NEWS'Cosby Show' Star Geoffrey Owens Is Still 'Struggling' to 'Make Ends Meet' After He Quit Trader Joe's Gig: 'People Can't Get Their Heads Around That'
Geoffrey Owens worked at Trader Joe's to make ends meet.
The Cosby Show actor Geoffrey Owens, 63, revealed his ongoing financial struggles despite his previous success in the entertainment industry.
"I struggle every day to make my ends meet and people can’t get their heads around that because they see me in movies," Owens, known for his role as Elvin Tibideaux on Bill Cosby's NBC sitcom, said in a new interview, emphasizing the misconception surrounding actors' incomes.
Geoffrey Owens is best known for his role in 'The Cosby Show.'
Though he went to Yale University and has a successful career, Owens, who went viral in 2018 for working at Trader Joe's, pointed out how tough it is to make it in showbiz, stating, "People have a false impression of what the average middle-class actor makes and their ability to make a living in the industry."
The actor faced public scrutiny when photos of him working at the popular grocery store surfaced online, leading to him eventually leaving his job.
"I'm not going to feel comfortable working in this store wondering who is around with a camera," he explained of giving up the gig.
Geoffrey Owens recently got candid about his financial struggles in a new interview.
“It was strange because someone had been in the store taking pictures,” he added. “And I was like, now that this is breaking, I’m not going to feel comfortable working in this store wondering who is around with a camera. It would just be too weird. I’m a very private person It wasn’t like I quit knowing I would be making a lot of money soon or anything. I just felt like I wasn’t going to be able to handle that kind of scrutiny and attack on my privacy.”
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Even though there was a lot of chatter about his normal job, Owens said the commentary didn't faze him.
"At first, there was some negative stuff about basically the job shaming. A 'Where is he now?' kind of thing. But then, very soon after that, there was all this support and encouragement from all over the world," he said.
Geoffrey Owens said, 'I struggle every day to make my ends meet.'
Nicki Minaj even sent the actor $25,000, but he donated the money to a charity because he said it “didn’t feel right to keep it” without earning it himself.
He did accept acting jobs on several projects, including a role in Tyler Perry’s The Haves and the Have Nots and 50 Cent's shows Power and Power Book II: Ghost.
Geoffrey Owens starred in Tyler Perry's film 'The Haves and the Have Nots.'
Atlanta radio station V-103 interviewed Owens.
