George Clooney, Jimmy Kimmel and 13 Other Rich and Famous Pranksters

George Clooney, Jimmy Kimmel and 13 Other Rich and Famous Pranksters·GOBankingRates

If you’ve ever been worried about having your stapler stolen — or having to dig it out of a Jell-O mold — you can at least rest assured that you’re in the prestigious company of celebrity pranksters.

Some of these renowned jesters actually made their millions messing with people, while others just happen to be rich and famous folks who like to pull one over on their peers. Whatever the case, they all share at least one thing in common — their bank accounts are no joke.

Click through to discover 15 of the most infamous pranksters — some of whom are richer than you might think.

Tom Green Net Worth: $5 Million

The Daily Dot calls Canadian comedian Tom Green “the original troll,” and it’s a well-earned title. Among stand-up roots, talk show hosting gigs and feature films, Green’s legacy lies in his ’90s opus, “The Tom Green Show,” where his often surreal but always outrageous pranks saw him posing as a movie usher and spraying himself with a fire extinguisher, starting up a lawnmower and pushing it through a drug store and just about everything in between. It never got too weird for Tom.

Roman Atwood Net Worth: $12 Million

Roman Atwood represents a new breed of rich and famous prankster. He’s become both wealthy and notable through YouTube, rather than TV — though his online antics have springboarded an Emmy Award nomination, directing gig on the feature “Natural Born Pranksters” and hand in a prank-based reality TV show with Howie Mandel.

Highlights like pretending to flash kids while wearing a “Stay in School” shirt under his robe and planting a fully costumed “bear” in the woods have generated nearly 1.5 billion YouTube views, and keep $12 million in Roman’s pocket.

Dax Shepard Net Worth: $12 Million

Though he might be best-known for TV shows like “Parenthood” and movies like “Idiocracy,” Dax Shepard goes way back in the world of pranking. He was one of Ashton Kutcher’s most trusted co-conspirators in the early days of “Punk’d.”

Today, Shepard continues the fine tradition of capers, mostly directing his pranks at his wife, actress Kristen Bell, and the two continue to enjoy their status as one of Hollywood’s richest celebrity couples. Shepard told USA Today that he stole Bell’s phone and searched “how to get away with murdering your husband,” just to make her search history a little more incriminating in the case of tragedy. Mean? Yes. Effective? Also yes.

Eric Stonestreet Net Worth: $23 Million

When you shoot a long-running sitcom, you become a family unit, which is especially appropriate on a show such as “Modern Family.” Like any real family, the highly paid cast gives each other plenty of guff, including Eric Stonestreet’s famous pranks, which usually target his TV husband — Jesse Tyler Ferguson.

Ferguson has been on the receiving end of a hijacked phone that was filled to the brim with twerking videos and constantly being loudly called out in public only to have Stonestreet dash away and hide from view. Hey, if you’re making roughly $500,000 per episode, you might as well have a little fun.

Jimmy Kimmel Net Worth: $45 Million

Jimmy Kimmel hasn’t built his empire entirely on pranks — it’s his late-night show that nets him an annual salary of $15 million — but they’re a pretty big part of his shtick. Before “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” the “Man Show” alum hosted and performed on a puppet-based prank call show called “Crank Yankers.”

On his talk show, he’s done everything from entirely gift-wrapping John Krasinski and Emily Blunt’s house to perpetuating a years-long “feud” with Matt Damon that’s included Kimmel hijacking the Oscars orchestra to play Damon off the stage as he tried to present an award.

Jimmy Fallon Net Worth: $45 Million

Though Fallon’s late-night show is packed full of games and bits that consistently embarrass his celebrity guests, Fallon earns his spot on this list as a curator of prankdom.

In 2015, he set out to find the world’s best pranksters using the #BestPrankEver hashtag on Twitter and shared their diabolical brilliance with the world. Some of the standout stunts included smartphone keyboard shortcuts that turned the word “no” into the entire Gettysburg Address and spiking mouthwash with green food coloring to produce some nice pearly greens. Well worth his $16 million “Late Night” annual salary.

 

Rob Dyrdek Net Worth: $50 Million

When he’s not busy shredding half-pipes, Dyrdek is reigning over the world of his popular MTV comedy clip show “Ridiculousness.” One of skateboarding’s biggest names and personalities, the 43-year-old Dyrdek gained notoriety thanks to his two MTV reality series, “Rob & Big” — in which he co-starred with his late best friend and bodyguard Christopher “Big Black” Boykin — and “Rob Dyrdek’s Fantasy Factory,” where his prankster persona really began to shine.

Channing Tatum Net Worth: $50 Million

As if dancing in “Magic Mike” wasn’t fun enough, Channing Tatum has a habit of pranking fans in public to promote the movie series. To get the word out about “Magic Mike Live” and raise money for the Omaze AIDS charity in Las Vegas, Tatum dressed as an Elvis impersonator and invaded the elevator rides of unsuspecting office workers. And that wasn’t an isolated incident.

Near the release of the $122.5 million hit “Magic Mike XXL,” Channing posed as an awkward middle-aged marketing rep before treating them to an impromptu live strip tease in the theater. Even family isn’t sacred for this prankster. In 2017, he pulled the “Hey Jimmy Kimmel, I Told My Kids I Ate All Their Halloween Candy!” prank on his then 4-year-old daughter and aired the clip on national television.

 

Johnny Knoxville Net Worth: $75 Million

Alongside the rest of the “Jackass” crew, Johnny Knoxville perfected the art of the outrageous stunt-prank hybrid. Though he’s since netted salaries of $5 million on flicks like “Walking Tall” and “Bad Grandpa” and sports a respectably huge net worth of $75 million, Knoxville will most likely be remembered for blowing air horns in the faces of unsuspecting golfers or locking his co-stars in a limo with a live beehive.

Of course, you can’t dish pranks if you can’t take ’em. In 2011, fellow prankster Jimmy Kimmel helped the “Jackass” boys orchestrate a gag that replaced Johnny’s face cream with horse semen. And not just once, but for four months.

Sacha Baron Cohen Net Worth: $130 Million

In the fine tradition of Andy Kaufman, but with a more socially satirical edge, Sacha Baron Cohen has made a career of guerrilla comedy. When Baron inhabits characters like Borat or Ali G, his unsuspecting co-stars have no idea they’re interacting with a walking spoof.

In the “Borat” feature film — which grossed approximately $261.5 million worldwide — Cohen wrestled with another man completely in the buff through the aisles of an upscale party. In another famous stunt, Ali G convinced Mohammed Al-Fayed, the father of Princess Diana’s late boyfriend, that he was a rapper and proceeded to freestyle with him on TV.

Matt Damon Net Worth: $160 Million

Matt Damon might be a critically acclaimed actor with a staggering net worth, but that doesn’t mean he ever let go of his lighter side. Besides secretly “feuding” with Jimmy Kimmel for the nearly 13 years, Damon has taken his famous spy persona “Jason Bourne” to the streets, pranking unsuspecting people with a secret Bourne co-op mission.

Ashton Kutcher Net Worth: $200 Million

On “Punk’d,” Ashton Kutcher specialized in, well, punking celebrities. Throughout the show’s lifespan, Ashton convinced Justin Timberlake that all of his belongings had been repossessed, made Taylor Swift believe she’d set a yacht on fire and orchestrated a fake earthquake to fool Drake. The pranks were certainly high budget, but in the end, it looks like it all paid off for mega-millionaire Kutcher.

Brad Pitt Net Worth: $300 Million

Brad Pitt is an active trickster. While Pitt’s ongoing prank war with George Clooney gets the most press, his hijinks with Jonah Hill might just be his piece de resistance. On the set of “Moneyball,” Pitt convinced the crew that Hill was a fan of ’80s band Wham! by shrink-wrapping Hill’s golf cart in neon pink and rigging it to play “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” at maximum volume whenever it was turned on.

Ellen DeGeneres Net Worth: $490 Million

For her mega-hit daytime talk show, Ellen makes an annual salary of $50 million, and it’s comforting to know that some of that cash comes from her lighthearted pranks. Unlike some others on the list, DeGeneres likes to keep her antics a little more good-natured. DeGeneres’ pranks include using a remote mic to instruct celebrities like Adele and Heidi Klum to act like outrageous store patrons and having her crew dress in costumes to scare unsuspecting celebrities as they are being interviewed.

George Clooney Net Worth: $500 Million

George Clooney doesn’t need to make money from pranks; he’s doing just fine on his $20 million salary for movies like “Gravity” and the aptly named “Money Monster.” Instead, Clooney pranks out of pure love for the art form. His most noteworthy victim is Brad Pitt, who has been on the receiving end of marijuana-shaped bumper stickers on the back of his brand-new Prius and has been framed for sending ridiculous letters and packages to the likes of Meryl Streep and other celebs.

However, speaking to “Vanity Fair” in 2017, fellow prankster Matt Damon revealed that Clooney didn’t participate in any mischief during the filming of “Suburbicon,” which Clooney directed and produced. Could impending fatherhood mean this prankster is turning in his crown?

Rachel Farrow contributed to the reporting for this article.

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: George Clooney, Jimmy Kimmel and 13 Other Rich and Famous Pranksters

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