Being a celebrity may come with many perks, one of them being a lavish lifestyle. But fame and fortune won’t linger forever. One moment they might be driving a Porsche while living in a three-story mansion, and the next day they could be in some serious financial trouble.
These are the celebrities that have not fared so well, whether they spent their fortune recklessly or took bad advice from their financial advisor – now, they can no longer afford to live like they once did.
Tori Spelling
The daughter of legendary television producer Aaron Spelling was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. Tori became widely known in her own right while starring in her father’s hit TV series Beverly Hills 90210. But when the series finished its incredibly long run, Spelling had a hard time finding a new gig.
She starred in a reality show with her husband Dean McDermott, called Tori & Dean, but was still overwhelmed by numerous lawsuits and loans she had no way of repaying.
Willie Nelson
Country musician Willie Nelson’s renown is not limited to country music fans. He has been making music since 1956, so it would stand to reason that he knows a little something about managing his money. Apparently not, when Nelson was investigated by the IRS, they ended up serving him with a $16.7 million tax bill!
Fortunately, Nelson found himself a good lawyer and released an album titled The IRS Tapes: Who’ll Buy My Memories? and succeeded in digging his way out of the hole, but his current lifestyle is certainly not as luxurious as what it used to be.
LeAnn Rimes
LeAnn Rimes was country music’s golden child in the 1990s, with numerous billboard hits and Grammy wins, but in the last couple of decades things have slowed down for the singer. Although she has not let the decline in sales affect her opulent lifestyle.
Good for her, but with less money coming in, things are not as easy as they used to be, especially if you take into account that her actor husband, Eddie Cibrian, is not one of Hollywood’s top earners. Luckily, it seems like things are looking up with Rimes’s work on Hallmark films and her Christmas music.
Don Johnson
In the ’80s, Don Johnson was famous for his portrayal of “Sonny” in the popular television series Miami Vice, and in the 90s he starred in Nash Bridges. However, his portrayal of law enforcement officials didn’t help him in 2002, when he was accused of money laundering. He was never charged with anything, but the rumors were enough to cause his production company to lose investors.
In 2008, the actor was again in dire financial straits when authorities announced that they were about to foreclose on his Colorado home. Johnson managed to come up with $14.5 million to pay his debt just 24 hours before the house went to auction. It is unclear how much the actor is currently worth.
Suzanne Somers
Famous for playing the role of Chrissie on the classic 70’s sitcom, Three’s Company, Suzanne Somers is a beloved television icon. Although she was only on the hit show for one year, Somers really made an impression on the audience, but also became a cautionary tale about why actors shouldn’t anger their producers.
The actress, who was taking a stand about how much she earned per episode, left the show and found herself in breach of contract. She ended up having a hard time affording her legal expenses, and with a bad reputation that made finding new gigs quite difficult.
Nicolas Cage
Looking back at the 1990s, it sometimes seems like Nicolas Cage starred in every single movie in that entire decade. That must have brought in a hefty sum, right? Unfortunately, the actor loved to spend money and his tastes were both expensive and exotic. He bought rare animals, a Gulfstream jet, and even his own private island, which left him on some unsteady financial ground even without the $14 million in back taxes that he owed the IRS.
Things got even worse in 2009 when he was sued by his ex-wife for $13 million and then later that year sued by a real estate company for not returning millions that they apparently loaned to him. So, if you’re at the movie theater and find yourself wondering how such a great actor agreed to be in a not-so-great movie, he may just be trying to make some money to pay off his debts.
Tia Carrere
Tia Carrere got her first big break in the long-running soap opera, General Hospital. She then went on to star in the two Wayne’s World movies and her Hollywood success seemed to be a sure thing. Things became complicated, however, when Carrere wanted to appear on The A-Team and tried to get out of her General Hospital contract to do so.
She sued the show claiming that she was not earning enough, and lost. She was unable to get out of her contract and missed out on the chance to appear on the hit show and become a bona fide star.
Brendan Fraser
Once upon a time, Brendan Fraser was the go-to guy when casting for a new hit action movie was taking place. That has not been the case for a while though, and after the actor was divorced in 2007, he found himself in a bit of a tricky financial situation.
Things came to a head in 2013, when he was forced to petition the court to reduce the yearly spousal support payments he was making to his ex-wife. They stood at $900,000 and he claimed that he did not have enough income to afford them.
Lindsay Lohan
When she was young and adorable, Lindsay Lohan starred in The Parent Trap, and the rest was Hollywood history. The audience loved her, and she transitioned into a successful teenage superstar starring in hit films like Freaky Friday and Mean Girls. As the actress grew older, she was faced with substance abuse issues and legal trouble. She began to work less and less, and her income went down significantly.
Lohan is currently in the midst of a comeback and has recently appeared on the Netflix series, Sick Note. Although it is nice that she’s working again, she is clearly making nowhere near what she used to in her acting prime.
Lena Headey
Although you obviously recognize Lena Headey from the biggest show in the world in recent years, Game of Thrones, that doesn’t mean that the actress has an enormous bank account. Headey had been an actress for many years, but her roles have not always been on hit shows, meaning that she wasn’t making the big bucks she is today.
She also went through a bad divorce and custody battle with her ex-husband, which caused her to amass tons of debt. She was even forced to sell her house and has previously considered doing reality shows just to make ends meet.
Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson
Hip Hop star Curtis Jackson, or as he is more famously known, 50 Cent, dominated the rap world in the 2000s. The hip-hop star had a string of hits, numerous Grammy nominations, and even his own fashion line. But things went bad for the singer in 2009 when he was ordered by the court to pay more than $7 million to Lastonia Leviston, following his release of an adult video of her without her permission.
He was ordered to make an even bigger payout of $16 million to a company by the name of Sleek Audio when a business plan they had been working on failed to come to fruition. Those massive expenditures forced the rapper to declare bankruptcy.
Alexis Bellino
On The Real Housewives of Orange County, Alexis Bellino is famous for her glamorous and expensive lifestyle, but in real life, she is not quite as well off. The reality star, who was recently divorced, has been dealing with financial issues for years and alongside then-husband, Jim Bellino, defaulted on the couple’s $4.6 million mansion in 2010.
If that wasn’t bad enough, Global Marine, Inc., her ex-husband’s real estate company filed for bankruptcy in that same year. However, this breakup may have a silver or in this case gold lining which may improve Bellino’s situation. She is expected to receive roughly $16,000 a month in child and spousal support after the divorce.
Tyga
The rapper Tyga, who may be better known as Kylie Jenner’s ex-boyfriend, has had his share of problems both legally and financially in recent years. He was sued by three women who appeared in one of his music videos in 2012. The women claimed that although he had assured them that any scenes in which they were undressed would be edited out of the video – he did not do so.
In 2013, Tyga was called out for borrowing a $185,000 watch from an L.A. jeweler, but “forgetting” to return it. In the following years, things got even worse for the rapper. He failed to pay rent on a number of properties in which he lived, some of which he even left damaged. In 2016, his collection of fancy cars