Paul Haggis Net Worth: Writer Earned Millions For Work He Did In 2 Weeks

KEY POINTS

Haggis started his career as a writer working on various television shows, including "The Facts of Life”
In 1993, he made his feature film directorial debut with the drama "Red Hot," which he also co-wrote
He rose to fame in 2004 after the film "Million Dollar Baby,” which he wrote and produced, won an Oscar

Film director Paul Haggis was arrested in Ostuni, Southern Italy, on charges of sexual assault and aggravated personal injury.

According to multiple Italian media reports, Haggis allegedly forced a non-Italian woman to have sexual intercourse with him.

The incident happened in Ostuni, where the two-time Oscar winner was scheduled to hold a series of master classes for the Allora Fest, a new film festival launched by L.A.-based Italian journalist Silvia Bizio and Spanish art critic Sol Costales Doulton. The festival will run from June 21 to 26.

Who is Haggis, and what is his net worth?

Haggis started as a writer working on various television shows, including "The Facts of Life,” "The Love Boat” and "One Day at a Time.”

In 1993, he made his feature film directorial debut with the drama "Red Hot," which he also co-wrote.

He rose to fame in 2004 after the film "Million Dollar Baby,” which he wrote and produced, won an Oscar for Best Picture. Another film he authored and directed, "Crash,” also won an Oscar for Best Picture and Best Writing.

As of June 2022, Haggis has a net worth of $60 million, as per Celebrity Net Worth.

Among the other films he wrote and directed include "In the Valley of Elah," "The Next Three Days" and "Third Person."

On television, Haggis helped create shows such as "Walker, Texas Ranger" and "Family Law."

His largest pay came from freelance work he did about 30 years ago.

In 1992, Haggis was approached by CBS executives to help "punch up" the pilot script for the show "Walker, Texas Ranger."

Haggis spent less than two weeks writing the script. Even though CBS did not use his script, it honored its deal with Haggis and gave him a co-creator credit for his work.

Between 1993 and the show's finale on May 19, 2001, "Walker, Texas Ranger" aired 202 episodes over 8 seasons. The show also spawned a TV movie, a short-lived spinoff and three novels.

Because he was named co-creator of the show, Haggis earned around $600,000 during the show's run. But the real windfall came when the show was sold into syndication.

For his two weeks of work, Haggis was rewarded with 5% of the show's backend points. Those sales have resulted in Haggis earning between $30 and $50 million from the show.