Ben Stiller | How Zoolander lives and how he spends his millions

Ben Stiller is an American actor, director,  screenwriter, and producer. Stiller has won   the hearts of many people with his unique  comedic and directorial skills, becoming   one of the leading Hollywood entertainers.  In this video, you’ll learn about the life   of the popular comedy film star. Ben Stiller — how Zoolander  

Lives and how he spends his millions Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller was born   on November 30, 1965, in New York. His father,  Jerry Stiller, was a comedian coming from a   Polish Jewish family. His mother, Anne Meara, was  an Irish Catholic but she converted to Judaism  

After marrying Jerry. Although our hero’s  parents didn’t stick to all religious rules,   they still celebrated Hanukkah and Christmas.  The family also celebrated Benjamin’s Bar   Mitzvah (a ceremony commemorating a person’s  spiritual maturity). The Stillers already had a   four-year-old daughter Amy when Benjamin was born.  The parents often brought their kids on set so  

It’s no surprise they decided to follow in their  parents’ footsteps and pursue an acting career. Ben showed interest in cinema production  at an early age. He used to shoot movies   on real 8mm film with his sister  and friends when they were kids.

At 9 years old, Ben made his on-screen debut as a  guest star in the TV series Kate McShane in which   his mother also starred. In the late ‘70s, he  performed with the New York City youth troupe  

NYC’s First All Children’s Theater. At the same  time, he went to the Cathedral School of St. John   the Divine. Then he attended the Calhoun School  which he graduated in 1983 knowing he wanted   to do sketch comedy. The popular TV show Second  City Television inspired him to choose this path.

By the way, music was another hobby he had in high  school — he was a drummer for the post-punk band   “Capital Punishment”. Even though the band didn’t  make it to the top, the members made themselves   names in other spheres. The group reunited for  their 30th high school graduation anniversary.  

Soon after that, they released the mini-album  “This is Capital Punishment” to celebrate it. After finishing high school, Ben performed  as an opening act to Jadin Wong, a burlesque   artist. Then he enrolled at the film school at  the University of California in Los Angeles,  

But he dropped out nine months later  and came back to New York. There he   signed up for acting classes, went to  auditions, and tried to find an agent.   In the summer, he worked as a waiter in  a restaurant frequented by celebrities.

Apart from cinema, the young artist was also  into theater. You could say that his acting   journey started on the theater stage. Benjamin  managed to grab critics’ attention with his   performance in a production of The House of Blue  Leaves by John Guare. He shared the stage with  

John Mahoney. The production was a success and  received four Tony Awards. Many years later,   Stiller was cast in another production  of the play, only for a different role. At the same period, the actor decided to  try his hand at directing and filmed the  

10-minute mockumentary The Hustler of  Money. The parody of Martin Scorsesee’s   film The Color Of Money was featured in one of  the episodes of the TV show Saturday Night Live. Meanwhile, our hero appeared in episodes of the  TV series Miami Vice and American Playhouse.  

During that time, the up-and-coming actor made  his debut on the silver screen: he was cast in   the adventure movie Hot Pursuit and the war  drama Empire of the Sun by Steven Spielberg. In 1988, Ben played a supporting role  in the drama Fresh Horses. A year later,  

He appeared in the comedy That’s  Adequate, the action movie Next of Kin,   and the short comedy film Elvis  Stories which he also wrote. During that time, he also joined  the crew of the TV show Saturday   Night Live as host and writer. However  the show executives didn’t want Stiller  

To keep on doing short films,  so he left after four episodes. In the early ‘90s, Ben’s filmography was  enriched by roles in the drama Stella,   the comedy TV film Working Tra$h, and the  adventure movie Highway to Hell. He also  

Shot a music video for the song “Going Back to  Brooklyn” starring the comedian Colin Quinn.  Back at the time, it was rumored that he dated  the actress Janeane Garofalo. After that,   he was in a relationship with  Jeanne Tripplehorn. The couple  

Even got engaged but there was never  a wedding as they broke up in 1996.  In 1992, Stiller made a short uncredited  appearance in the comedy The Nutt House.   He also created the sketch comedy show The Ben  Stiller Show and became its writer, director,  

And producer. The show aired on MTV for a year  and then moved to Fox. Together with Judd Apatow,   another comedian who worked on the show,  they put together a small cast. Amy,   the elder sister of our hero, was a frequent guest  on the show. Among numerous guest stars, there  

Were even their parents. Despite being a hit with  critics, the show often got low ratings. After   the show was closed, it received an Emmy Award for  Outstanding Writing in a Variety or Music Program. In 1993, he did his first voiceover gig:  his voice appeared in an episode of the  

Animated family TV series 2 Stupid Dogs  and an episode of the sitcom Frasier.  After that, Ben played a leading role in  the romcom Reality Bites which he also   directed. His mother Anne Meara was cast in the  project as well. The movie was filmed in Austin,  

Huston, in 42 days and was  welcomed by the audience. In the mid-‘90s, Stiller played the leading  role in the kid’s comedy movie Heavyweights.   He also voiced an episode of the animated  sitcom Duckman: Private Dick/Family Man.  In 1996, the actor appeared in the romantic movie  If Lucy Fell, the comedy Flirting with Disaster,  

Episodes of the comedy TV sitcom Mr. Show with  Bob and David and the TV show NewsRadio. Apart   from that, he made a cameo as a manager  in the romcom Happy Gilmore and kept on   the directorial work filming the movie The  Cable Guy starring Jim Carrey. At first,  

Stiller wanted to play the main role  of the Cable Guy himself, but he ended   up with another role. The movie received mixed  reviews but there was still a win for Stiller:   he linked with Jack Black and Owen Wilson, members  of a group of comedian actors referred to as Frat  

Pack. Luke Wilson, Will Ferrell, Vince Vaughn,  and Steve Carell are also a part of the group. Meanwhile, MTV invited our hero to host the  VH1 Fashion Awards. He filmed a sketch about   a male model named Derek Zoolander.  Since the audience loved the sketch,  

The actor brought the character back for  another sketch at the 1997 VH1 Fashion Awards,   which became a prototype of a feature  film that went out later. Apart from that,   Ben was a guest star in the television sitcom The  Larry Sanders Show and the iconic sitcom Friends.

In 1998, Stiller co-starred with Cameron Diaz  in the film by the Farrelly brothers There’s   Something About Mary. He got $3 million  for the role, an MTV Award for Best Fight,   and three more nominations. By the way, the artist  says this is his favorite movie he starred in.

That same year, he appeared in  the detective film Zero Effect,   dramedies Your Friends and Neighbors  and Permanent Midnight. He also voiced   an episode of the animated TV comedy  series Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist. Meanwhile, Stiller founded the production company  “Red Hour Productions” with the producer Stuart  

Cornfeld. As for personal life, back at the  time, Ben dated the actress Amanda Peet,   but their relationship wasn’t serious and  lasted only a few months. Nevertheless,   they are apparently still friends. He also had  a relationship with model Rhea Durham. In 1999,   according to rumors, the actor had  a fling with Calista Flockhart.

Meanwhile, he appeared in the dramedy The  Suburbans, the criminal drama Black and White,   and the action fantasy comedy Mystery Men.  Ben also voiced the main character in the   animated movie Hooves of Fire and went  back to directing with a parody TV series  

Heat Vision and Jack for the Fox channel. The  project was canceled after the pilot aired. On the bright side, Benjamin  met the love of his life while   working on the project — actress  Christine Taylor. That same year,   the actor spoke out about living with bipolar  disorder in an interview for the first time.

In 2000, Stiller was cast in the comedy The  Independent, the romcom Keeping the Faith,   and the music video for Limp Bizkit’s  “Air Raid Vehicle”. MTV wanted Ben to   create another short film and he came up with  Mission:Improbable: a parody of Tom Cruise  

In Mission Impossible 2 and his other movies. Apart from that, he made a cameo in an episode of   the comedy TV show Freaks and Geeks and portrayed  one of his most famous roles: male nurse Gaylord   “Greg” Focker in the romcom Meet the Parents.  Jay Roach’s movie was welcomed by critics and  

Grossed more than $330 million with a budget  of $55 million. The cast was nominated for an   MTV Award for Best On-Screen Team, while Stiller  received the award for Best Comedic Performance. May 13 was a special day in the life  of our hero as he married his love,  

Christine Taylor. The wedding  ceremony took place in Kauai,   Hawaii. The love birds spent their  honeymoon in Indonesia and Australia. In 2001, Stiller shot his third feature film,   the comedy Zoolander where he played Derek  Zoolander. The movie, which Ben also produced,  

Was banned in Malaysia as it depicted a  plan to assassinate the prime minister of   the country. He received a paycheck of $2.5  million and three MTV Awards nominations. Fun fact: Stiller Sr. also appeared in the movie.  He jokingly complained about his son treating him  

Like a regular actor on set, but at the same time,  he was proud of his son being so professional. The   signature Ben Stiller look with pursed lips was  inspired by real life. It was a face he used to  

Make every time he looked in the mirror and  fixed his hair or something like that. It was   not until Ben’s wife pointed this idiosyncrasy  out that he decided to use it in the comedy.  After that, Ben co-starred with Owen Wilson in  Wes Anderson’s project The Royal Tenenbaums.

That same year, Ben went on the game show Who  Wants to Be a Millionaire and won $32 thousand for   a charity Project ALS (amyotrophic  lateral sclerosis) that he advocates for. Then, viewers could witness the actor in the  youth comedy Orange County and an episode of  

The sitcom Undeclared. During that time, the  actor also voiced an episode of The Simpsons,   the animated film Legend of the Lost  Tribe, three episodes of the adventure   animated TV series Liberty’s Kids, and made  a cameo in the TV show The King of Queens.

On April 9, 2002, Stiller tried himself in a  whole new role — he became a father to a baby   girl whom the happy parents named Ella Olivia. In 2003, the new father produced the black   comedy Duplex which he also starred  in. He was also an executive producer  

For the comedy Crooked Lines and made a short  appearance in the movie Nobody Knows Anything! In 2004, Stiller was nominated for Worst Actor  at the Golden Raspberry Award for five movies   out of six he appeared in: Along Came Polly,  Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Envy,  

Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, and Starsky &  Hutch. By the way, he produced two of the latter   projects. However, MTV acknowledged  Stiller’s performance in Dodgeball:   A True Underdog Story with an Award for Best  Villain. MTV also nominated the movie Along  

Came Polly for Best Dance Sequence and the  cast of Starsky & Hutch for Best On-Screen   Team. The comedy Meet the Fockers was another  success and earned the actor $10 million.  That same year, he voiced an episode of  the animated TV series King of the Hill  

And appeared as a guest star in the TV shows  Curb Your Enthusiasm and Arrested Development.  In 2005, Benjamin and his wife Christine  welcomed their second child together,   a son they named Quinlin Dempsey. Our hero  also voiced a character in the animated movie  

Madagascar. Meanwhile, he appeared in two episodes  of the TV show Extras, scoring an Emmy nomination. In 2006, the star had small parts in the  comedies School for Scoundrels, Danny Roane:   First Time Director, and Tenacious D  in The Pick of Destiny, which he also  

Executive produced. In December, Ben starred  in the hit family comedy Night at the Museum. In 2007, Stiller co-starred with Malin  Åkerman in the romcom The Heartbreak Kid,   produced the sports comedy Blades of Glory,  and voiced an elf in the Christmas TV film  

Elmo’s Christmas Countdown. According to Forbes,  Stiller garnered $38 million from the projects. In 2008, Ben directed, co-wrote, and co-produced  the movie Tropic Thunder. The dark comedy starred   Robert Downey Jr., Jack Black, and our hero.  Fun fact: the idea came to him back in 1987,  

While he was filming for Empire of the Sun.  The movie premiered on August 11 in California,   two days before the theatrical release. More than  two hundred disability rights activists protested   the movie premiere due to it being derogatory  to people with mental disabilities. Because  

Of this, the movie premiered in a private  screening with a lot of security guards. Stiller’s next projects were voicing Alex  the Lion in the animated movie Madagascar:   Escape 2 Africa and executive  producing the horror The Ruins.  In 2009, Ben appeared in the movie Night at the  Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian. After that,  

He starred in the comedy The Marc Pease  Experience; and worked as an executive   producer on the documentary The Boys: The Sherman  Brothers’ Story. He directed and produced the TV   film The Station, voiced the animated movie Merry  Madagascar, and won the MTV Generation Award. 

2010 was even more eventful: viewers could see  Ben make a cameo appearance in Joaquin Phoenix’s   mockumentary I’m Still Here. He also appeared  in the documentary project In Search of Ted   Demme and starred in the comedy drama Greenberg  which made his bank account $6 million heavier. 

Apart from that, he reprised the role  of Greg Focker in the controversial   yet commercially successful movie Little  Fockers, for which he earned $20 million. Stiller also made a cameo in the movie  and TV series The Trip. He appeared in   the romcom Submarine, of which he also  was the executive producer. He continued  

His journey as an executive producer working  on and voicing the animated movie Megamind.   Another voicing project was the animated  TV series Phineas and Ferb. That same year,   Ben was diagnosed with Lyme disease, while  Time magazine added Ben to the list of the 100  

Most Influential People in the World. In 2011, he appeared in the criminal   comedy Tower Heist alongside Eddie Murphy and  other stars. The main role of Josh Kovaks,   the building manager of the apartment complex  The Tower, made our hero $15 million richer.

Meanwhile, he produced the action movie 30  Minutes or Less, 10 episodes of the reality   TV drama Next Time on Lonny, and the comedy The  Big Year, earning $1 million for the latter.   Apart from that, Stiller made an appearance  in the sketch show Funny or Die Presents… and  

Received the Charlie Chaplin Britannia Award  for Excellence in Comedy at the BAFTA Awards. In 2012, the hero of our video appeared in an  episode of the comedy TV series Eagleheart and   the movie The Watch. Once again, he voiced Alex  the Lion in the animated movie Madagascar 3:  

Europe’s Most Wanted and worked as an executive  producer of 29 episodes of the TV series Burning   Love. The show aired for two years and Ben  appeared in four episodes. The $33 million   the actor earned over the year made him one of the  top five highest-paid actors according to Forbes.

The next year, Stiller treated the  fans to the movie The Secret Life   of Walter Mitty which he directed and starred in. After that, he joined the crew of  the TV series The Birthday Boys,   appearing in one episode and producing  ten episodes. In the same period,  

Ben Stiller appeared in a commercial for the  Japanese fruit beer Kirin and imprinted his   hands and feet at the TCL Chinese Theater  in Hollywood. The actor was joined by his   wife Christine, their kids, and fellow actor  Tom Cruise who’s been his friend since 1996.

In 2014, Ben starred in two movies:  the fantasy film Night at the Museum:   Secret of the Tomb and the dramedy While We’re  Young. He dedicated the rest of his time to   producing 22 episodes of the stand-up  TV project The Meltdown with Jonah and  

Kumail which was canceled in 2016. In June, Stiller was diagnosed with   prostate cancer which he beat  in September of the same year. In 2015, the actor’s mother passed away  after suffering a stroke. During that time,   he was working on various TV series including  Workaholics, Big Time in Hollywood, FL,  

And Another Period. Apart from filming for the  projects, he was the executive producer in the   two latter ones. He also worked as the executive  producer on the improvisation comedy TV show   Crash Test: With Rob Huebel and Paul Scheer.  During the spring Paris Fashion Week, the movie  

Zoolander 2 was announced. It happened at the  Valentino fashion show, with Stiller and Wilson   walking the runway dressed as their characters. The sequel to Zoolander premiered in February   2016. The artist set the Guinness World  Record for the longest selfie stick at the  

Movie premiere. He used a 28 ft 1 inch selfie  stick to take a picture of him and the cast. It’s funny that every time before starting  a project, Ben would gather the cast and   the filming crew and give an inspiring speech.  After that, he would stomp on a glass which is a  

Jewish wedding tradition. While performing the  ritual before getting to work on Zoolander 2,   he stepped on the glass and its fragment pierced  the sole of his shoe, cutting his heel. Stiller   said that it was probably a bad sign for  the project: the movie eventually grossed  

$56 million with a budget of $50 million and  received six Golden Raspberry nominations. That same year, our hero appeared in  the comedy drama Don’t Think Twice and   an episode of the TV series Haters Back Off! In 2017, our hero starred in dramedies The  

Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) and Brad’s  Status. His personal life wasn’t smooth sailing:   after 17 years of marriage, he  separated from his wife. However,   they stayed friends and never filed  for divorce; Ben and Christine never   dated anyone during that time. On July 2, 2018, the celebrity  

Was named Goodwill Ambassador for The  United Nations refugee agency. Earlier,   Stiller went on a trip with UNHCR to meet with  refugees from Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. As a producer, he worked on the teen comedy The  Package, the romantic comedy Alex Strangelove,  

And the mini TV series inspired by real-life  events Escape at Dannemora. He also directed   the latter. After that, he went on  to produce the romcom Plus One and 51   episodes of the TV series In the Dark which  was canceled in 2022, and other projects. In 2020, Stiller appeared  in the comedy Sarah Cooper:  

Everything’s Fine and the comedy detective  Hubie Halloween. He also produced the dramedy   Friendsgiving, the documentary Have a  Good Trip: Adventures in Psychedelics,   the dark comedy Dinner in America, and  the reality TV show Celebrity Escape Room. In July, Ben hosted a charity event on  Zoom in support of NHS and initiatives  

Combating racial injustice. During the  call, famous comedy actors did a table   read of an unproduced Stiller’s project from  the ‘90s. By the way, during the lockdown,   Ben moved into his wife’s house to stay with his  family. Having spent some time together, they were  

Able to patch things up. Unfortunately, the father  of our hero, Jerry Stiller, passed that same year. In 2021, it was announced that Ben would  direct, write, and produce an on-screen   adaptation of the podcast “Bag Man”: the project  that looks into the bribery scandal that led to  

The resignation of the US Vice President Spiro  Agnew. The movie is currently in pre-production.   In the meantime, in 2021, Stiller appeared in  the romantic comedy heist movie Locked Down. In 2022, Stiller made a cameo  appearance in the movie Bros,  

Had a supporting role in the comedy drama  Bleeker, and directed the TV series Severance.  In June, the actor with UNHCR visited Poland to  meet families of Ukrainian refugees. Several hours   later, he was seen in Lviv and then Kyiv  where he spoke with Volodymyr Zelenskyy,  

Showing support for Ukraine and standing  against the violence of Russia. He also   visited the town of Irpin where war  crimes of the Russian army took place. In November, Ben Stiller and John Travolta starred  in the ad for the game God of War: Ragnarok. 

2023 brought the celebrity some new gigs:  voicing an episode of the animated sitcom   Krapopolis and producing the TV  series High Desert. In February,   Stiller reprised his iconic role of  Zoolander for a Pepsi Super Bowl commercial. Currently, Ben is filming a TV series based on  the novel by Gary Shteyngart “Super Sad True Love  

Story”. He’s also preparing to film the thriller  London starring Oscar Isaac and working on a   documentary about his parents. Apart from that,  there’s a sequel to Dodgeball in the works.   Stiller is a vigorous environmental activist  supporting environmental protection organizations.  

By the way, the actor went vegan for his health.  He also supports some charity organizations,   including the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric  AIDS Foundation and Starlight Children’s   Foundation. Ben takes an interest in  politics and stands with the Democrats.  The celebrity loves the art of photography  and has even displayed his works at a photo  

Exhibition. His favorite actress  of all time is Diane Keaton.  The star’s net worth is said to be $200 million.  A fortune like this allows Stiller to invest not   only in film production but also in real estate. One of the first biggest items he ever bought was  

A Mediterranean mansion he purchased  in 1999 for $1 million 825 thousand. In 2008, Ben and his wife bought an apartment  in New York for $10 million. In 2013,   they put it on sale for $9.6 million. The  Manhattan apartment has a stunning view of  

The Hudson River. The duplex has five bedrooms,  with the master bedroom on the first floor,   and 5 and a half bathrooms. The other four  bedrooms were designed for the son and the   daughter of the couple. There’s also  a huge living room, a cozy media room,  

And an eat-in kitchen equipped with  high-class appliances. Aside from that,   there are also staff rooms and a staff entrance.  The duplex was sold in 2013 for $9 million. In 2016, our hero purchased a luxurious apartment  in West Village in New York for $15.3 million.  

The open-space apartment has a spacious living  room and a family dining zone, an eat-in kitchen   equipped with modern kitchen appliances and a  breakfast bar. There are also four bedrooms,   4 and a half bathrooms, and a study. The residents  of the apartment complex have access to a hot tub,  

An indoor swimming pool, a gym, and plenty of  outdoor space. In 2022, Ben decided to sell the   apartment overviewing the Hudson river. He lost  some money on the deal, earning $14.5 million. In 2011, he and his wife sold their  long-time Los Angeles residence to  

Jason Statham for $7.3 million, although  the original price was $11.5 million. The   4,800-square-foot Italian-style villa is  beautifully landscaped and has a swimming   pool. Inside there’s a wonderful terrace, an  open kitchen filled with light, 10 bedrooms,   11 bathrooms, and a home cinema. The main  recurrent theme in the house is the dark wood.

According to sources, the Stillers still co-own  a 13.8-acre piece of land on a cliff in Hawaii,   which they bought in 2002 for $8.5 million, and  a 32-acre property in Chappaqua, New York. They   bought the latter in 2010 for $10 million.  On the huge territory, there’s a three-floor  

7,200-square-foot mansion. There’s also a hall  with front stairs and hardwood floors, a formal   living room, and a dining room with fireplaces.  The early 20th century building was renovated but   they never touched the facade and the columns.  Onsite there’s a fenced swimming pool with a  

Small house near it, a kid’s playground, a huge  gym, a tennis court, and a two-hole golf course. And now, let’s take a virtual look at the  car collection of Zoolander. He started   out with simple cars: Ford Taurus  and Fiat 500 X. As years went by,  

Ben upgraded his collection. The actor and his  wife were seen driving a Mercedes CLS Class worth   around $73 thousand. He also owns a Maserati  Quattroporte and a Jaguar XJ. After going to   the premiere of Iron Man in 2009 on a rented Audi  Q7, the actor bought the same car a year later.

When talking about his craft, the artist states  that he finds directorial work more exciting   than acting. Apart from that, Ben’s family and  their support mean everything to him. In dozens   of years of his career, he showed versatility,  a comedic approach, and acting mastery in a wide  

Variety of big screen and TV projects. His iconic  characters in the movies Zoolander and Meet the   Parents have secured Stiller a spot as one of  the favorite and recognizable Hollywood stars.  Which of his movies do you  like? Share in the comments!

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