John Schneider Net Worth & How He Made Money From Dukes of Hazzard

Quick Facts

John Schneider has several talents which he has successfully monetized over the years. He has been in the entertainment industry for no less than four decades holding down a successful acting and music career simultaneously. His most popular role is as Bo – Beauregard Duke in the TV Series The Dukes of Hazzard. As a result of the show’s success, many often wonder about John Schneider’s net worth and how much the show contributed to it. Schneider also became prominent as a country musician and successfully released 9 studio and 18 singles. He combines all these with a thriving career as a film producer, screenwriter, and director. Here’s an in-depth look at John Schneider’s net worth.

John Schneider’s Success with The Dukes of Hazzard

When John Schneider was seventeen, he landed the role of ‘Bo Duke’ in The Dukes of Hazzard alongside veteran actor- James Best (who became his mentor and best friend) and another newcomer Tom Wopat. The TV Show launched their career and made them successful.

It is uncertain how much John Schneider earned for his role on the show but in 1982, John and his co-star (Tom Wopat) left the show for close to a season over the producer’s distribution of their merchandising royalties (the exact figure of this was not made public knowledge). They did return to their roles after their claims were satisfied in 1983. The show finally got canceled in 1985 after running for 7 seasons with 147 episodes.

Years after the Dukes of Hazzard‘s cancellation, John Schneider and his co-star continue to benefit from its glory in various capacities. At the peak of the show’s success, John Schneider’s net worth was estimated at $5 million. In 2014, they reprised their roles in a commercial for Autrotrader.com.

John’s Other Successful Gigs

Another of John Schneider’s very successful roles is as Jim Cryer in ‘s The Haves and the Have Nots which has become one of the most popular series airing on Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN). The series set several rating records for OWN becoming the highest-rated series premiere and also the highest overall ratings for the network.

Besides acting, John owns a studio – John Schneider Studios (JSS) in Holden, Louisiana where he produces and writes independent films. The studio boasts an innovative infrastructure that provides independent filmmakers with all the tools they need to create their films in one location. It is no doubt that the success of this studio has contributed to John Schneider’s net worth.

John ventured into music in the early 1980s when The Dukes of Hazzard was at its peak. His first album (Now or Never) was released by the Scott Brothers Record Label and it peaked at number 8 on the US Country Billboard. He has successfully released 10 studio albums and several singles.

A part of John Schneider’s net worth has been dedicated to selfless causes; alongside and her brothers, John co-founded the Children’s Miracle Network helping to raise funds for children’s hospitals, community awareness of children’s health issues and medical research.

In 2017, John Schneider returned to the country music scene with an album titled Ruffled Skirts which is dedicated to the people affected by the flood which hit South Louisiana twice. Even the John Schneider Studio was affected as it sat in the water close to 4 feet. The inspiration for most of the songs on the album came while he was sitting in the bare recording studio.

John Schneider was the founder of the now-defunct FaithWorks Productions which produced family-oriented recordings and videos.

John Schneider’s Net Worth – How His Finances Have Been Affected In Recent Times

The prolific actor has had a robust career in the entertainment industry. He has appeared in no less than 79 television shows and 42 films in his acting career which has contributed significantly to his net worth.

He has also had a successful musical career with several of his songs peaking at #1 the US Country Billboard charts. Moreover, a substantial amount of his wealth is from acting, filmmaking, directing and producing. At the peak of his acting and musical career, John Schneider earned a substantial amount of money which he ended up losing by investing in low-budget and poorly produced TV Shows and films, according to his ex-wife-Elly Castle.

There have been several speculations in the media about John Schneider’s net worth that it’s hard to know what the actual truth is. But Schneider has admitted that he has had some financial difficulties especially with the flood that destroyed his Louisiana based studio twice within the same year.

John Schneider has also been through two divorces and his second dissolved marriage to Elly Castle with whom he has 3 children landed him in jail for about 5 hours in June 2018.

He revealed that in the worst financial year of his life, he was ordered by the court to pay $18,700 a month in temporary spousal support and he could not because he couldn’t afford it. The actor said that he had spent his money in rebuilding his studio that was hit twice by the flood.

A judge later decided in August 2019 that he pays Elly $25,000 monthly in spousal support, a cut from his SAG pension and grant her sole ownership of their $600,000 property. The court said that he could face 5 years behind bars should he default on his payment.

To help with his debts, Schneider has increasingly become more active in the entertainment space. The last review on John Schneider’s net worth pegged it at $200,000, a far cry from his heydays in the industry when he was once worth $5 million.

Also Read: Top 10 Richest People in the world with full biography and details.