Dave Chappelle is an actor and stand-up comedian. He is widely considered to be one of the best stand-up comics in the whole world. He also had a satirical comedy sketch show that ran from 2003 to 2006 called Chappelle’s Show. After that, he returned to performing stand-up comedy across the United States where he further established his legacy as the best comic in history. He also had multiple appearances in various TV shows and movies. In this article, however, we will be talking about Dave Chappelle’s net worth in 2022.
| Net Worth | $60 million |
| Age | 48 |
| Salary | $60 million (Netflix deal) |
| Sponsors | N/A |
| Profession | Actor, Comedian |
Dave Chappelle's net worth in 2022 (estimate): $60 million
Dave Chappelle’s net worth in 2022 is estimated to be $60 million. This is agreed upon by multiple reputable sources such as Celebrity Net Worth.
Let us now learn more about the early life and road to success of the G.O.A.T. (Greatest Of All Time) in comedy.
David Khari Webber Chappelle was born on August 24, 1973, in Washington, D.C. His father, William David Chappelle III, was a professor of vocal performance and the dean of students at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio. His mother, Yvonne Seon, worked for Congolese Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba. On top of that, she was also a professor and university administrator for several institutions such as Wright State University and Prince George’s Community College.
Dave Chappelle grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland, where he attended Woodlin Elementary School. His parents separated and he stayed with his mother in Washington and he spent the summers with his father in Ohio.
During his high school years, he worked as an usher in Ford’s Theatre located in Washington D.C. In 1991, he graduated from Duke Ellington’s School of the Arts in Washington where he studied theatre arts.
Dave Chappelle said that his inspirations to pursue comedy were Eddie Murphy and Richard Pryor.
On September 13, 1990, he was featured in a montage of random people telling a joke in the first episode of ABC’s America’s Funniest People. He then moved to New York City to pursue a career as a comedian.
Chappelle performed at Harlem’s Apollo Theater during “Amateur Night” and the audience booed him off the stage. He described this as the moment that gave him the courage to continue his show business aspirations.
He then rose through the ranks on the New York comedy circuit as he even performed in the city’s parks. Aside from his weekend stand-up gigs, he also performed at various Monday night open mic performances at places like the Boston Comedy Club.
In 1992, he gained critical and popular reviews for his performance in Russell Simmons’ Def Comedy Jam on HBO. This allowed him to further establish himself as one of the up-and-coming comics. He eventually became a regular guest on late-night TV shows such as Politically Incorrect, Late Show with David Letterman, The Howard Stern Show, and Late Night with Conan O’Brien.
At the age of 19, he made his film debut in Robin Hood: Men in Tights where he played the role of Ahchoo. He was then offered the role of Benjamin “Bubba” Blue in Forrest Gump, but he turned down the role claiming the character was demeaning and he thought that the film would bomb.
Chappelle had a role as a stand-up insult comic who targets patrons of a nightclub in the 1996 comedy movie The Nutty Professor, starring Eddie Murphy, one of his major comedic inspirations. In 1998, he starred in the stoner flick Half Baked.
In 2000, he recorded his first hour-long comedy special with HBO titled Dave Chappelle: Killin’ Them Softly. He also starred alongside Norm McDonald in the film Screwed in the same year.
Three years after, Dave Chappelle debuted his own comedy sketch show on Comedy Central called Chappelle’s Show. The show spoofed many aspects of the American culture including racial stereotypes, politics, and pop culture. On top of the comedy sketches, he also featured musical performances by hip-hop and soul artists, as well as promoting the work of other black comedians.
Due to the show’s popularity, Viacom — Comedy Central’s parent company — offered Dave Chappelle $55 million to continue working on the show. The deal also gave him a share of the DVD sales.
However, prior to the airing of Season 3 of the show, Dave Chappelle abruptly left during production and took a trip to South Africa — stunning fans and the entertainment industry alike.
He said that he was unhappy with the direction the show had taken and expressed his need for reflection in the face of tremendous stress.
“Let me tell you the things I can do here which I can't at home: think, eat, sleep, laugh. I'm an introspective dude. I enjoy my own thoughts sometimes. And I've been doing a lot of thinking here.” Chappelle said.
Chappelle explained his reasons for leaving Chappelle’s Show in a 2006 interview with Oprah Winfrey:
“I wasn't crazy but it is incredibly stressful,” he said. “I felt in a lot of instances I was deliberately being put through stress because when you're a guy who generates money, people have a vested interested in controlling you,”
“I would go to work on the show and I felt awful every day, that's not the way it was. I felt like some kind of prostitute or something. If I feel so bad, why keep on showing up to this place? I'm going to Africa. The hardest thing to do is to be true to yourself, especially when everybody is watching.” he added.
In 2013, he made a comeback. The following year, he made his first major New York City appearance in 11 years as he performed for 10 nights at Radio City Music Hall.
On November 12, 2016, Dave Chappelle made his hosting debut on Saturday Night Live, the weekend when Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election. His performance on SNL earned him a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series. He then donated his Emmy to his former high school while shooting an episode of Jerry Seinfeld’s Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee.
On November 21, 2016, he inked a deal with Netflix to release three new stand-up comedy specials. The following year, Netflix announced an expansion to its deal to include two more specials. Chappelle released five specials with Netflix, namely The Age of Spin, Deep in the Heart of Texas, Equanimity, The Bird Revelation, and Sticks & Stones.
In January 2018, Chappelle won a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album for The Age of Spin and Deep in the Heart of Texas. The following year, he won the same award, this time for Equanimity and Bird Revelation.
On June 12, 2020, Netflix released 8:46, a 27-minute and 20-second stand-up by Chappelle. The title was in reference to the 8 minutes and 46 seconds that police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on the neck of George Floyd, killing him in the process.
On October 5, 2021, Chappelle starred in his sixth and final Netflix special titled The Closer. It was met with backlash from the transgender community for his jokes in the special.
Dave Chappelle will have an upcoming documentary titled Dave Chappelle: Live in Real Life, and it is about his concerts in Yellow Springs, Ohio, during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Most recently, Chappelle was attacked onstage at the Hollywood Bowl by a man wielding a knife, though it didn't turn out too well for the attacker. Furthermore, Chris Rock naturally even had to get in a Will Smith joke after the incident.
Chappelle is one of the most iconic figures in the world of stand-up comedy and comedy in general. His work influenced many aspiring comedians, like Richard Pryor and Eddie Murphy did to him.
With all of that being said, were you surprised about Dave Chappelle’s net worth in 2022?
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