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Tony Stark v IRS?
When you think of Robert Downey Jr. today, chances are good you immediately picture him as Tony Stark, aka Iron Man, from the Marvel cinematic universe. He's one of the most famous faces out there, and he demands huge paychecks for his role in one of the biggest smash film experiments of all time. But those of us who've been around since Weird Science, remember when Downey Jr. was one of Hollywood's bad boys. Plagued by drug problems, alcohol issues, and financial woes, it seemed like no matter what he did he just couldn't get out ahead of his own bad impulses.
And according to Newsday, those bad habits got him in quite a lot of trouble with the IRS (his own Iron Monger).
How Much Trouble, Exactly?
Though he'd been in a slew of hit movies, and was a well-known actor with a known talent, Robert Downey Jr. alternated between jail and rehab in the 1980s and 1990s. And during that time, he racked up nearly $2 million in tax debt.
Now that might not sound like much for the Robert Downey Jr. we know today, who is commanding several times that to reprise his role as the genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist who's the brains of The Avengers, but before his career rose from the ashes it was quite an issue. To the point that, in addition to the other issues with which he was struggling, he had to plead guilty to tax evasion.
Though he eventually cleaned up his act, paid his debts, and got back in good standing with the U.S. government, it's worth remembering that even some of the most famous among us can make poor decisions when it comes to their taxes.
Would Uncle Walt Help You Get Back On Your Feet?
It took a lot of hard work for Downey to get out of the hole he'd dug himself and to get back to a position where he can work without worrying about his demons. It's one reason he was an ideal choice for Iron Man, given that Tony Stark had dealt with many of the same issues as the man who was now portraying said character. However, a lot of hard work went into getting him into this position, along with a hefty dash of luck that eventually brought him into Disney's budding Marvel franchise.
Now take a moment to ask "who do I know that could hook me up with a lucrative new career if something happened, and found the IRS putting liens on me?".
It's nice to see someone recover from poor decisions made earlier in life, especially if that someone is an artist whose work and talent we enjoy, but the fact is that most of us wouldn't be able to bounce back from similar runs of poor decision-making or sheer bad luck. Which is why it's important to make sure the IRS never has a reason to come knocking.
Reach out to Financial Clarity Group to help you wrangle your finances in order so you never get in warm water (much less hot water). You might be capable of filling out forms yourself but why would you want to do that. FCG does so much more. We'll help you put a plan in place to keep the financial pieces of your life in the most tax effective order.
Contact Financial Clarity Group with any issue that effects you financially.
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