Eva Longoria’s initial foray into acting was a modest role as “Flight Attendant #3” on a 2000 episode of “Beverly Hills, 90210.” That year, she also briefly appeared on “General Hospital” as a “Brenda Barrett Lookalike,” marking her early efforts to establish a foothold in the industry, one small part at a time.

Her significant break came when she secured the character of Isabella Braña on “The Young and the Restless.” Between 2001 and 2003, Longoria graced 303 episodes of the enduring soap opera, gaining consistent employment, increased exposure, and her initial financial security in the competitive Hollywood landscape.

The turning point arrived in 2004 with her casting as Gabrielle Solis on ABC’s sensational drama “Desperate Housewives.” The show quickly captured the zeitgeist, and Longoria featured in all 180 episodes over eight seasons. Her salary rose to approximately $375,000 per episode in the later seasons, translating to about $9 million annually. Including salary, bonuses, and ongoing residuals, her tenure on the show culminated in tens of millions in earnings.

Faced with newfound wealth, how does one choose to spend it?

For many in Hollywood, the choice often involves larger homes, luxury vehicles, and an extravagant lifestyle that necessitates continuous acting to maintain financial stability.

However, Eva Longoria took a distinctive route.

Instead of simply preserving her wealth, she became curious about how it could grow. She has since described herself as being obsessed with one question: How does my money make money?

That curiosity would eventually lead her into sports ownership, consumer brands, tequila, food companies, and her own production ventures. But before any of that, she made one high-risk decision that would quietly reshape her financial future…

In 2014, an ultra-violent action movie about a retired hitman avenging his dog was 24 hours away from shutting down production. The project desperately needed roughly $6 million in gap financing, and without immediate cash, the cameras weren’t going to roll.

Enter Eva Longoria.

Longoria received a phone call from an agent – who wasn’t even her own agent – encouraging her to invest in the struggling project. At the time, she did not fully understand what “gap financing” even meant. She wasn’t analyzing waterfall structures or running spreadsheets. She simply believed in the people behind the project. Two of those people, directors Chad Stahelski and David Leitch, had recently put their own houses up as collateral to keep the movie on life support.

So she wrote a $6 million check.

As you may know, the movie starred Keanu Reeves as a retired assassin pulled back into the criminal underworld after the killing of his dog. It was gritty, stylized, and far from a guaranteed hit. In fact, few people expected it to launch a franchise.

Photo by Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

How’d That Work Out?

“John Wick” ultimately grossed more than $86 million worldwide during its initial theatrical run, making it a solid success relative to its budget. In a 2024 interview with Business Insider, Eva was directly asked if she still gets checks from “John Wick” and how much she has made off the movie. Her answer:

“You know, I would have to check. More than double, for sure.“

One Regret

In that same interview, Eva expressed one regret with her investment: Her investment was just in the FIRST movie. It didn’t give her a piece of the whole franchise. As she explained:

“This was a one-time thing. That was the gamble. But that was my only mistake, not being attached to all of the films.“

How big a regret was that?

We know she made at least $12 million off the first movie, which grossed $86 million. To date, the  “John Wick” franchise has cumulatively earned over $1 billion. Using a very rough comparable multiplier, had Eva demanded a cut of every movie going forward, her earnings today would easily be north of $100 million. I don’t think she has any regrets, though. As it turned out, Eva’s gap financing adventure was only the first of many extremely successful side bets.

Angel City FC

In 2020, Longoria became one of the founding investors in Angel City FC, the Los Angeles–based National Women’s Soccer League expansion team spearheaded by Natalie Portman and a high-profile ownership group that included entertainers, athletes, and venture capitalists.

Longoria has said she initially viewed the investment almost like a donation. The pitch was mission-driven: build a women’s soccer club with a modern business model that prioritized revenue sharing, sponsorship equity, and community investment. She believed in the idea.

What she did not necessarily expect was the valuation growth.

In 2023, a controlling stake in Angel City FC was sold at a valuation reported to be around $250 million, making it the most valuable franchise in women’s sports at the time. Longoria has publicly stated that her return on the deal was roughly 14x her initial investment.

That is venture-capital-level upside, from a soccer club she thought she was supporting as a cause.

Club Necaxa

Not content with one team, Longoria expanded her sports portfolio by investing in Club Necaxa, a historic Mexican Liga MX franchise based in Aguascalientes. Her partners include investors with ties to U.S. sports and entertainment, and the ownership group has leaned into the growing crossover between soccer, media, and streaming.

Casa Del Sol Tequila

Longoria is also a cofounder of Casa Del Sol, a premium tequila brand launched in 2021. The brand emphasizes female leadership in an industry historically dominated by men, including having a female master distiller.

Unlike a passive celebrity endorsement deal, Longoria has described this venture as hands-on. She spends significant time working with distributors, retailers, and promotional partners. For her, it is not just about writing a check and attaching her name. It is operational sweat equity.

Siete Foods

Perhaps the most eye-popping of her post-“John Wick” investments came in the food sector.

Longoria invested in Siete Foods, a Texas-based, family-owned brand known for grain-free tortillas and Mexican-inspired products. At the time she invested, Siete was already valued at roughly $400 million. This was not a scrappy startup in someone’s kitchen. It was an established, fast-growing company on the verge of scaling nationally.

In 2024, Siete Foods was acquired by PepsiCo for $1.2 billion.

Hyphenate Media Group

Longoria also turned inward, launching Hyphenate Media Group, her production company focused on developing film and television projects, particularly for Latino and female creators.

Unlike her “John Wick” investment, where she admits she barely understood the mechanics, her media company represents the evolution of her thinking. It combines ownership, creative control, backend participation, and long-term intellectual property value.

Not a bad outcome for Flight Attendant #3!