Al Pacino has publicly stated that he had to make a major career change at some point in his life after losing all his money in a Ponzi scheme.
The veteran actor shared in his recently released memoir sonny boy He “had $50 million and I had nothing” thanks to a corrupt accountant who ended up in jail for the scheme. Pacino said that in 2011, he began “receiving warnings that my then-accountant was untrustworthy and that he had a lot of celebrity clients.”
Following the scheme, the Oscar-winning actor said he was “broke” due to overspending and accountants’ mismanagement of his finances.
“In this industry, when you make $10 million for a movie, it’s not $10 million. Because after you take away the lawyers, the agents, the publicists, the government, it’s not $10 million, it’s what’s in your pocket. Four and a half. godfather star explains in his book. “But you live a life above that because you’re greedy. That’s how you lose it. It’s a weird way things happen. The more money you make, the less you have.
He added, “It was just a crazy montage of losses where I was spending money and where it was going. … I thought, this is simple. It’s a beautiful day. That’s all I know. Time stopped. I’m done.”
As a result, the actor had to change the way he chose roles and started accepting anything that offered a good salary. This is how he ended up in an Adam Sandler movie jack and jill.
“jack and jill This was the first movie I made after losing money. To be honest, I did it because I had nothing else,” Pacino wrote. “Adam Sandler wanted me, and they paid a lot of money for it. So I went out and did it, and it helped. I love Adam, he was a great pleasure to work with, and has become a good friend of mine. He also happens to He’s a great actor and a wonderful person.
but scarface The star said that even after the 2011 comedy, he still struggled to find roles because he was “not a young man anymore.”
“I wasn’t going to make as much money as the movies I’d made in the past,” Pacino said in his memoir. “The big paydays I was used to no longer came. The pendulum had swung, and I found that finding parts for myself became More difficult.
The actor also started doing commercials, something he had previously avoided, and started giving seminars at colleges and universities for a fee to help make money.
sonny boy Currently available.