the movie. In her memoirs, Gabourey writes that the movie earned her only $30,000. And she spent them as fast as possible. Sidibe used the money to get out of credit card debt. People didn’t believe her when she called them to clear her credit cards. But Precious helped Gabourey pay off her debt.
Today she is financially stable and enjoys the attention that comes with fame and popularity. While she wears her weight proudly, she finally got weight loss surgery. Gabourey kept the procedure a secret from her family, manager, and agents.
How She Lost Weight
In 2019, fans noticed a slimmed-down body after a steady stream of Instagram selfies. And it was all thanks to surgery and a new program. Three years before she underwent laparoscopic bariatric surgery.
And she decided to go under the knife because of her brother. She lost 60 pounds before but gained it back. And when her brother got diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, she knew it was time.
In her memoirs, Sidibe writes about the procedure. Her surgeon told her they will cut her stomach in half. That would limit her hunger and capacity to eat.
After the surgery, she completely changed her lifelong relationship with food. Her brain started to ask for healthier food.
Net Worth, Earnings and Income
Gabourey Sidibe’s cash flow is more than $6 million as of June 2020. She earned most of her money through movies and television shows. We said before Precious paid her only $30,000. And she used the money to pay off her credit card debt. But getting award nominations helped her raise her fee/salary and ask for more.
From 2010 to 2013 Sidibe played the main character in American Horror Story. She then reprised her role in 2016 and 2018.
And since 2015, she stars in the Fox musical drama series Empire. In the first season, Sidibe was a small character. But she got promoted to series regular starting from season two.
According to Variety, the main cast members of Empire, Terrence Howard, and Taraji P. Henson earn up to $175,000 per episode. Gabourey earns a bit less. We can assume she banks up to $100,000 per episode, which is not a small number.
Personal Life
In March 2017, Sidibe disclosed her Type 2 diabetes diagnosis. As a consequence, she underwent laparoscopic bariatric surgery to manage her weight.
Gabourey is not married. She is in a relationship with Brandon Frankel for almost a year as of June 2020.
