As one of the most talked-about figures, William Hung has built a significant fortune. In this article, we dive deep into the assets and career highlights.

What is William Hung's Net Worth?

Hung's popularity on "American Idol" remained so great that an online petition began circulating to bring him back on the show. It garnered over 100,000 signatures, and Hung was brought back mid-season for the special "Uncut, Uncensored and Untalented," which documented the audition process and focused on how Hung had emerged as an inadvertent celebrity.

William Hung is an American singer who has a net worth of $400 thousand. William Hung gained fame in 2004 when he auditioned for American Idol, performing a cover ofRicky Martin's"She Bangs." After his appearance, he signed a record contract with Koch Entertainment and released three albums. His first album, Inspiration, sold 200,000 copies in the U.S. and was #1 on the U.S. Indie charts. Hung's second album only charted 7,000 copies. He has many fans and critics alike. Hung has appeared onJimmy KimmelLive!, Entertainment Tonight, the Late Show withDavid Letterman, TheHoward Sternradio Show, TheEllen DeGeneresShow, and many more. He has appeared in commercials for the Game Show Network, Cingular Wireless, and Ask.com. He appeared in the 2004 film "Where is Mama's Boy." Hung retired from music in 2011 and became a technical crime analyst.

In 2004, Hung was offered a $25,000 advance on a record deal from Koch Entertainment. He released three albums on that label in 2004 and 2005, the first of which was "Inspiration." The album was produced by Giuseppe D and was recorded over a weekend, during which Hung sang vocals over karaoke music. To promote the album, Hung performed to nearly 20,000 fans during the half-time show at a Golden State Warriors basketball game. The album received highly negative reviews but managed to sell over 100,000 copies and made it to the top spot on the "Billboard" Top Independent Album Chart. His two follow-up albums were not nearly as successful. "Hung for the Holidays" was a Christmas album that only sold about 35,000 copies despite the fact that Hung promoted it on "The Howard Stern Show." His third album, "Miracle: Happy Summer from William Hung," only sold 7,000 copies. In February of 2006, Hung said he was working on a fourth album, which was ultimately never released.

Hung was born on January 13, 1983, in Sha Tin, British Hong Kong. He is a 73rd-generation descendant of Confucius. His family moved to the Van Nuys area of Los Angeles when Hung was 11 years old. After completing high school, he studied civil engineering at the University of California, Berkeley.

Throughout this time, Hung also appeared in a number of commercials for companies like Ask.com, Game Show Network, and Cingular Wireless. He appeared in his first film, a low-budget Hong Kong period comedy called "Where is Mama's Boy," which was released in January 2005. In the film, he plays a kid who sells Chinese pancakes to pay his mother's medical bills. His character later gets discovered as a singer, and in one scene, he parodies his own "American Idol" audition. Hung also made appearances in "Airline," "Arrested Development," and "George Lopez."

While a student at Berkeley, Hung decided to audition for the third season of the popular American singing reality show, "American Idol," on Fox. He auditioned in San Francisco in September of 2003. The resulting episode aired in January 2004. In his audition, Hung stated that he wished to make a living in music. He then began to sing and dance to the Ricky Martin song "She Bangs." The audition has since become iconic. JudgesRandy JacksonandPaula Abdultried to withhold laughter while judgeSimon Cowellfrankly told Hung that he lacked talent. However, Hung remained positive throughout the audition, even while receiving negative feedback. The judges appreciated his positive attitude. Hung's audition and responses to the judge earned him a cult following. Remixes of his performance were made and topped song request lists at a number of radio stations.

After his appearance on the show, Hung remained a popular figure in pop culture and the media for some time. He made subsequent appearances on television shows like "Jimmy Kimmel!" "On Air withRyan Seacrest," "Entertainment Tonight," "George Lopez," "Late Show with David Letterman," "Countdown withKeith Olbermann, "The Howard Stern Radio Show," " The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Dateline NBC, Arrested Development, and "The Early Show." He was also parodied in "Saturday Night," "Mad TV, and "Celebrity Deathmatch." He was also repeatedly invited to perform at MTV's Asia Awards.

In summary, the total wealth of William Hung reflects strategic moves.

Disclaimer: All net worth figures are estimates based on public data.