How Sharon Stone Really Lost So Much Of Her Money

Sharon Stone isn't just one of the most talented actors of her generation — she's an icon, full stop. Her star-making turn as the femme fatale in "Basic Instinct" catapulted her to fame, but that breakout role didn't come easy. By then, she'd already slogged through well over a dozen movies, and landing the film in her 30s almost didn't happen. Still, Stone ran with it and hustled her way to the top, stacking accolades, including an Oscar nom. But did all that hustling leave her with a bank account to match? Sadly, not quite.

Stone's net worth sits at a respectable $25 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth, but even she admits it could have been much higher if not for the setbacks life threw her way. The biggest blow came in 2001 when she suffered what is arguably the biggest health problem of her life — a stroke that nearly killed her and wiped out her savings. Doctors gave her a one percent chance of survival, but Stone pulled through, only to discover her nest egg had vanished after seven years, when she had finally fully recovered. "People took advantage of me over that time. I had $18 million saved because of all my success, but when I got back into my bank account, it was all gone. My refrigerator, my phone — everything was in other people's names," she told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview. "I had zero money."

Stone eventually bounced back, recovering both her health and career. But years later, another financial curveball hit — this time, thanks to an investment gone south.

Sharon Stone would be the first one to tell you that her lifestyle isn't exactly cheap. Between maintaining her house, paying for security, and keeping an army of managers, publicists, and glam experts on her payroll, the expenses are never-ending. "It's very expensive to be famous," she shared with InStyle. "You go out to dinner, and there's 15 people at the table, and who gets the check? You get the $3,000 dinner check every single time."

But those swanky dinners are the least of her worries. The real financial gut punch came later. In March 2023, while speaking at a Women's Cancer Research Fund gala, Stone urged guests to dig deeper for donations. The plea hit hard because, at the time, even she was struggling to keep the lights on. To top it off, Stone had suffered yet another tragedy and was grieving a personal loss. "And right now, that's [donating] courage too," she told the audience. "I just lost half my money to this banking thing, and that doesn't mean that I'm not here. My brother just died, and that doesn't mean that I'm not here. This is not an easy time for any of us." She didn't explain what exactly torpedoed her net worth, but given the timing, it probably had something to do with the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.

Sharon Stone breaks down in tears asking guests to donate more money. She says writing a check for her requires courage since she "lost half my money to this banking thing," presumably referring to Silicon Valley Bank collapse. "This is not an easy time for any of us." pic.twitter.com/ZTSP5TQ2od

— Chris Gardner (@chrissgardner) March 17, 2023

Still, Stone isn't losing sleep over it. She's fully aware she might end up starting from scratch — and she has learned to come to terms with that. "Will I make enough money to stay living where I'm living? Probably not," she told InStyle. "But the kids will leave home and go to college, and I'll sell my big, fancy house, and I'll go live like a normal person."