Originally posted on April 22, 2020 @ 9:27 am
One thing reality documentary series is that it has brought the world’s strangest and most fascinating profession to our mind. In doing so, we also get to learn that it is not just doctors and bankers that make a lot of money. Would you ever have thought that a profession like being an expert blacksmith would be high-paying?
Well, our favorite show,’ Forged in Fire‘s cast, certainly made us believe it. To be fair, the ‘Forged in Fire‘s cast are distinguishable men in the world of sword and knife-making. In the show, they either host or judge a competition for amateur bladesmith with a $10,000 reward.
Now, it is time to learn just how much salary they get as well as the ‘Forged in Fire’ Cast’s Net worth so find it down below in their individual bio also containing their married life, wives and children.
Will Willis Net Worth & Married Life
Who is Will Willis? Bio, Early Life
Will Willis is the host of ‘Forged in Fire,’ but despite that, he holds a wide array of career and experience that is quite a mouthful, to be honest. He is a former Army Ranger, Air Force Pararescue, and a Tactical Emergency Trauma Specialist before he was a TV host.
Will Willis was born on February 13, 1975, to a militant father. Willis would even live in a military base until his father’s retirement in 1991. After two years, he would fulfill his lifelong dream by joining the military like his father after graduating from high school in 1993. He was part of the 75th Ranger Regiment’s 3rd Ranger Battalion, where he would serve for almost five years until 1998.
Will Willis Net Worth; How much is Forged in Fire star’s worth?
Then, he immediately had a shift of interest to joining the Air Force, which wouldn’t even take him a month to complete as he became a Pararescueman in June 1998. Will’s job was to perform several searches, rescue, and recovery missions, even involving the safe rescue of NASA astronauts after they land. Willis will send a considerable time here, only a few months shy from a ten years career, leaving USAF in March 2007 but dong reserve work for the organization until 2008.
Caption: Will Willis’s net worth and bio
So, Will Willis brings quite an impressive bit of experience in military and other combat situations. After being part of the ‘Forged in Fire’ cast, he now is beginning to have even greater expertise in the blacksmith arts and business. He also has a decent TV experience after his work in the 2009 TV series ‘Special Ops Mission’ and ‘Triggers’ in 2011. You may already be on the edge of your seats to know Will Willis’ net worth.
Well, we will make you wait no more. Will Willis’s net worth is estimated to be approximately $500,000. However, we think that it may just be conservative figures, and his real net worth is well over $1 million. Will Willis’ salary as a ‘Forged in Fire’ cast is under review, but we know it’s a significant amount on the basis of his massive net worth.
Married Life, Wife & Kids
Will Willis is a happily married man, but most people are not familiar with his wife and children. We got to see glimpses of them in History Channel’s behind the scenes looks on his personal life. Through the video, Will mostly speaks about his military experience and how it influences his own family life. It was a bit rude if you ask us not even to introduce his wife.
Thank god, we have all the information we can need about Will Willis’s wife, Krystle Amina. She likes cars and archery, and that is all we need to know as to how Will Willis fell in love with her. They married on October 8, 2017, so; they are already nearing their three years anniversary. The couple was also blessed with the birth of their first baby boy recently on March 7, 2020, by the name of Flash Orion Willis.
Will Willis is already a father of two grown-up sons from his previous relationship. We do not know if his older kids were from his past married life or born out of wedlock. However, the older son’s name is Caleb Willis, who is 22 years old.
All we know of his son Caleb is that he is a total goofball and loves to write, but according to his father, he has been working two jobs to support him and lives independently.
His younger son is Jacob Willis, who will be turning 19 years old this June. He recently graduated from high school, where he was a star football player playing under the number 40. He definitely got his father’s good looks, as you can tell from a photo of the son and father together below.
J. Neilson’s Net Worth & Married Life
James Neilson is one of the blade-making expert judges in ‘Forged in Fire.’ He is a Mastersmith from the American Bladesmith Community, a prestigious title held by only a select few of 115 people around the world. With a total experience of over 25 years, it is not really that surprising to learn his significance.
In the show, he is the unforgiving ‘Forged in Fire’ judge who tests the contestants’ weapons for accuracy and, most importantly, durability by striking them mercilessly against hard surfaces. However, he wasn’t always like this. Twenty-five years ago, he was just starting out as a blacksmith without any training in his workshop in the woods of Towanda, Pennsylvania, in 1995.
So his blades were imperfect, to say the least, luckily he was at the Keystone Knife Show where he met Keith Bagley. Bagley, in Neilson’s words, “took pity” on him, and after mentoring him a little, he was ready to return and continue independently but with much more progress. By 2004, he was a professional bladesmith, and by 2008, he became a Mastersmith with the ABS.
Now that James Neilson is part of the ‘Forged in Fire’ cast, he has certainly set himself on a new path of fame and fortune. So, it means a significant net worth and salary for J. Neilson. While his salary‘s still under review, J Neilson’s net worth is estimated to be anywhere from $500,000 to $1 million.
Did J. Neilson Leave ‘Forged in Fire’?
There was a bombarding of the question “Why did J. Neilson Leave Forged in Fire?” after he was missing from season 3 and most of season 4 of the show. Well, his absence was clearly explained both prior and after his return to the show. J. Neilson may look like he has a steady hand, which he uses to test the knives and other blades of the contestants in the show.
Caption: J. Neilson as a Forged in Fire Cast
However, in season 3, he needed an operation in his hands after an injury he got after falling on wet grass a few years back. He has sustained a minor fracture and hoped that it would heal over time, but over the years, it has only caused him discomfort.
Jason Knight, a fellow Mastersmith from the ABS, would take his place as a judge in Forged in Fire. Neilson would join Knight in the season 4 premiere after recovering from his surgery and then resume his role since then. Nevertheless, he would once again leave the show for a few episodes where the two-time winner (season 2 & 3) of the show, Ben Abbott.
However, since then, James is pretty consistent appearing on all seasons. How else will he have garnered such a big show without getting all of the salaries?
J. Nielson Married Life & Bio
We are sorry if we are not able to convey to you much about J. Neilson’s married life and bio. Much of that stuff is kept well hidden by the TV star whose even birthdate and age we have no idea on. All we know for sure is that he is a married man. James Neilson is married happily to his longtime wife, Beckie Allen-Nielson. Together, they have two children, a daughter who is 16 years old and a son who is 11 in age.
David Baker’s Net Worth & Married Life
David Baker is one of the greatest swordsmiths when it comes to recreating historical swords and other edged weapons. He takes his expertise to Hollywood, working his forgery magic on films and TV series. David Baker, believe it or not, initially had dreams of being an actor, which brought him to Hollywood in 1980. He even had a great start getting to be a part of a TV show ‘Call to Glory’ starring Craig T Nelson and Elizabeth Shue.
However, after a while in the industry, he began to lose interest in acting and instead started having benefits to build movie props. Today, David Baker is famous for rare weapons that are not just historically accurate but also usable, and most of these objects, one won’t even see outside a museum.
David Baker’s net worth with his career till now is impressive in itself. But it is important to understand he also made appearances in various other relative shows like Spike’s ‘Deadliest Warrior’ and ‘101 Weapons That Changed the World.’ Putting his entire TV career as well as his company ‘Hollywood Combat Center & Baker Blades,’ we have an idea of his net worth. We estimate David Baker’s net worth to be in millions, but the exact sum is not known.
Unsure is what we are when it comes to David Baker’s married life as well. David Baker is often seen with Nancy McKay Valentine. She is undoubtedly not his wife, as we have no records of them getting married. So, are they dating or just longtime best friends?
Is David Baker Married?
The lines are so thin between the two, but we think they might be in a relationship as Baker frequently shares adorable pictures of the two through their long years of friendship, including the throwback photo below from a Halloween party where Valentine is ironically in a costume of a ghost bride. Nancy McKay Valentine already has a son Mike Valentine from a past relationship.
David Baker Injury; What Happened to his Eye?
While David Parker fans got to see their favorite swordsmith as a pirate long ago, some people only got to see it a few days back. For those who still do not know, David Baker appeared with an eye patch covering his right eye in ‘101 Weapons that Changed the World‘ rerun. It was the first time most people saw Baker in the Nick Fury look, so they were wondering what it was about.
We are here to address that yes, David Baker did sustain an injury before the shooting of the special episode. A metal splinter went into his eye and thus had to be removed. So, he had to wear an eye patch for some time, but that was years ago, and he is well and healthy now.
Doug Marcaida’s Net Worth & Married Life
Doug Marcaida is another weapons expert and judge of the ‘Forged in Fire’ who often tests the practicality and sharpness of the blades on the show. He has his famous catchphrases like “It will Kill,” “It will stab,” or “It will cut” after a blade tests successfully. Like the show’s host, Doug Marcaida was in the army, serving a reasonable amount of time in the American military. He is a weapon combat specialist and Philippines Martial Arts “Kali” Practitioner.
Kali is a form of Filipino Martial Arts encompassing hand-to-hand combat as well as the use of sticks and knives. He initially got into martial arts because, as a kid, he got into a lot of troubles and fights. So, his dad advised him to train. While Dog began learning martial arts for the sake of self-defense and fighting, he instead was developing a discipline. Back then, Doug was only into hand-in-hand combat and hated the use of weapons. More particularly, he was scared of it.
However, he knew he had to face his fears, so he joined the Air Force. There he would meet fellow soldiers who trained in Kali. After this, Marcaida began to appreciate the Filipino fighting style belonging to his ancestors. He has exceptional knowledge when it comes to weapons and war and is the one mostly briefing the competitors of the show about the history and specifications of the blade they make.
Caption: Doug Marcaida net worth and married life
Doug Marcaida’s net worth throughout his career has been an impressive amount. We are sure his salary as a ‘Forged in Fire’ cast member plays a massive role behind it. Doug Marcaida’s net worth as of 2020 in approximately $300,000. His YouTube channels, where he displays and teaches martial arts, has around 60.5k subscribers who also undoubtedly contributes to his net worth along with his already impressive TV career.
Doug Marcaida Married Life; Wife & Children
Doug Marcaida is a married man, and we would like to assume happily married as well. He does not speak openly about his wife or children, but he does eventually mention them. Even in his introduction video, he talks about his family. A reason he says he freely gives knowledge about his martial arts is so that his children can know what their father did in the future.
Forged in Fire Cast’s Net Worth
| Forged in Fire Cast | Net Worth |
| Will Willis | $1 million |
| J. Neilson | $500,000 to $1 million |
| David Baker | $(???) million |
| Doug Marcaida | $300,000 |