American film director and producer Wesley Earl Craven also served as screenwriter, actor, and editor. Craven was mainly best known among audiences for producing horror movies, especially the slasher films where he incorporated horror cliches with a bit of humor and satire. He wrote A Nightmare on Elm Street, which was released in the theatre in 1984 and later acclaimed by the Jury, and was commercially successful. After getting a massive success in this film, he created A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise (1984-2010).
As a victorious director and producer, as of 2014, Wes Craven’s net worth was approximately $40 million. In his 76 years of lifespan, he directed and produced hundreds of horror films and the majority of them were box office hits. Thereby, it’s obvious that he established himself as a millionaire in his mid-50s.
Wes Craven isn’t among us anymore. On August 30, 2015, he passed away of a brain tumor at his Los Angeles home, four weeks after he celebrated his 76th birthday. Actors and fellow directors paid tribute to him along with Adriene Barbeau, Bruce Campbell, John Carpenter, Johny Deep, Joe Dante, and many more.
So, if you want to more about this director’s glorifying career and private life, then continue reading.
Facts About Wes Craven
| Celebrated Name | Wes Craven |
| Real Name/Full Name | Wesley Earl Craven |
| Gender | Male |
| Age | 76 |
| Birthdate | August 2, 1939, |
| Birthplace | Cleveland, Ohio |
| Nationality | American |
| Height | 6 feet |
| Weight | Not available |
| Sexual Orientation | Straight |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Wife/Spouse (Name) | Bonnie Broecker (m 1964, div 1970)Mimi Craven (m 1984, div 1987)Iya Labunka (m 2004) |
| Children | Jonathan CravenJessica Craven |
| Dating/Girlfriend (Name) | None |
| Profession | American Director and Producer |
| Net Worth in 2021 | $40 million |
Wes Craven’s Early Life
Born on August 2, 1939, in Cleveland, Ohio, Wes Craven was the son of Paul Craven and Caroline Craven. He has two other siblings named Carol Buhrow and Paul James Craven. Craven attended Illinois’s Wheaton College and earned an undergraduate certificate in English and Psychology. He completed his master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University in philosophy and writing.
Before stepping into directing films, Craven was an English teacher at Westminster College and later become a humanities professor at Clarkson College of Technology from 1964 to 1965. During this period, he bought a 16mm used film camera and started to make short movies.
Wes Craven’s Personal Life
Wes Craven’s first wife’s name was Bonnie Broecker. They got married in 1964 and they had two children together named Jonathan Craven (born 1965) and Jessica Craven (born 1968). They parted ways in 1970. Jonathan is a writer and director by profession and Jessica was a singer-songwriter in the Chapin Sisters’s group.
In 1984, Wes Craven married an actress Mimi Craven. However, they got a divorce in 1987, and later in an interview, Craven stated that this marriage was nothing but a lie. In 2004, Craven wedded Iya Labunka, who often worked as a producer on Wes’s films.
Wes Craven’s loved to watch birds. He stated himself as a birder in an interview and loved to watch birds for hours. In 2010, he joined Audubon California’s Board of Directors team to protect birds and their habitats.
Wes Craven’s Age, Height, and Weight
Wes Craven departed his life at the age of 76. He had brown eyes and hair. Craven was 6 feet tall, but details about his weight hadn’t been available on the internet.
You may also read: Katie Peterson Bio
Wes Craven Net Worth and Salary
Wes Craven’s net worth was estimated at $40 million, as of 2014. He directed, wrote, and edited hundreds of films throughout his career and nearly all were box office hits. No wonder, he was the owner of a million worth of resources in his mid-50s.
Wes Craven’s Career
Wes Craven started his career in the film industry as a sound editor. He learned a lot about film production, especially the Chapin method of editing from folk-rock star Harry Chapin. You’ve Got to Walk It Like You Talk It or You’ll Lose That Beat was Craven’s first editing film, which was released in 1971.
In 1972, The Last House on the Left was Craven’s first directed film. However, he received backlash from the audience for the poor content of the film. After receiving the negative experience from this film, Craven decided to shift his focus from the horror genre and started to write non-horror films with another writer Sean S. Cunningham. Though none of the films received financial banking.
1977 film The Hills Have Eyes engraved Wes Craven’s name as the “Creator of the Horror Film.” Craven wrote, directed, and edited this film all by himself. But he became a prominent director after his film A Nightmare on Elm Street was released in 1984. Subsequently, he directed several films including The Hills Have Eyes Part II (1985), Shocker (1989), Vampire in Brooklyn (1995), Scream (1996), Scream 2 (1997), Scream 3 (2000), Red Eye (2005), My Soul to Take (2010) and Scream 4 (2011).
In 2008, Wes Craven designed the Halloween logo for Google. With writer Steve Niles, Craven wrote a five-issue comic book series titled Coming of Rage. In 2014, this series was telecasted in digital form.
Wes Craven’s Awards and Achievements
- American film director Wes Craven won Saturn Awards, the critics award at the Sitges Film Festival for the film The Hills Have Eyes (1977). Also, the Gerardmer Film Festival honored him with the Grand Prize for Scream in the same year. In 2012, Craven was awarded the New York City Horror Film Festival’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
- Throughout his career, fellow directors considered him the creator of horror films.
- Wes Craven was considered one of the pioneers of slasher films, where he wrote horror scripts with humor and satire.
- Majority of his directed films were box office hits and commercially successful.
- Wes Craven frequently called Abe Snake, Guru of Gore, Master of Horror, and Sultan of Shock.