What Is Dustin Diamond’s Net Worth and Who Is His Wife or Girlfriend?

Dustin Diamond is an American actor, musician, and stand-up comedian. He rose to fame in the 90’s for his role as Screech on the teen sitcom “Saved By The Bell” and its spin-offs. While his former co-stars have gone on to achieve much success in Hollywood, sadly, the same can’t be said about Diamond who more often than not appear in the tabloids for awkward reasons like making a sex tape, writing a controversial tell-all autobiography, and even doing jail time.

Dustin Diamond’s Early Life and Career Beginnings

Dustin Neil Diamond was born on January 7, 1977, in San Jose, California. He launched his acting career quite early as a child. In the late 80’s, he made appearances in movies such as “Purple People Eaters”, “She’s Out of Control” as well as the TV series “The Wonder Years and It’s a Living”.

In 1988 Dustin began playing the lovable and nerdy Screech on Disney TV show “Good Morning, Miss Bliss” which lasted for one season and got cancelled in 1989. The show followed a group of high school students and their teacher Miss Carrie Bliss portrayed by Hayley Mills.

After its cancellation, the show’s reboot under the title “Saved by the Bell” aired on NBC for 4 seasons from 1989 to 1993. Subsequently, the show was followed by two spin-offs- “Saved by the Bell: The College Years” which aired primetime from 1993– 1994, and “Saved by the Bell: The New Class” (1993–2000).

Dustin like other stars on the show continued to experience more popularity as the show’s rerun was put in syndication. Apart from the sitcoms, Dustin also appeared on the show’s TV films like “Saved by the Bell: Hawaiian Style” (1994) and “Saved by the Bell: Wedding in Las Vegas” (1994).

An Inside Look at Dustin Diamond’s Net Worth

Dustin Diamond’s Net Worth is estimated at $500,000 which he made mostly from his entertainment career in acting and comedy at the time things were good for him. IMDb has it that he made $120 per episode of Celebrity Fit Club (2005). Aside from acting, Dustin is also a celebrated stand-up comedian in certain quarters whose comedy show tickets don’t take long to get sold out. However, the exact amount he has been able to make from comedy shows has not been disclosed.

How Much did He make from Saved By The Bell?

Going by a 2001 report that came out when Dustin filed for bankruptcy, it was revealed that the actor earns $65,000 annually as royalties from Saved By The Bell reruns. After the show’s end, sho’s stars went on to solidify their star status by achieving more success in Hollywood. However, Dustin seemed to be achieving much less than his co-stars. This has been hugely blamed on his extreme efforts to shake-off the “good boy character” of Screech by putting up the bad boy persona; a move that has only been counter-effective.

However, Dustin’s first post-Bell year seemed a bit promising. He dabbled into stand-up comedy and began touring the states. Additionally, he made cameo appearances in a number of films like “Made” (2001), “Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star” (2003) and reality TV shows like “The Weakest Link”, “Celebrity Boxing” and “Hollywood Squares”. Dustin also showed off his musician side in 2003 by playing the bass guitar on the debut album of the alternative rock band “Salty the Pocketknife.”

What Factors Contributed to His low Net Worth?

Despite the different money-yielding engagements he has ventured in, Dustin’s earnings are yet to grow into millions as his net worth is estimated at $500,000. He has struggled without much success to increase his earning and for obvious reasons, his net worth has suffered from the bad public image he now has. Below are factors that has made his net worth stagnant.

• Acting Roles in Low Budget Films

Granted that Dustin is not an actor who struggles at getting roles, but since after the last episode of Saved By The Bell aired, the former celebrated actor has found it extremely difficult to land roles in blockbuster movies. He has only been able to secure acting jobs in low budget feature films and brief appearances on TV shows.

He continued acting in such lowly rated films and making insignificant appearances on television shows till he probably got tired of it and instead decided to write a book about Saved By The Bell. However, the book proved more disastrous rather than vivify his crumbling career.

• Damning Revelations in his Behind The Bell Autobiography

In 2009, he published a tell-all autobiography titled “Behind the Bell”. Among many things, Dustin claimed that his “Saved By The Bell” co-stars slept with each other while some were on drugs like steroids. He also claimed to have slept with 2,000 women including Linda Mancuso the VP of NBC’s children’s programming who happened to be 18 years older than him.

In a 2013 interview with the OWN Network, Dustin claimed the book was ghostwritten by an author who interviewed him and that the contents were exaggerated. On an episode of The Dr. Oz Show that aired November 10, 2016, Dustin apologized to his co-stars for the damage the book might have caused to their careers. He also claimed that his situation at the time was taken advantage of.

• His Controversial Sex Tape

Dustin didn’t quite receive the kind of fame or money he was looking for. Consequently, he opted to make a sex tape after learning that Paris Hilton had made $14 million off hers. However, contrary to his expectations, the tape released with the title “Screeched – Saved by the Smell” was met with backlash from fans.

Initially, Dustin denied any part in the tape claiming that the man in the video wasn’t him but a body double. However, he later admitted making the tape for money while maintaining he was digitally edited into the video. In 2007, Dustin was caught up in more controversies with his appearance on the 5th season of reality TV show Celebrity Fit Club where he seemed to have a contentious relationship with almost every co-star.

• Unsuccessful Real Estate Investments

While he was making money as an entertainer, Dustin did what many other financially wise person would do, which is to put his money into investments; his choice being real estate. However, the investments he made in real estate didn’t turn out to be profitable as he had planned, instead, the actor lost big time, including his house.

His two-story Cape Cod style Spinnaker West house in Milwaukee, Wisconsin which was built in 2013 is one ready example. The four bedrooms, and three bathrooms house which seats on a .55 acre lot which he bought for $340,000 in 2003 is now in foreclosure and listed for sell “as is” at the value of $280,000 as of July 2020.

• His Arrest and Imprisonment

Dustin was arrested in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin on December 26, 2014, for possession of a switchblade and was alleged to have stabbed a man in a bar on Christmas day. However, on May 29, 2015, he was acquitted of the most serious charge of all but found guilty of two misdemeanours – disorderly conduct and carrying a concealed weapon. He was sentenced to four months behind bars on June 25, 2015, but was released on probation three months later. However, after being found guilty of violating his probation terms, he was arrested again in May 2016 but released shortly after.

• Legal Troubles

Aside his career, Dustin has also found it difficult to stay on the right side of the law. He has been arrested more than once for disorderly conduct with tax warrants filed against him by the state of Wisconsin totalling $82,156. In addition, Dustin also owes the Electrical Construction Industry Board of Wisconsin the sum of $40,000.

Dustin Diamond’s $500, 000 Net Worth in Comparision to Other Saved By The Bell Stars

Saved By The Bell stars as of this writing have a combined net worth of over $42 million. Here’s how much each actor/actresses contributed to this sum.

1. A.C. Slater played by Mario Lopez

• Net Worth: $16 million

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A post shared by Mario Lopez (@mariolopez)

Mario is the most successful Saved By The Bell actor who has gone on to enjoy a successful acting career after the 80s sitcom. The actor who has acting credits in films like Aloha, Scooby-Doo! (2005) and a voice role in The Smurfs 2 (2013) has a net worth pegged at $16 million by Celebrity Net Worth. Dustin’s $500, 000 doesn’t come close to his net worth in any way.

2. Kelly Kapowski played by Tiffani-Amber Thiessen

• Net Worth: $10 million

Yes I am smiling. But sort of smiling through the pain of signing so many #PullUpAChair books. Ha! I think my hands are about to fall off. But I would do it over & over again for you all because I could not be more grateful to everyone who has come out to see me. Next up #Seattle pic.twitter.com/war5KkrmpI

— Tiffani Thiessen (@TiffaniThiessen) October 12, 2018

Fox’s Beverly Hills, 90210, Fastlane, ABC’s What About Brian and NBC’s Saved by the Bell all have one thing in common which is the presence of American actress Tiffani Amber Thiessen who played the character of Kelly Kapowski on Saved By The Bell. She has a net worth of $10 million and is only bested by Mario Lopez in any list of the richest Saved By The Bell stars.

3. Zach Morris played by Mark-Paul Gosselaar

• Net Worth: $9 million

Hey guys, I just ran into Franklin and Bash! @breckinmeyer pic.twitter.com/qdRBcm2jMn

— Mark-Paul Gosselaar (@MPG) March 13, 2019

Next after Lopez in the line of who’s wealthiest is Gosselaar, an American actor who after Saved By The Bell went on to land successful acting roles in NYPD Blue, Dead Man on Campus and many others. He has been able to amass a net worth of $9 million and still earns as an actor with roles in TV series like Mixed-ish where he plays the character of Paul Johnson.

4. Jessie Spano played by Elizabeth Berkley

• Net Worth: $6 million

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Aside from Saved by the Bell, Elizabeth gained good repute as a talented American actress with roles in Armitage III: Poly-Matrix, Showgirls (both in 1995), and others. She has been able to secure her place as one of the richest Saved By The Bell actresses with a net worth of $6 million.

5. Lisa Turtle played by Lark Voorhies

• Net Worth: $500 000

Out and about with Mom❤️#larkvoorhies #lisaturtle #mom #mother #love #blessed #thankful pic.twitter.com/vafaWDArme

— Lark Voorhies (@TheLarkVoorhies) August 27, 2016

Lark is an American woman who wears many hats as an actress, singer, writer, spokeswoman and model. She has acted in television series like The Love Boat: The Next Wave (1998), The Bold and the Beautiful (1995–96, 2004), including a voice role in Robot Chicken as Lisa Turtle / Betty Childs / Borg Queen. The actress has a net worth of $500 thousand.

6. Mr. Belding played by Dennis Haskins

• Net worth: $300, 000

Heading to #NOLA for tomorrow night’s #Savedbytge90s gig at @hobnola with the great @savedbythe90s band! Let’s do this! #laizez … you know! 🙂 pic.twitter.com/wuF70VSU3a

— Dennis Haskins (@mrbelding) September 7, 2018

We saw Mr. Belding, the lovable principal of Bayside High always struggling to keep the unruly Zack Morris in line. The seasoned actor who is also the oldest actor in the main cast of Saved By The Bell has a net worth of $300, 000.

Dustin Diamond’s Decade Long Marriage with Jennifer Miser

Dustin Diamond has been to the altar once in his life. He married his girlfriend Jennifer Misner who he met during a tour in Pennsylvania in 2003 but their marriage later ended in a divorce that happened in 2013. Their decade-old marriage produced no living child/ren but while they were married, Jennifer suffered a miscarriage in 2004 from an ectopic pregnancy she had.

Though neither of the two has till date spoken up on why they separated, speculations abound and they say Dustin was cheating on Jennifer with Amanda Schutz. From all indications, there could be truth in the allegations. This is because the duo was frequently spotted together even before his divorce with Jennifer divorce was finalized. Also, Dustin got engaged to Amanda less than two years after he divorced Jennifer.

His Relationship with Amanda Schutz Amidst Many Troubles

Dustin’s relationship with Amanda have seen both good and some bad times, but in all, the couple are waxing stronger despite the controversies and problems that have come their way. Back in December 2014, precisely on the 26th, the couple were arrested following an incident that saw Dustin stab another man in a bar. They made a joint appearance in court in January 2015 and later in May of the same year during which Dustin was acquitted of felony assualt but instead convicted of misdemeanour which saw him penalized with a 4 months prison sentence and 6 months of probation and $1,000 fine in restitution.

Professionally, Amanda is a clown best known by her clown name “Loli Pop”. She studied theatre at Wagner College in Staten Island, New York and founded Loli Pop Entertainment LLC which provides entertainment for children parties. Amanda has also starred as a clown in an episode of “The Real Houses of New York City”.

What Does the Future Hold for Dustin Diamond, His Fiance and Career?

For now, there’s no news on when the couple will be getting married or if they won’t. However, from all indications, their relationship is growing strong despite the many troubles that have come their way.

Following his interview on The Dr. Oz Show in November 2016, it appears Dustin is done being a douchebag and is ready to make something out of himself. Maybe Hollywood would begin to look his way, and he could begin landing lucrative gigs that would eventually grant him a spot in the millionaires club like his “Saved By The Bell” co-stars: Mario Lopez, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Elizabeth Berkley, and Tiffani-Amber Thiessen.