Michael Bay has blown up robots and shot up police squads on the big screen for 21 years, to the tune of almost $6 billion at the global box office. The guy is one of the most lucrative Hollywood directors of all time, up there with Steven Spielberg, James Cameron and other men (ugh) who are now loaded.
Maybe you haven't spent much time pondering what Bay's bank account looks like. He's not exactly an esteemed auteur (not that he cares how you see his movies), but because he can rake in the dough like almost no other, let's assume he's rich. How rich? Well, we just heard it from the director himself, who just signed on to helm the fifth installment of the behemoth "Transformers" franchise: Michael Bay is worth half a billion dollars. Also known as $500 million. Also known as ludicrous.
For comparison's sake, Spielberg and his seven Best Director Oscar nominations are worth $3.6 billion, according to Forbes. And Cameron, whose "Avatar" is on the cusp of being unseated by "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" as the highest-grossing movie of all time, was worth a reported $650 million back in 2010.
Here's what Bay told Rolling Stone when asked how much he's worth in a new profile centered on the forthcoming release of "13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi":
"I'd say about half. Half a 'B.' But you save up your money and you give it away. That's what I'm going to do. I'll probably do a very large wildlife-protection fund -- something with Africa and big game."
When asked how much he'll donate, Bay responded, "All of it. Not yet. One day."
Rolling Stone also points out that Bay owns a $50 million Gulfstream G550 jet along with a Bentley, a Range Rover, an Escalade, a Ferrari, a Lamborghini and two Camaros from the "Transformers" films. But don't worry -- he's selling his sports cars because now he takes Uber everywhere.
With all that decadence, Bay could be bae.
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