Actor, director, screenwriter, producer: Al Pacino is one of the emblematic faces of American cinema. Now aged 84, he became known in the 1970s for cult films, such as the saga “The Godfather”, “Serpico”, and “A Dog’s Afternoon”.
Since the start of his career, the actor has had a string of successful projects, alongside the biggest names in the 7th art. But, in the 2010s, Al Pacino had to turn to projects with which he had little artistic affinity. For good reason: he had lost most of his fortune.
Al Pacino found himself totally broke
If some actors squander their fortune through bad habits and can only blame themselves, Al Pacino was the victim of a crooked accountant, who did not hesitate to drain his bank account.
In his memoir, “Sonny Boy,” the “Godfather” star says: “It all started in 2011, when I started getting alerts about my accountant, a guy who worked with a lot of stars. said he shouldn’t be trusted.”
The actor discovered the pot of roses after spending a small fortune. In his own words, “a ridiculous amount of money to rent a big fancy house in Beverly Hills”, then took his entire family on a trip to Europe where he flew various guests abroad by private jet, before “renting a whole floor of the Dorchester Hotel in London.”
On his return to Hollywood, he discovers with suspicion that the supposed amount in his bank account has not decreased, despite a lavish vacation. “That’s when I knew. It was simple, clear. Time stood still. I was screwed.”
“I lost $50 million.”
Regaining control of his finances, Al Pacino discovers that he is “broke as hell”: “I had 50 million dollars, and I lost everything. I had properties, but I had no more money. “
The actor admits, however, to not having been careful enough with his finances: “In this business, when you earn $10 million for a film, it’s not $10 million. Because after the lawyers, the agents , the publicist and the government, it’s not $10 million, it’s $4.5 million in your pocket But you live above that because you’re high. “You lose it. It’s very strange, the way it happens. The more money you make, the less you have.”
“The money I was spending was nonsense. The gardener was paid $400,000 a year, and I’m not exaggerating. All for the garden of a house I didn’t even live in .”
The urgent need to replenish your accounts
Al Pacino was already 70 years old when he discovered he had lost his entire fortune. “I was no longer a young leading man, and I was not going to make money making the kind of films I did before,” he laments in his memoirs. “The big checks I was used to were no longer there, and I was having a harder time landing roles.”
Also, the actor had to make career-wise concessions. “Before, I made films that suited me, or to which I thought I could add something.” But to avoid bankruptcy, he turned to more projects offering him “a lot of money”, such as the feature film “Jack and Jill”. “I did it because I had nothing else. They paid me handsomely.”
Then, Al Pacino was able to sell two of his properties, and began giving lectures at schools and universities. Another way for him to get back to his lifestyle after a complicated period.
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