Actor Geoffrey Owens, best known for his role as Elvin Tibideaux on The Cosby Show, has been sharing an update on his life. In a recent appearance on the Atlanta radio station’s Big Tigger Morning Show, he revealed that making money in Hollywood is not as easy as it seems.
Owens, 63, stated that he struggles every day to make ends meet, despite being seen in various movies and TV shows. He explained that many people expect him to be financially stable due to his fame, but they don’t understand the specifics of how his industry works.
The actor attributed his decision to work at Trader Joe’s in 2018 as a way to gain perspective on his life. Although he initially received support from the public, he had to leave the job due to privacy concerns after someone was taking pictures of him at the store.
Owens expressed gratitude for the opportunities he has received since then, including a producer/filmmaker offer from Tyler Perry and $25,000 from Nicki Minaj. However, he stated that his residuals from The Cosby Show are not particularly wonderful and that he did only 20% of the show.
The actor also shared that he has gone back to Trader Joe’s to ask for hours to work there again, despite experiencing “job-shaming” in 2018. Owens emphasized that many people have a false impression of what average middle-class actors make in the industry, which led him to take on other jobs to supplement his income.
Owens concluded by stating that he is grateful for the work he has and that working at Trader Joe’s helped him gain perspective on his life.
Source: https://people.com/cosby-show-actor-geoffrey-owens-still-struggles-every-day-after-quitting-trader-joes-8767035