From Riches to Rags: 7 Celebrities Who Lost a Fortune

Sure, we’ve all dreamed about being a multi-millionaire with an endless supply of money to support our most lavish dreams.  But being wealthy doesn’t guarantee financial security for life, and for many celebrities their money has slipped away leaving them completely broke.  We’re counting down 7 biggest celebrity financial crashes of all time!

Mike was once a very successful boxer who earned over $300 million during his career, but in 2003 found himself $23 million in debt, and completely broke.  His alcohol and drug addictions, $400,000 monthly spending sprees, and $9 million divorce are big reasons for his financial demise.  The boxer also owed both the US and British governments $17 million in unpaid taxes, $750,000 in legal bills, and $300,000 to limo companies.  The financial blow seemed to knock Mike down, hard! 

Nicolas, an American actor and filmmaker, is one of Hollywood’s highest paid actors, but has managed to come dangerously close to losing it all. While he’s known to indulge in ludicrous purchases, like $300,000 on dinosaur skulls to buying a pyramid, his $6 million debt was probably more a result of his 2007 shopping spree.  This spree included the purchasing of 3 homes with a total cost of more than $33 million, 22 cars, 47 pieces of artwork and other exotic items (like the dinosaur skulls and pyramid). In 2010 his Bel Air home was foreclosed and has turned to selling assets to pay off his incurred debts.

Pamela accumulated millions as an actress and model and had a net worth of $5 million in assets.  Yet she reportedly owed $1.7 million dollars in tax debt and while building a mansion in Malibu was forced to move into a trailer park after exceeding her budget. 

MC Hammer was a revolutionary hip-hop artist who reportedly amassed a networth of over $33 million.  Most of his wealth went towards a $30 million mansion and his 200-person entourage that cost $500,000 a month. This extravagant lifestyle combined with overspending and dwindling album sales, quickly drained his funds.

Lindsay went from adorable freckly child star to wild, drug addicted, and reckless adult actress, and lost her wealth along the way.  While she once sat on a $30 million throne, now she can no longer afford to pay for her former lavish lifestyle.  Over the past few years, Lindsay reportedly spent over $7 million on drugs, rehab, legal fees, designer clothes, cars, etc. and has been forced to sell her apartments in LA and NYC as a result.  She is over $600,000 behind on credit card payments and owes the IRS over $1 million in back taxes.

Courtney is a singer, actress, and model with a networth of over $150 million and was married to Kurt Cobain.  When her husband died, she inherited his Nirvana fortune of over $535 million, but claims most of its been lost. While Courtney did confess to throwing away over $27 million on her lavish “rock ‘n’ roll” lifestyle, her other millions are nowhere to be found.  She even attempted to dip into her daughter trust fund to help payoff her debts.  

Joe, the owner of Girls Gone Wild enterprise, once accumulated a net worth of over $170 million, but in 2013 filed for bankruptcy.  Over the years Joe spent a lot of money, more than he had and eventually found himself $16 million in debt.