Jonathan Demme Highest-Paid Director in the World

By Carol Kearney
Washington
Last updated on May 22, 2025

Jonathan Demme led People With Money’s annual list of the “100 highest paid directors” released on Wednesday.

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It's been a rough year for the director, but at least he has his millions of dollars to ease the pain. 81-year-old Jonathan Demme has taken the No. 1 spot on People With Money’s top 10 highest-paid directors for 2025 with an estimated $75 million in combined earnings.

UPDATE 22/05/2025 : This story seems to be false. (read more)

Jonathan Demme tops annual list of highest-paid directors

In 2022 it looked like the director’s spectacular career was winding down. Suddenly, he was back on top. People With Money reports on Wednesday (May 21) that Demme is the highest-paid director in the world, pulling in an astonishing $75 million between April 2024 and April 2025, a nearly $40 million lead over his closest competition.

People With Money’s factors

In compiling this yearly list, the magazine considers factors such as upfront pay, profit participation, residuals, endorsements and advertising work.

The American director-screenwriter has an estimated net worth of $215 million. He owes his fortune to smart stock investments, substantial property holdings, lucrative endorsement deals with CoverGirl cosmetics. He also owns several restaurants (the “Fat Demme Burger” chain) in Washington, a Football Team (the “Baldwin Angels”), has launched his own brand of Vodka (Pure Wonderdemme - US), and is tackling the juniors market with a top-selling perfume (With Love from Jonathan) and a fashion line called “Jonathan Demme Seduction”.

The ranking is significant for many Jonathan fans, who have been waiting for his triumphant return to the glory days for what seems like a lifetime.