The Richest Disney Channel Star Is An Actual Billionaire – And That's Good News For Her Hollywood Future

Not every child actor story turns out to be a tragedy. The Disney Channel child star to super rich adult pipeline is real, and Selena Gomez is the latest star to take it to new heights, according to a fresh report from Bloomberg. The "Only Murders in the Building" star is officially a billionaire, with a net worth of $1.3 billion dollars, but most of that money didn't come from her acting and musical career.

According to the outlet, Gomez has made her millions via a combination of acting, singing, brand partnerships, a mental health startup, and — most importantly — a mega-successful makeup line called Rare Beauty Brands. So, what does reportedly being richer than Zendaya or Miley Cyrus mean for the actor who first got her start on Disney's fantasy family comedy show "Wizards of Waverly Place"? Well, she can basically do whatever she wants in Hollywood.

Unlike some Disney Channel alumni and other child actors who have made the jump to major movie star status, Gomez doesn't seem particularly preoccupied with becoming ubiquitous. She's spent the past several years in a relatively low-key role in Hulu's "Only Murders in the Building," playing angsty Millennial Mabel as the straight woman to Martin Short and Steve Martin's zanier characters. Gomez isn't the showiest part of the show, but she does solid work, and critical darling "Only Murders" has already been picked up for a fifth season less than halfway through its fourth. The series also recently led to Gomez's first Primetime Emmy nomination as an actor.

Gomez's Emmy nod is actually her fourth for the show, as she shares its "Best Comedy Series" nominations as one of the show's executive producers. She's worked regularly as a producer since 2013, when she earned her first executive producer credit for a "Wizards of Waverly" TV special. Currently, Gomez reportedly has over a half-dozen projects in the works as a producer, including a documentary spotlighting activist women musicians, a "Wizards of Waverly Place" sequel series, a "Working Girl" reboot, a horror film called "Dollhouse," and "15 Candles," a TV series about four young Latinas navigating adolescence while their quinceañeras loom (per Variety).

With her capital and seemingly wide range of cinematic interests, Gomez could easily take her billion dollars and become the next Reese Witherspoon or Oprah Winfrey, a multi-hyphenate producer's name that's often associated with quality and strength of vision. Despite the relatively "safe" quality of comfort watch "Only Murders in the Building," the actor is also making interesting choices on-screen, appearing this year in the acclaimed Jury Prize winning Cannes Film Festival entry "Emilia Pérez." The high-concept movie is about a trans Mexican cartel leader attempting to evade justice while in the midst of transitioning. Gomez plays the wife of the cartel leader's lawyer, and did we mention it's a musical that's already earning Oscar buzz?

Other wilder-than-you-remember Gomez roles include her part in Harmony Korine's sordid, sexy-disturbing thriller "Spring Breakers," a part in Jim Jarmusch's deadpan zombie flick "The Dead Don't Die," and a cameo in "The Big Short" explaining the stock market. She's also starred in the "Hotel Transylvania" movies, which aren't particularly great but make a ton of money. In general, Gomez has the capacity to choose interesting projects as an actor and producer, and we can only hope her newfound status as a Hollywood moneybags will encourage her to continue making unexpected career moves.

Personally, I don't think anyone "deserves" to be a billionaire, or that it's really possible to remain one ethically when so many other people live in poverty. But if another celebrity is going to become filthy rich, it's nice to know that it's someone who seems to care more about giving back than she does about fame and fortune. Gomez has a prolific philanthropic track record. She's worked extensively with UNICEF and has gone on humanitarian trips to Ghana, Chile, the Congo (with UNICEF), Puerto Rico (with dog rescue group Island Dogs), Kenya (with WE Charity), and elsewhere. She also reportedly donated as much as $3 million during the Australian Bushfires in 2020. Plus, after an ill-received initial response to recent events in the Middle East, Gomez signed an open letter for a ceasefire in Gaza and attended a celebrity fundraiser in support of Palestinians trapped there.

It seems that as her net worth has increased, Gomez has made a practice of giving a percentage of her earnings towards important causes. In 2020, after speaking out about her own mental health, Gomez vowed to raise $100 million in 10 years for the Rare Impact Fund, a fund related to her beauty line that Gomez set up "to help address the gaps in mental health services, particularly for underserved communities," according to Forbes. Even her cooking show has a built-in charity element. So, not only is Gomez stealthily one of the richest young people in Hollywood, but she's also stealthily giving more money away than most of her peers. Hopefully, the new zero in Gomez's bank account will lead to more unexpected creative projects, more bankrolling of art from strong and diverse points of view, and more putting her money to work to make the world better.

You can catch Gomez in "Only Murders in the Building," which drops new episodes every Tuesday on Hulu.