When Band of Brothers premiered in 2001, the Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks-produced miniseries was the most expensive ever made. A landmark show that helped usher in the new golden age of TV, the 10-part drama followed the exploits of Easy Company, an elite US paratrooper unit during the Second World War.
The ensemble cast was packed with emerging talent, including a surprising number of British and Irish actors flawlessly channelling American GIs. Read on to discover which of the show's stars have gone on to build the biggest fortunes off the battlefield, based on estimates from Celebrity Net Worth. All dollar amounts in US dollars.
Kirk Acevedo played Joe Toye, leader of the 2nd Squad, 2nd Platoon, known as the toughest of the tough in Easy Company. He earned four Purple Hearts, the most in the unit, along with several other decorations for bravery, having survived multiple explosions.
Already familiar from the groundbreaking HBO series Oz, New York-born Acevedo has gone on to appear in numerous hit TV shows and movies, from Fringe and Arrow to Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.
A former US Marine and decorated Vietnam veteran, Dale Dye got his acting breakthrough in the 1986 movie Platoon, drawing on his own battlefield experience for authenticity. In Band of Brothers, he once again brought that realism to the screen as Colonel Robert Sink, the commanding officer of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment. Dye also served as the show's military technical advisor.
In fact, aside from acting, Dye has forged a formidable career as Hollywood’s go-to military consultant. Through his company Warriors Inc, he has trained legions of actors and advised on countless productions, including Saving Private Ryan, The Pacific, and Masters of the Air.
Eion Bailey played David Kenyon Webster, an aspiring writer and one of Easy Company's more introspective soldiers. A Harvard-educated intellectual who volunteered for combat, Webster offered a unique perspective on the realities of war.
Bailey got into the acting game with a recurring role on Buffy the Vampire Slayer before appearing in films such as Fight Club and Almost Famous. A versatile actor, the California native's post-Band of Brothers career is peppered with standout performances in the likes of ER, Ray Donovan, and Once Upon a Time.
As Easy Company's first lieutenant Lynn 'Buck' Compton, Neal McDonough portrayed a crucial character in the show, capturing Compton's inspirational courage and charisma.
An established actor by the time of Band of Brothers, McDonough has enjoyed a lengthy, successful career, with coveted roles in Minority Report, Flags of Our Fathers, Desperate Housewives, Yellowstone, and a whole lot more besides.
British and Irish actors abound in Band of Brothers, partly because the series was shot entirely in the UK. Cue Marc Warren. The Northampton-born actor nailed a convincing Philadelphia accent as Private Albert Blithe. Interestingly, while the miniseries depicted Blithe's death in 1948, the real soldier actually survived, later fighting in the Korean War before passing away in 1967.
As for Warren, his career flourished after Band of Brothers. A familiar face on British TV and film, he's best known for his roles in Hustle, Snatch, and Van der Valk.
Band of Brothers marked Dominic Cooper's first major screen credit. But the experience nearly put him off acting altogether. Cast in a small role, the young English actor found himself overwhelmed by the scale of the production and the competition from other up-and-coming talents. Still, it proved a valuable early lesson and a launchpad for what has become an impressive career.
Cooper has long balanced mainstream projects with more serious dramatic work. On top of starring in the Mamma Mia! films and a slew of action movies, he has picked up plaudits for performances in The History Boys, An Education, My Week with Marilyn, and other critically lauded flicks.
One of several Irish actors to appear in Band of Brothers, Jason O'Mara was working steadily on stage and screen in the UK before being cast as Lieutenant Thomas Meehan, Easy Company's 1st commanding officer, who was killed on D-Day.
Following the show, O'Mara moved to the US and has since built a stellar TV career with leading roles in Terra Nova, Vegas, and The Man in the High Castle, where his character also fights the Nazis.
A former child actor, Scott Grimes was already a seasoned pro when he took on the role of Donald Malarkey, one of Easy Company's most loyal and quick-witted paratroopers. Before Band of Brothers, Grimes had starred in Critters, Party of Five, and ER, amassing a solid résumé.
After the miniseries, he became a mainstay in Seth MacFarlane projects, voicing Steve Smith in American Dad! and starring as Lieutenant Gordon Malloy in The Orville. A talented musician to boot, Grimes co-wrote and performed the 2005 hit single Sunset Blvd.
Dexter Fletcher also began his career as a child star, appearing in The Bounty, Caravaggio, and The Rachel Papers long before bagging the role of Staff Sergeant John Martin in the HBO miniseries.
The English actor went on to enjoy an enviable on-screen career with roles in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Layer Cake, and Hotel Babylon. But he's now best known as a director, winning rave reviews for his work on movies including Eddie the Eagle, Rocketman, and Bohemian Rhapsody. On top of that, Fletcher was the voice of McDonald's UK adverts for many years and now directs commercials, including supermarket Asda's Christmas 2005 The Grinch campaign.
Ron Livingston played Captain Lewis Nixon III, the hard-drinking, easy-going intelligence officer who nevertheless always got the job done. Best known at the time for his comedic roles, Livingston proved his dramatic range in Band of Brothers with a sharp and understated performance that earned him a Golden Globe nomination.
After the show, Livingston appeared in films such as Adaptation and The Conjuring, and has enjoyed memorable TV roles, including as non-committal Carrie Bradshaw love interest Jack Berger in Sex and the City and Roy Phillips in Boardwalk Empire.
One of the UK's most renowned character actors, Stephen Graham swapped his Merseyside accent for an American one to play Sergeant Myron 'Mike' Ranney in Band of Brothers.
Graham's career was really going places when the series aired in 2001, thanks to a major role in gangster flick Snatch, and he went on to appear in Gangs of New York and Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Graham later wowed critics as Al Capone in Boardwalk Empire and, more recently, created, co-wrote, and starred in Netflix's Adolescence, winning three Emmys for the impactful series.
Andrew Scott was still under the radar when he appeared in Band of Brothers as Private John Hall. Like his co-star Dominic Cooper, he later admitted to struggling on set, finding the hyper-masculine atmosphere and intense method-style acting challenging.
Scott's career truly took off years later with a breakout turn as the cunning Jim Moriarty in the BBC series Sherlock, followed by an unforgettable performance as The Priest in Fleabag. More recently, he has starred in All of Us Strangers and Ripley, cementing his status as one of Ireland's hottest actors.
With his father Tom serving as an executive producer, Colin Hanks inevitably raised a few eyebrows when he joined the Band of Brothers cast. But the young actor proved he was no talentless nepo baby, delivering a heartfelt performance as Lieutenant Henry Jones, one of Easy Company's most earnest new recruits.
Hanks has since carved out an impressive career in his own right, with roles in Orange County, King Kong, Dexter, Fargo, and Impeachment: American Crime Story. Also an accomplished documentary filmmaker, he certainly takes after his father.
James McAvoy played Private James W. Miller in the show, a role that marked a key turning point in his career. Although not his screen debut, the miniseries showcased the Scottish actor's dramatic chops and helped him gain wider recognition in Hollywood.
Following Band of Brothers, McAvoy went on to star in The Last King of Scotland, Atonement, and the X-Men franchise. A perennially sought-after talent, he remains one of Tinseltown's most in-demand character actors.
While Band of Brothers is known for its ensemble cast, Damian Lewis' portrayal of Major Richard Winters was undoubtedly the central role. His performance as Easy Company's calm, disciplined leader propelled him into the spotlight, making him the breakout star of the show.
Post-Band of Brothers, Lewis has appeared in major movies and hit series like Homeland and Wolf Hall. He has also fronted high-profile campaigns for brands such as Jaguar and Aquascutum, boosting his net worth a treat.
Donnie Wahlberg rose to global fame as a member of the iconic boy band New Kids on the Block, but turned to acting in the late 1990s. His turn as Carwood Lipton in Band of Brothers kick-started this new career. While his brother Mark became a leading man and major movie star with a fortune of $400 million (£307m), Donnie embraces his role as a character actor.
Following Band of Brothers, the boy band luminary enjoyed success with Blue Bloods, where he reportedly earned $3.3 million (£2.5m) per season in the later years. He's also known for his appearances in the Saw films, Zookeeper, and Boomtown, and for co-owning popular casual dining chain Wahlburgers with his siblings.
After gaining a cult following in the UK sitcom Spaced, Simon Pegg made his first major international TV appearance in Band of Brothers as 1st Sergeant William Evans. The English actor then co-wrote and starred in the beloved Three Flavours Cornetto movie trilogy: Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and The World's End.
Pegg has since achieved the ultimate 'holy grail' of nerddom, having scored parts in Doctor Who, Star Trek, and Star Wars, while also appearing in the Mission: Impossible franchise and voicing a character in the Ice Age films.
Michael Fassbender played Easy Company machine gunner Burton P. Christenson in the show, a notable early screen role for the then little-known German-Irish actor.
Fassbender has since become a bona fide Hollywood A-lister, courtesy of stunning performances in movies like Shame, Inglourious Basterds, and the X-Men franchise. He earned Oscar nominations for 12 Years a Slave and Steve Jobs, and continues to juggle prestige projects with big-budget blockbusters.
The year 2001 was a pivotal one for Tom Hardy, who made his film debut in Ridley Scott's Black Hawk Down, on top of appearing in Band of Brothers as Private John A. Janovec.
Hardy's career then went stratospheric. Major roles followed in movies including Bronson, Legend, Mad Max: Fury Road, and Christopher Nolan's Inception, and the storied English actor picked up an Oscar nod for his turn in The Revenant. Hardy has also landed endorsement deals with Nike, Sky Mobile, Hyundai Card, Kleenex, and Jo Malone, adding very nicely to his ever-growing bank balance.
Years before becoming a late-night institution, Jimmy Fallon made a brief appearance in Band of Brothers as 2nd Lieutenant George Rice. It stands as his only proper serious dramatic role, a curious anomaly in an otherwise comedy-driven career.
After his long stint on Saturday Night Live and film roles in Taxi and Fever Pitch, Fallon found his true calling behind the desk, first on Late Night in 2009 and then on The Tonight Show, where he reportedly earns a tidy $16 million (£12.3m) a year.
Already a household name for his role in Friends, David Schwimmer branched out in 2001 as Captain Herbert Sobel, Easy Company's strict and uncompromising commander. He later won praise for his turn as lawyer Robert Kardashian in The People v O J Simpson: American Crime Story and has appeared in Intelligence, Will & Grace, and the Madagascar films, voicing giraffe Melman.
Still, Ross Geller remains his most famous role and biggest money-spinner. Schwimmer earned around $90 million (£69m) in base salary over Friends' 10 seasons, including $1 million (£768k) per episode for the final two, and continues to make up to $20 million (£15.3m) a year from royalties and syndication.
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