Actors should think like investors and make sure to spread their bets, Anthony Mackie says.
The “Captain America: Brave New World” star recently told “The Pivot” podcast he’s seen many of his peers get “hot” and land a bunch of leading roles, only for their careers to flatline a few years later.
“It’s like, yo, you have no staying power,” Mackie said, “because you’re not diversifying your portfolio. If all you’re investing in is Walmart, and Walmart has a bad week, you’re fucked. So you’ve got to be able to do all the other shit, and that’s what I always tell young actors.”
Investors typically buy multiple assets to avoid betting the farm on a single horse. They might offset the risk of holding stocks by owning bonds too, and within a stock portfolio, they might balance the higher volatility of a growth stock like Tesla with the stability of a more staid name like Walmart.
Mackie repeated his point when asked how to achieve longevity in an entertainment career. “By diversifying your portfolio,” he said, adding that now he’s in his mid-40s, he’s eager to do more producing and curate his own experiences for moviegoers.
“Tyler Perry has shown us the mold,” Mackie said, adding that the billionaire filmmaker behind the “Madea” franchise has “created the wheel, so it don’t make sense for me to get a chisel and try to make another one.”
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Perry’s income streams include his Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta, along with other investments.
Mackie — known for portraying the superhero Falcon in past Marvel movies and his roles in “The Hurt Locker” and “8 Mile” — said athletes have been parlaying their fame into owning car dealerships, barbecue joints, and other businesses for decades.
George Foreman, who died earlier this month, made way more money from his grills than from his boxing career.
Mackie also echoed Warren Buffett’s famous advice to find a job you’re passionate about. The legendary investor has often said he enjoys being Berkshire Hathaway’s CEO so much that he tap dances to work.
Similarly, Mackie said that “if you love it, you never work a day in your life.”
The actor also spoke about ensuring his four sons remain grounded despite his success. “I keep my boys humble,” he said, adding they’ve “never had a pair of Jordans.”
Mackie said they “don’t do all that internet fly shit,” and the message he sends them is: “I could be the biggest star in the world, do not let me catch you being stupid.”
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Ben Affleck, another actor who’s played multiple superheroes, recently said that he frequently gives his teenage son a reality check.
“There’s always some grift why I need to be buying,” the “Daredevil” and “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” star said about his son’s taste for luxury goods. “I’m like, bruh, you do not need $1,000 shoes. He’s like, ‘We have the money.’ I’m like, ‘I have the money — you’re broke.'”
