Erin Brockovich Is Still Changing the World 20 Years Later

In 2000, Erin Brockovich became a household name, a verb, and an icon, all thanks to Julia Roberts’ turn as the scrappy activist that won her an Oscar. Basically, back in 1991, Erin began her fight for clean water for the town of Hinkley, Calif. Now, Erin is still fighting while producing the new series Rebel on ABC, which tells the story of her life.

Erin Brockovich represents the everyman that could — she represents the people who have something to fight for and can actually make it happen. Because she did win the case against PG&E, she secured a $333 million settlement that made her a millionaire as well. Now, she’s using her intuition, experience, and funds to continue fighting for clean water.

Erin shared to Today, “I can tell you, since that film came out, I haven't stopped doing what I've been doing. I think the past 20 years in many ways have been baffling to me because if we go back to the town of Hinkley, Calif., in the movie, that was just the tip of the iceberg."

“And I don't think I realized what was to come and to have this conversation with you 20 years into the future to say that it's not just as bad, it's far worse. And so little has been done. I couldn't really see then that it would be everywhere," she said.

Since Erin Brockovich was released, the real Erin Brockovich has now published four books about the discrepancies and dangers of water pollution and advocacy. She also opened up her own consulting firm, Brockovich Research and Consulting, in which she consults with communities to help them advocate for safer water and less pollution.

As part of her consulting firm, Erin also created a website that catalogues symptoms within communities to track where there might be an environmental issue, something she has advocated for to the federal government. It’s extremely impressive that she’s still advocating for change, but she shared to The Atlantic that she now fights for her grandchildren. “What will this world be like for her if I don’t continue to fight? What legacy are we going to leave?" she said.

While she may not have been totally in rags before climbing to fame, she was definitely not someone you’d expect to become the woman she is today. Erin famously struggled with dyslexia but also has a somewhat photographic memory, so while she sometimes had trouble in school, she was also brilliant in other ways.

However, in college, she led a partying lifestyle, and her dad forced her to drop out and enroll in Wade College instead, where she graduated with an associate degree. By the time she was fighting for Hinkley, she had just had her second divorce and was a single mother paying off medical bills from a recent car crash. However, that car crash also led her to work for Jim Vititoe, who represented her and lost her trial after the accident.

From there, everything else is history. From the Hinkley settlement, Erin walked away with $2 million, much to the dismay of many of the victims of Hinkley’s toxic water. While there was some controversy over this, her heroism only continued to rise. Now, her net worth is estimated to be somewhere around $10 million between her consulting work, books, and keynote addresses.

If we’re lucky enough, Rebel, starring Katey Sagal, will give us more of a peek into who Erin Brockovich is now. 

Rebel premieres on April 8 at 10 p.m. EST on ABC. New episodes air Thursdays.