How Jennifer Tilly’s Surprising Marriage Made Her Incredibly Rich

Lauren Novak December 4, 2024

Writer Sam Simon, winner of the — Charley Gallay/Getty Images for WGAw

Charley Gallay/Getty Images for WGAw

If you’re like most people, you’re familiar with Jennifer Tilly from her acting work in ’90s films like Bullets Over Broadway, Liar Liar and Bride of Chucky. So it might come as a surprise that Tilly was wealthy enough to join the cast of the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills this season. Chucky doesn’t pay that much, does he?!? The answer to how Tilly became wealthy lies in her ex-husband, Sam Simon.

While some actresses became mega-rich by marrying business executives, Tilly married a fellow Hollywood creative type. When the two tied the knot in 1984, Tilly was at the very beginning of her career and Simon had written for the TV shows Taxi and Cheers. Both of which are impressive, but could not bring in a Real Housewives-amount of dough.

Their marriage lasted for seven years … years in which Simon co-created The Simpsons.

Shudder/Everett Collection; 20th Century Fox/Everett Collection

When the show first aired on December 17, 1989, no one had any idea of how important the series would become. But as the 66-year-old Tilly revealed in a recent episode of RHOBH, she got a piece of the Simpsons in her divorce settlement when they split in 1991.

Even then, no one could have guessed that the show would still be on television over thirty years later! She said in her confessional, “Nobody knew that The Simpsons was going to go on for trillions of years. Every day, honestly, every day I’m like, ‘Thank you, Sam.'” Tilly, who went on to wed Phil Laak in 2004, opened up about her divorce on the show to comfort other castmates going through a similar situation.

Sadly, Simon passed away on March 8, 2015, at the age of 59 after a battle with cancer. Before his death, he made sure his family was taken care of and arranged for the rest of his fortune to be donated to various charities. The Simpsons episode “Waiting for Duffman” was dedicated to him after his death.

Simpsons creator Matt Groening with Executive Producers James L. Brooks and Sam Simon, and The Simpsons, 1990

Everett Collection

Co-creator Matt Groening talked about the show’s legacy in an interview to celebrate the 700th episode in 2021. He shared, “The show is such a part of the pop culture landscape that whole different generations have discovered it. The way things are streamed these days, you can access the entire history of the show anytime you want and see how it has changed over the years. I give a piece of advice to people who grew up with The Simpsons and maybe think it’s not for them anymore. Check it out again: The satire and the quality of animation is fantastic. I’m really proud of the group’s efforts.”