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Geoffrey Owens rose to prominence playing Elvin Tibideaux on the hit sitcom "The Cosby Show." But six years after going viral for working at Trader Joe's, he's still struggling to make a living as a middle-class actor.
"I struggle every day to make my ends meet," Owens said during a recent interview with the Atlanta radio station V-103.
In August 2018, photos of Owens working at a Trader Joe's in New Jersey went viral, sparking conversations about the financial hardships of the average working actor.
Owens said that he was aware of some of job shaming comments from people, but he primarily received support and encouragement.
The actor said that for about two weeks after going viral, he gained lots of attention and recognition in his day-to-day life. It even led to job opportunities, like a role on the Tyler Perry series "The Haves and the Have Nots."
Additionally, Nicki Minaj donated $25,000 to Owens, but he told the radio station that he gave the money to charity instead of pocketing it because he wanted to earn his keep, rather than being gifted it.
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Owens also said that he quit his supermarket job before the news hit in order to protect his privacy.
The actor explained that someone had already taken photos of him working at Trader Joe's and he wasn't comfortable worrying about that happening again.
"It wasn't like I quit knowing I would be making a lot of money soon or anything," Owens said. "I just felt like I wasn't going to be able to handle that kind of scrutiny and attack on my privacy."
Owens said that people have a difficult time understanding why an actor who's starred in movies and TV shows would need to work a normal job. He also said that residuals from "The Cosby Show" haven't benefitted him as much as people would assume.
"They don't understand the specifics of how my industry works," he said. "They don't understand the salaries, the pay scales."
In the years since going vial, Owens has guest starred on shows like "Power," "Power Book II: Ghost," and "The Rookie." Most recently, he appeared on the new CBS sitcom "Poppa's House" and currently stars as Mr. Santa in the holiday film "Mr. Santa: A Christmas Extravaganza."
Owens said that Trader Joe's was a "wonderful" place to be employed, and he's since gone back to work some hours.
"People have a false impression of what the average middle-class actor makes and their ability to make a living in the industry," he said. "So that's what drove me to work at Trader Joe's to begin with. But honestly, I'm not much better off now than I was then."
A rep for Owens didn't immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.
