| Real Name: | Mark Sinclair |
| Birthday: | July 18, 1967 |
| Net Worth: | $200 million |
| Height: | 182 cm |
| Occupation: | American Actor, Producer, Director, Screenwriter |
Most of us recognize Vin Diesel as the star of the Fast and Furious franchise. But he is also part of the Marvel Universe. Diesel voices Groot, a fictional character from Guardians of the Galaxy. And he says only three words, “I Am Groot”. Well, for those three words, Vin Diesel gets paid millions.
Born as Mark Sinclair in 1967, Vin Diesel is an American actor, producer, director, and screenwriter. Diesel started his career in 1990. In the beginning, he struggled to gain roles. But then he wrote, directed, and produced his short movie Multi-Facial. The rest is history. Let’s take a look at his career journey, path, and earnings.
Career Summary
As we said before, Vin Diesel started his career in 1990. His first appearance was in the drama movie Awakening. He didn’t get credit for the movie. For the next few years, he struggled to get a solid role.
So, Diesel decided to make his own destiny. He wrote, directed, produced, and starred in the short movie Multi-Facial in 1995. The movie attracted the attention of Steven Spielberg. The famous Hollywood director was in the process of developing Saving Private Ryan. He re-wrote some elements to allow Diesel to appear.
The muscular actor had only a small role as a soldier in the Oscar-winning movie. But from there, his career took off. In 1999, he voiced the title character in the animate movie The Iron Giant.
2000 was a successful year for Mark. He got a breakthrough leading role as Riddick in the science-fiction movie Pitch Black. And in 2001, he got the title character in The Fast and the Furious. The movie was an instant success.
Since the first Fast and the Furious, there are several movies. Some fans watch them in the order they got released, while others watch them in the story order. Fun Fact: Vin Diesel turned down the offer to reprise his role in 2 Fast 2 Furious in 2003. Instead, he reprised his role as Riddick in The Chronicles of Riddick. It was a box office failure.
In the next few years, he appeared in some light comedy movies, including The Pacifier. And in 2006, he appeared in a dramatic role real-life mobster in Find Me Guilty. Vin Diesel had only a cameo appearance in The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift
In 2009, Diesel finally returned to the Fast and Furious franchise. He reprised his role in installments five through eight. He will also star in the Fast and Furious 9, a movie that got delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Since 2014, Vin joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He got his first taste of the MCU in the 2014 Guardians of the Galaxy movie. He voiced Groot, a tree-like character who says only three words “I Am Groot”. He reprised the role in the sequel of the movie, as well as the crossover Infinity Wars and End Game movies.
In the following years, Vin Diesel will portray Bloodshot. He is also set to join the cast of Avatar 2 and 3. The second and third installments of the Avatar franchise will appear in 2021 and 2023.
Box Office Success
As of June 2020, Vin Diesel’s assets are estimated at $200 million. Looking at the box office success of his movies, one might think he has even more money. Here are some huge box office winners in which Diesel starred.
- The Fate of the Furious earned $1.2 billion
- Fast & Furious earned $363 million
- Fast Five earned $626 million
- XXX: The Return of Xander Cage earned $346 million
- Fast & Furious 6 earned $788 million
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 earned $863 million
- Avengers: End Game earned $2.8 billion
- Avengers: Infinity War earned $2 billion
- Ralph Breaks the Internet earned $529 million
- Saving Private Ryan earned $480 million
- Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw earned $760 million
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1 Earned $770 million
The majority of his paychecks come from the Fast and Furious franchise. He earned just $2 million for the first movie. But since then, his paycheck went up to $20 million for the Furious 7 movie.
And then there is Groot. The Marvel movies are an instant box office hit. Producers keep it a secret how much Vin Diesel earns for saying “I Am Groot”. And you might think it is easy. But it is not. Diesel goes into the studio with 50 different page documents explaining what the phrase I Am Groot means in the specific situation.
So far, his movies grossed more than $7 billion worldwide. In 2015, Diesel made $47 million and got the third highest-paid actor title. In 2017, he earned $54 million, and again got the third highest-paid actor of the year title.
Personal Life
In 2006, Vin Diesel said he prefers to maintain privacy about his personal life. He doesn’t want to put it on a magazine cover. He says he is from the Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, and Robert de Niro code of silence actors.
We know little about his personal life. In 2001, he dated Fast and Furious co-star Michelle Rodriguez. Since 2007, he dates Mexican model Paloma Jimenez. They have three children together. He named his last daughter Pauline in honor of his co-star Paul Walker.
Vin Diesel’s signature feature is his deep voice. The actor says his voice broke at the age of 15, giving him a mature-sounding voice.
Fun fact: Vin Diesel is a huge fan of Dungeons & Dragons fantasy game. He plays it for more than 30 years. And he even wrote the foreword for the commemorative book 30 Years of Adventure: A Celebration of Dungeons & Dragons.
Real Estate
Vin Diesel’s wealth is over $200 million. And he loves living like a millionaire. He purchased 1,517 square foot home in February 2000. But he listed the two-bedroom and three-bathroom home in 2016. With three kids, the place got small for him.
