← Samuel L. Jackson Decoded: Hollywood’s Hardest Working Man

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By Anslem Samuel | Published May 10, 2012 | Full size is 620 × 480 pixels

Last year, The Guinness Book of World Records named Samuel L. Jackson the highest-grossing actor of all time. The 63-year-old Washington, D.C. native has starred in over 100 films that have a combined box office gross of almost $8 billion. That’s quite a feat for a man who nearly squandered his talent and life away due to a serious drug and alcohol addiction. Since starting out in the theater in the ’70s as a student at Morehouse College, Jackson has managed to build an estimated net worth of $150 million by appearing in some of Hollywood’s biggest blockbusters, like Captain America and Star Wars and low budget critical hits like Eve’s Bayou. The always earnest, off-the-cuff actor has made a fortune playing stern, authoritative characters. His latest role and box office score was as Nick Fury in The Avengers, which broke domestic box office records, pulling in $200.3 million opening weekend. With the May 18th release of his new neo-noir thriller The Samaritan sure to add more zeros to Jackson’s bank account, BlackEnterprise.com decodes the hardest working actor in Hollywood. —Shydel James

Last year, The Guinness Book of World Records named Samuel L. Jackson the highest-grossing actor…

(Image: Getty)

  • Reginald Hill

    Samuel L. Jackson will always be the versatile actor whom I admire for the extreme roles he plays from a crack head to a Dea Agent. His level of acting can be compared to the leading actors of today. He has played in more movies than any actor I now and this distinction has earned him the admiration of movie goers.