River Phoenix Net Worth

River Phoenix Net Worth is
$5 Million

River Phoenix Bio/Wiki, Net Worth, Married 2018

River Jude Phoenix was an American actor, musician and activist. He was the older brother of Rain Phoenix, Joaquin Phoenix, Summer Phoenix and Liberty Phoenix. Phoenix's work encompassed 24 films and television appearances, including the science fiction adventure film Explor...

Full NameRiver Phoenix
Net Worth$5 Million
Date Of BirthAugust 23, 1970, Madras, Oregon, United States
DiedOctober 31, 1993, West Hollywood, California, United States
Place Of BirthMadras
Height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
ProfessionActor, Musician, Singer-songwriter, Guitarist, Activist, Environmentalist
NationalityUnited States of America
SpouseCasey Affleck
ParentsJohn Lee Bottom, Arlyn Phoenix
SiblingsJoaquin Phoenix, Rain Phoenix, Summer Phoenix, Liberty Phoenix, Jodean Bottom
NicknamesRiver Jude Bottom , Riv , Rio , River , Phoenix , River Jude Phoenix
AwardsVolpi Cup, Volpi Cup for Best Actor, National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actor, Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead
Music GroupsAleka's Attic
NominationsAcademy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture
MoviesStand by Me, My Own Private Idaho, Dark Blood, Running on Empty, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, The Mosquito Coast, Explorers, The Thing Called Love, Dogfight, A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon, I Love You to Death, Little Nikita, Silent Tongue, Sneakers, Circle of Violence: A Family Drama, ...
TV ShowsSeven Brides for Seven Brothers, Robert Kennedy and His Times
Star SignVirgo
#Trademark
1Portraying innate emotional vulnerability
#Quote
1[1991] It's not about career. It's about believing in something, it's about prosperity and it's about caring and emphasizing and wanting to create the best, the most true to life, the most real.
2[on My Own Private Idaho (1991)] It might take a few of these movies before there's a natural stride with the whole issue. Then one day, it wont even be an issue - which is what I'm hoping.
3When I was younger, I was worried about how others viewed me and if I was good enough. I realize now that you can't mold an image or try to be something that you are not. As far as being an actor is concerned, your work really speaks for itself.
4I really like acting because you can create a character. You can make someone who has never existed before. That's neat.
5I'm really normal. I play football, go to the beach, drive. We have dogs. I can imagine people calling me a character, but I'm Joe Straight. I'm just a normal guy doing a job!
6I'd like to play every type of character, but only once. I like to experience things.
7I wouldn't eat a hamburger for 40,000 dollars.
8I would never, never do anything unless I believed in it.
9I sometimes lie, especially about personal things, because what does it matter? I am a kind of minute commodity, my name is no longer my own. I try to lie as much as I can when I'm interviewed. It's reverse psychology. I figure if you lie, they'll print the truth.
10I have a lot of chameleon qualities, I get very absorbed in my surroundings.
11I don't want to die in a car accident. When I die it'll be a glorious day. It'll probably be a waterfall.
12I like girls who are natural because I am natural in everything I do. If I meet a girl who is snobby and wants special treatment, she's not going to get it from me because she hasn't earned it. But I've been basically lucky because I've met mostly nice girls - and that's what attracts me.
13I have twenty personalities on top of the ten I already have. So now I have thirty people in my head!
14I remember we'd roll into gas stations in our beat-up van and I'd tell the attendant, 'I'm going to be an actor!
15I've been wanting to go into music ever since I can remember. I mean even before I became an actor. I just thought it would be a tough field to break into, so I became an actor instead.
16Music is a hobby, because I'm not making any money out of it, but I put just as much conviction into that as I do into my acting.
17Music is a whole oasis in my head. The creation process is so personal and fulfilling.
18Music is my main goal, but I'm not going to rush a record out. There are so many actors who have come out with albums these days. I don't want to do it because it's the thing to do. I want to wait until the time is right.
19Commercials were too phony for me. I just didn't like selling a product I didn't believe in.
20Acting is like a Halloween mask that you put on.
21Everything is ironic to me. There are moments I find hysterical, but I'm probably the only one who would find that, except for a few people.
22I can't on my own change the regime in South Africa or teach the Palestinians to learn to live with the Israelies, but I can start with me.
23I did my best work in The Mosquito Coast (1986). I know it wasn't such a big hit, but for me it was more meaningful than anything else I'd ever done.
24When I was old enough to realize all meat was killed, I saw it as an irrational way of using our power, to take a weaker thing and mutilate it. It was like the way bullies would take control of younger kids in the schoolyard.
25Rich kids gave us their old clothes. They were the best clothes we ever had. We were these very pure, naive, poor children. The rich kids called us a lot of names but it never bothered us because we didn't know what the words meant.
26People wonder if I'll always be a part of this family and the answer is yes. My family has a lot of good energy going in one direction and because of it, we get a lot of things done. That's why I'll always spend a lot of time at Camp Phoenix.
27We are taught to consume. And that's what we do. But if we realized that there really is no reason to consume, that it's just a mind set, that it's just an addiction, then we wouldn't be out there stepping on people's hands climbing the corporate ladder of success.
28Vegetarianism is a link to perfection and peace.
29We were constantly moving to different countries and adjusting to new things. It was such a free feeling. I'm glad I didn't have a traditional upbringing.
30Addiction is not just for bad people or scumbags - it's a universal disease.
31It still strikes me as strange that anyone could have a moral objection against somebody's sexuality, it's like telling someone else how to clean their house.
32I don't see any point or any good in drugs that are as disruptive as cocaine.
33We need an extreme movement because what is happening to animals is so extreme. Some misinformed people claim that animal rights activists are terrorists, but these people are simply ignorant of who the real terrorists are - the companies and industries that torture literally billions of animals each year. (The Animals Voice Magazine - 1989)
34Sometimes I hear stuff like 'Hey man, wheres your skateboard, dude?' from people who think I'm Christian Slater.
35I would get songs sung to me, like 'Old Man River, 'or kids would call me Mississippi and things like that. At the time, I wished I had a name that blended in more with my surroundings. Now, though, I've really learned to love it. From fifteen, I really liked it. It felt appropriate. Before that, I don't think it quite fitted me. I had to grow into it .
36In Stand by Me (1986), I realized that what I was creating was going to live on far longer than anything of me as a person. The characters are more powerful than the person that creates them.
37I'm having a kind of hard time keeping my head above water in this crazy business.
38It's a great feeling to think that I can be a friend to so many people through my movies.
39"I want kids, a family of my own. I'd like to give them the first eight years of their lives in the country. Then I'd want them educated, which I wasn't formally, although I had a tutor once when I was twelve. At times I miss a formal education, but at others I thank God for everything else I have now. What I have got from my childhood aren't toys, but memories. And happy memories are better than any toy.
40We all have our distinct things. Leaf [brother Joaquin Phoenix] was the family clown--very witty, very smart. Mom had to work a lot, so Rainbow [sister Rain Phoenix] was the mother and the older sister and trendsetter. Liberty [sister Liberty Phoenix] was always the most physical, like an acrobat, very nimble and strong, a really beautiful girl. And Summer [sister Summer Phoenix] was the youngest, the baby of the family, with big brown eyes and blonde hair, more American-looking.
41In simplicity there is truth.
42We respect our parents and they respect us. Even when we were younger, it was never, 'Well, I'm the parent and you're the kid.' You wouldn't be held back because of your age. Just the opposite. My father used to say, 'The youngest gets to yell the loudest because they're never listened to!' My father talks to Summer [sister Summer Phoenix], who is the youngest, the way he talks to my grandfather or anyone else. They always gave us a fair shot.
43I project a definite innocence. A lot of that is just the way I grew up.
44Animals are not our playthings. We are on this earth to protect them. It's our duty.
45I love Sam Shepard, he is like a father to me. We don't even have to talk, we communicate without words.
46I just always loved the names Helen or Ashley, I don't know, they seem familar to me, like I need to be with them...
47I wish sometimes that I wasn't as conscious as I am.
48He was my brother and I loved him a great deal. It was just an awful, awful mistake. We fed off each other and learned a lot from each other. [R.E.M. singer Michael Stipe, speaking soon after River's death. He later called River's passing "the most shattering experience of my life."]
49Every day of my life since I finished My Own Private Idaho (1991), at some point in the day, I find the conversation somehow goes back to that film, because it was just such a great experience. I just start getting all joyous and start babbling about it. [on his feelings about My Own Private Idaho (1991) just after the film's release in 1991]
50If I have some celebrity, I hope I can use it to make a difference. The true social reward is that I can speak my mind and share my thoughts about the enviroment and civilisation itself. There's so much shit happening with people who are exploiting their positions and creating a lot of negativity.
51"I feel that there are great minds up there who would like to see what I can do with an Oscar nomination. I guess many people would change after a nomination in the way they see things. In my case it's really irrelevant in terms of what I do. Still, it was an incredible experience which I will put in my memories, like everything else." (On his Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor for Running on Empty (1988) in 1989.)
52I would just look at Harrison [Harrison Ford]; he would do stuff and I would not mimic it, but interpret it younger. Mimicking is a terrible mistake that many people make when they play someone younger, or with an age difference. Mimicking doesn't interpret true because you can't just edit it around. [on his interpretation of a young Indiana Jones in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)]
53I would rather quit while I was ahead. There's no need in overstaying your welcome.
#Fact
1Campaigned for Bill Clinton in the 1992 US presidential election.
2Auditioned for the role of Paul Maclean in A River Runs Through It (1992). He was beaten out by Brad Pitt who got the role.
3Appeared in two movies about Espionage that were released the same year: Running on Empty (1988) and Little Nikita (1988).
4After his death, Gus Van Sant spoke about another collaboration between the two that ended up never happening. He was asked, "You were going to do a movie with River about Andy Warhol, right?" Van Sant said, "Yeah. River kind of looked like Andy in his younger days. But that project never really went forward.".
5Gus Van Sant had gotten Phoenix to agree to play the role of Cleve Jones in Milk (2008) when he was originally planning on making the movie in the early 1990s. The role was eventually played by Emile Hirsch in 2008.
6Accepted his role in The Thing Called Love (1993) in an effort to both show off his musical abilities (he sang, played his own guitar, and wrote his character's songs) and make the transition from playing youths to adults roles.
7Phoenix had signed onto the lead role in Broken Dreams, a screenplay written by John Boorman and Neil Jordan (to be directed by Boorman), and co-starring Winona Ryder. The film was put on hold due to Phoenix's death and has yet to be made.
8James Cameron has admitted that when he first started thinking about Titanic (1997) in the early nineties, he favored River for the lead. By the time the film was made, Leonardo DiCaprio was old enough to take the role.
9River and his brother Joaquin Phoenix have both played the son of Richard Harris's character: River in Silent Tongue (1993), and Joaquin in Gladiator (2000).
10One of GQ's 50 Most Stylish Leading Men of the Past Half Century (2010).
11Phoenix had a lazy left eye. This caused him to flutter and blink in order to center the iris. This action is visible in most of his performances. It is most apparent in 'Silent Tongue'(1994), in which he did not attempt to take charge of it at all; feeling that the quality added to the madness of his character.
12River's father was born in California. On his father's side, River had English, and distant German and French, ancestry. River's mother was born to an Ashkenazi Jewish family in New York (they were immigrants from Russia and Hungary).
13Had a very close bond with Harrison Ford.
14Best friend was Keanu Reeves.
15Just a month before his death he had expressed an interest in starring in The Basketball Diaries (1995). His role was subsequently played by Leonardo DiCaprio.
16Was fluent in Spanish.
17His final performance was in Dark Blood (2012), a film which was abandoned three weeks from completion.
18Mentioned by Norwegian Pop-Rocker Morten Abel in the song "River Phoenix".
19He and his brother Joaquin Phoenix are the first brothers to be nominated for acting Academy Awards.
20Anonymous Australian alternative rock band TISM (an acronym of This Is Serious Mum) released a song in 1995 called "(He'll Never Be An) Ol' Man River" which dealt with celebrity deaths, specifically with the death of Phoenix and his drug habit which caused it. The main refrain of the song, which reportedly angered members of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, was "I'm on the drug that killed River Phoenix".
21Ironically, despite his reputation for healthy living, Phoenix was a chain smoker. Peter Bogdanovich recalled, "He'd say about meat, 'That's not good for you, man, that'll kill you.' And he'd be smoking a cigarette, and he'd look at it and say, 'I know, man, I know.'"
22Harrison Ford personally recommended him for the part of the young Indy in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) after working with him on The Mosquito Coast (1986). Ford stated that of all the young actors who were working at the time, River was the one who looked the most like himself when he was that age.
23The band FenixTX was originally called River Fenix, but due to conflicts with the rights to his name, they were forced to change their name.
24In total thus far, he has four nephews and one niece. Rio Everest Phoenix-Asch (12 June 1997), Indigo Orion Phoenix-Asch (9 November 1999 - 25 December 2001), Scarlette Jasmine Phoenix-Asch (July 2, 2001) to younger sister Liberty Phoenix, Indiana August Affleck (May 31st, 2004) and Atticus Affleck (November 2007) to youngest sister Summer Phoenix.
25His death is listed as #16 in the top 101 events in E! Television's 101 Most Shocking Moments in Entertainment.
26Two of his nephews have been posthumously named for him. His sister Liberty Phoenix gave birth to a son named Rio Everest Phoenix. Rio is Spanish for River. His other sister Summer Phoenix gave birth to a son, Indiana Affleck. River played Indiana Jones in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989).
27Is one of only three actors to have played the son of and the younger version of the same actor, by playing Harrison Ford's son and playing young Indiana Jones. The other is Bruno Kirby, who played Richard S. Castellano's son on The Super (1972), and the young Clemenza in The Godfather: Part II (1974). Logan Lerman played one of Mel Gibson's sons in The Patriot (2000) and the younger Nick Marshall in What Women Want (2000).
28He was a very talented writer, songwriter, and sketch artist. Often wrote songs while he was driving to work.
29Died on the same day as Federico Fellini.
30Rufus Wainwright's song "Matinee Idol" is about him.
31Was an involved environmentalist and bought up several hundred acres of rain forest in Costa Rica and Brazil, not to develop them, but to just keep them so they would not be cut down.
32The story is apocryphal that River's last words were supposedly (to the reporter trying to help him outside the Viper Room) were "No paparazzi, I want anonymity", although the quote has become something of an urban legend. In fact, according to witnesses (which included a nearby paparazzo), River stumbled out of the nightclub and fell hard, face-first, onto the sidewalk (experts believed he likely died at that moment) before spasming violently against the pavement for eight minutes, never having uttered a word. And while that photographer chose not to capture that moment on film, the day before Phoenix's cremation in Florida, a reporter broke into the funeral home, rearranged the body, and took a picture. This picture was later to be sold to the National Enquirer for $5,000.
33Ranked #69 on The 100 Greatest Movie Stars (2003) on Channel 4 (UK).
34His parents named him River after the river of life in Hermann Hesse's classic spiritual novel "Siddhartha"; and Jude, his middle name, after The Beatles' song "Hey, Jude."
35River recorded an album the summer before his death titled 'Never Odd or Even' (the title is a palindrome), which was released. A friend of his named Sasa Raphael (who worked with River on the album and played bass in River's band Blacksmith Configuration) almost succeeded in making the album available for free download on the Internet in the summer of 2000,on the anniversary of what would've been River's 30th birthday, but was later sued by the estate of River Phoenix for copyright reasons.
36My Own Private Idaho (1991) director (and close friend of River) Gus Van Sant published a novel in 1997 titled "Pink," which is a loosely disguised fantasy homage to his late friend. Van Sant's movie Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1993) includes a dedication of to River during the opening credits.
37Phoenix, who'd been playing the guitar since childhood, had his own band with his sister, Rain Phoenix, called Aleka's Attic.
38Nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his work in Sidney Lumet's Running on Empty (1988), Phoenix lost out to Kevin Kline for his performance in A Fish Called Wanda (1988). At the time of the Academy Awards ceremony in March, 1989, Kline and Phoenix were filming the movie I Love You to Death (1990). Sitting in the audience, Phoenix applauded enthusiastically when his co-star's name was announced as the winner.
39He disliked flying and traveled everywhere by car or by train.
40Born in a log cabin in Oregon.
41The famous Brazilian singer and songwriter Milton Nascimento wrote a song called "River Phoenix (Carta a Um Jovem Ator)" ("Letter to a Young Actor" in English) in 1988. Milton was quite impressed with River's performances in The Mosquito Coast (1986) and Stand by Me (1986), and he decided to write a song in reverence of his talent. When he got to know about the song, he came to Brazil and spent some days in Milton Nascimento's country home. After that first contact, they became good friends. In the track "Curi Curi" (Tsaqu Waiãpi) from Nascimento's album "Txai" that was released in 1990, River reads a speech written by him protesting the destruction of the Amazon and betrayal of its people.
42Ashes scattered at family's Florida Ranch.
43Listed as one of twelve "Promising New Actors of 1986" in John Willis' Screen World, Vol. 38.
44His date to Johnny Depp's club the evening he died was actress Samantha Mathis.
45Natalie Merchant wrote a song, "River," which is in his memory. In addition, her song "Carnival" was inspired by him.
46Was a vegan.
47Brother of Joaquin Phoenix, Summer Phoenix, Rain Phoenix and Liberty Phoenix.
48He was almost definitely set to star as Izzy Singer in Safe Passage (1994). Sean Astin got the part after River's death.
49Was supposed to begin work on Neil Jordan's Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles (1994) two weeks after his death. He was to play Daniel Molloy, the interviewer, which then went to Christian Slater, who donated his entire $250,000 salary to two of Phoenix's favorite charitable organizations: Earth Save and Earth Trust. The film has a dedication to Phoenix after the end credits.
50Born at 12.10 pm-PDT
51The 1994 R.E.M. album "Monster" is dedicated to River in the liner notes--he was friends with lead singer Michael Stipe.
52Ranked #86 in Empire (UK) magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list. [October 1997]
53Sings a song on John Frusciante's album "Smile from the Streets You Hold."
54The song "Transcending" on the Red Hot Chili Peppers album "One Hot Minute" is dedicated to River Phoenix.

Actor

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Dark Blood2012Boy
The Thing Called Love1993James Wright
Silent Tongue1993Talbot Roe
Sneakers1992Carl Arbogast
Red Hot Chili Peppers: Breaking the Girl1992Video short
Dogfight1991Eddie Birdlace
My Own Private Idaho1991Mike Waters
I Love You to Death1990Devo
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade1989Young Indy
Running on Empty1988Danny Pope
Little Nikita1988Jeff Grant
A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon1988Jimmy Reardon
The Mosquito Coast1986Charlie
Circle of Violence: A Family Drama1986TV MovieChris Benfield
Stand by Me1986Chris Chambers
Ben E. King: Stand by Me1986Video shortRiver Phoenix
Family Ties1985TV SeriesEugene Forbes
Explorers1985Wolfgang Müller
Surviving1985TV MoviePhilip Brogan
Robert Kennedy and His Times1985TV Mini-SeriesRobert Kennedy Jr.
Hotel1984TV SeriesKevin
It's Your Move1984TV SeriesBrian
ABC Afterschool Specials1984TV SeriesBrian Ellsworth
Celebrity1984TV Mini-SeriesJeffie - Age 11
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers1982-1983TV SeriesGuthrie McFadden

Soundtrack

TitleYearStatusCharacter
The Thing Called Love1993performer: "Standing on a Rock", "Until Now", "Blame It on Your Heart", "Lone Star State of Mine", "Ol' John and Jimmy", "Lost Highway", "Love Is" / writer: "Lone Star State of Mine"
Stand by Me1986performer: "The Ballad of Paladin"
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers1983TV Series performer - 1 episode

Thanks

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Edición Especial Coleccionista2013TV Series in memory of - 1 episode
13 Steps2011Short in memory of
Truth or Dairy1994Documentary short in memory of
Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles1994dedicatee
Even Cowgirls Get the Blues1993dedicatee - as River

Self

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Biography2002TV Series documentaryHimself
Canceled Lives: Letters from the Inside1993Video documentaryHimself (voice)
Teen Vid II1991VideoHimself
Evolution's End?1991Video documentaryHimself
CBS This Morning1990TV SeriesHimself
Today1989TV SeriesHimself
The 61st Annual Academy Awards1989TV SpecialHimself - Nominee
Moving Image Salutes Sidney Poitier1989TV MovieHimself - Speaker
The 46th Annual Golden Globe Awards1989TV SpecialHimself - Nominee
The Starlight Annual Foundation Benefit1988TV SpecialHimself

Archive Footage

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Flat Earth & Revelation 102016TV SeriesHimself
Autopsy: The Last Hours Of2015TV SeriesHimself
Welcome to the Basement2013-2014TV SeriesMike Waters / Himself
My Own Private River2012Documentary
Too Young to Die2012TV Series documentaryHimself
60/902008TV SeriesHimself
Dr. Drew's Celebrity Addiction Special2008TV Movie documentaryHimself
20 to 12008TV Series documentaryHimself
Schau mir in die Augen, Kleiner2007DocumentaryMike Waters (uncredited)
George Sluizer - Filmen over grenzen2006DocumentaryBoy
Our Friend River2006Video shortHimself
The Thing Called Love: A Look Back2006Video documentary shortHimself
Final 242006TV Series documentaryHimself
Biography2000-2005TV Series documentaryChris Chambers
The 77th Annual Academy Awards2005TV SpecialHimself (uncredited)
Indiana Jones: Making the Trilogy2003Video documentaryHimself
101 Most Shocking Moments in Entertainment2003TV Movie documentaryHimself
The Making of 'Sneakers'2003Video documentary shortHimself
Walking the Tracks: The Summer of Stand by Me2000Video documentary shortChris Chambers (uncredited)
This Road Will Never End1996Documentary shortHimself
E! True Hollywood Story1996TV Series documentaryHimself
Truth or Dairy1994Documentary shortHimself
The 66th Annual Academy Awards1994TV SpecialHimself - Memorial Tribute

Won Awards

YearAwardCeremonyNominationMovie
1992Independent Spirit AwardIndependent Spirit AwardsBest Male LeadMy Own Private Idaho (1991)
1992NSFC AwardNational Society of Film Critics Awards, USABest ActorMy Own Private Idaho (1991)
1991Volpi CupVenice Film FestivalBest ActorMy Own Private Idaho (1991)
1988NBR AwardNational Board of Review, USABest Supporting ActorRunning on Empty (1988)
1988Young Artist AwardYoung Artist AwardsBest Young Male Superstar in Motion PicturesThe Mosquito Coast (1986)
1987Jackie Coogan AwardYoung Artist AwardsStand by Me (1986)
1986Young Artist AwardYoung Artist AwardsBest Young Actor Starring in a Television Special or Mini-SeriesSurviving (1985)
1986Young Artist AwardYoung Artist AwardsExceptional Performance by a Young Actor - Motion PictureExplorers (1985)
1984Young Artist AwardYoung Artist AwardsBest Young Actor in a Drama SeriesSeven Brides for Seven Brothers (1982)

Nominated Awards

YearAwardCeremonyNominationMovie
1989OscarAcademy Awards, USABest Actor in a Supporting RoleRunning on Empty (1988)
1989Golden GlobeGolden Globes, USABest Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion PictureRunning on Empty (1988)
1985Young Artist AwardYoung Artist AwardsBest Young Actor in a Family Film Made for TelevisionABC Afterschool Specials (1972)
1983Young Artist AwardYoung Artist AwardsBest Young Actor in a New Television SeriesSeven Brides for Seven Brothers (1982)

2nd Place Awards

YearAwardCeremonyNominationMovie
1991NYFCC AwardNew York Film Critics Circle AwardsBest ActorMy Own Private Idaho (1991)

Known for movies

Source
IMDB Wikipedia

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