Rebecca Gayheart, the Kentucky-born actress and model, has built a net worth of $5 million through a career spanning over three decades. Born on August 12, 1971, in Hazard, she grew up in Pine Top as one of four children in a working-class family. Her mother, Floneva, sold Mary Kay products, while her father, Curtis, drove coal trucks and worked in mines.
At 15, Rebecca won a modeling contest, packed her bags for New York City, and never looked back. She attended the Professional Children’s School and trained at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute, paying her dues with gigs like modeling for J.C. Penney and starring in Campbell’s soup commercials. But her big break came in the early ‘90s as “The Noxzema Girl,” a role that plastered her face across TV screens and kicked open Hollywood’s door.
Inside Rebecca Gayheart’s $5 Million Net Worth as of 2025
By 1992, Rebecca landed her first major acting role as Hannah Mayberry on the ABC soap opera Loving, appearing in over 140 episodes. She quickly became a familiar face in cult classics and teen dramas, such as her turn as Antonia Marchette on Beverly Hills, 90210 in 1995, where her character’s tragic exit left fans reeling.
The late ‘90s cemented her as a scream queen with roles in Scream 2 (1997) as Sorority Sister Lois, Urban Legend (1998) as Brenda Bates, and Jawbreaker (1999) as Julie Freeman, the latter earning a devoted cult following despite flopping at the box office. She balanced horror with comedy, notably, 1997’s Nothing to Lose alongside Martin Lawrence and Tim Robbins, and dipped into indie films like Harvard Man (2001) with Sarah Michelle Gellar.
Rebecca’s career wasn’t just confined to the screen. In 2005, she stole the show on Broadway as Shelby in Steel Magnolias, with Variety praising her “breezy confidence.” She returned to Broadway in 2008 for Boeing-Boeing, proving her versatility. Television kept calling too—guest spots on Nip/Tuck, Ugly Betty, and a recurring role on Dead Like Me showcased her range. Even after a hiatus, she made a memorable comeback in 2019 as Billie Booth, Brad Pitt’s late wife, in Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, a film that scored Oscar and Golden Globe nominations.
Behind the glamour, Rebecca’s personal life has been anything but quiet. At 15, she met director Brett Ratner (Rush Hour, X-Men: The Last Stand), and their 13-year relationship included a broken engagement in 1999. In 2004, she married Grey’s Anatomy star Eric Dane after a whirlwind 10-month romance. They had two daughters, Billie (born 2010) and Georgia (born 2011), but filed for divorce in 2018 (though she later withdrew the petition in 2025). Their marriage faced tabloid chaos in 2009 when Gawker leaked a n*de video featuring Rebecca, Eric, and former Miss Teen USA Kari Ann Peniche. The couple sued, and Gawker eventually took it down.
Tragedy struck in 2001 when Rebecca, driving a car borrowed from her From Dusk Till Dawn 3 co-star Marco Leonardi, hit and took the life of 9-year-old Jorge Cruz Jr. in Los Angeles. She paid the family $10,000 for funeral expenses, pleaded no contest to vehicular manslaughter, and received three years’ probation, a $2,800 fine, and 750 hours of community service. The grief nearly destroyed her. In a 2019 podcast, she admitted, “I just didn’t want to live after that accident… I spent about a year trying to k— myself.”
Financially, Rebecca and Eric made savvy real estate moves. In 2006, they bought a 2,265-square-foot L.A. home for $1.64 million, sold it in 2011 for $1.495 million, and upgraded to a $2.4 million Beverly Hills Post Office property. Her multimillionaire status reflects decades of hustle, from soap operas to scream queen fame, Broadway applause, and Hollywood comebacks.
Even with setbacks, Rebecca’s determination and talent keep her name in the game, proving she’s more than just the Noxzema Girl or a tabloid headline. She’s a survivor, an actress, and a mom who’s weathered storms most can’t imagine.
