Even in Hollywood, it is possible to have very hard times financially.
For Chrissy Metz, one of the breakout stars of the hit NBC show, This Is Us, confesses how tough she had it – at the time of signing on to the popular show.
Fans of This Is Us flock to Chrissy's character, Kate, one of the "Big 3" Pearson children on the show, for her relatable struggles with food and weight loss.
Speaking with Alex Morris from Glamour, Chrissy explains the rocky road she once was on, up until just a year ago. Chrissy spent most of her childhood in a family that could not afford much, as her mom was a single mother of three.
Even when her mom remarried, and had her two half sisters, money was still always very tight. She jokes around about a time when she couldn't even afford Keds, so a friend offered to glue her Keds sticker onto Chrissy's shoes for her.
While many of us can understand money struggles, especially within our families, it is startling to learn that a Hollywood actress still could face this. Even after landing a gig on a well-loved show in 2014, American Horror Story, Chrissy admits that it wasn't the jumping point for her career she thought it would be. She wound up broke, right until This Is Us.
[H/T: Glamour]
Chrissy stars on This Is Us as Kate, with Mandy Moore and Milo Ventimiglia playing her character's parents, with Sterling K. Brown and Justin Hartley as her brothers, and with Chris Sullivan playing her boyfriend.
The show centers around Kate's family, on the year she and her brothers turn 36, with flashbacks to her parents before they have kids and their lives growing up together as a family.
This Is Us premiered in September of 2016, but just a year ago, when Chrissy was signed on as Kate, she admits to Glamour that she only had 81 cents in her bank account.
While she says she can cry just thinking about it, she also remains humble and says she will never forget that time in her life.
"Getting the role of Kate has changed everything. It’s crazy to go from not having enough money to buy food to getting free dinners. Why is it that when you really need something, you don’t have it? And when you can afford it, you have a surplus of it?" Chrissy said to Glamour.
Chrissy also knocks down the assumption that because she is on TV, she is very rich now.
"You may think, “Ooh, you’re on TV, you’re a millionaire!” No. It’s definitely a lot more than I was making, but I still live with my roommate — though I pay my proper share of the rent now."
She admits that paying her car payments on time is a new feeling, as is paying off her credit card. She wants to provide for the people who once helped her.
"I’ve had women — average women, older women, teenagers — who say to me, “Your role and this show has changed my life.” That makes all the struggle, all the ramen noodles, all the times when I couldn’t pay my bills, all the times where I was like, 'I can’t do this,' worth it. Sometimes I cry on the way to the set still. There is something that happens when you are grateful: You continue to keep receiving blessings. So I will always be grateful. "
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