7 Celebrities Who Were Needy Before Having Fortunes

There is a widespread misconception that celebrities are supernatural humans who inhabit a parallel universe known as Hollywood. They have extravagant homes and extravagant lifestyles, and they have everything there is to have. They live a very different life from the average person's life. That is, for the most part, completely accurate.
Most famous people come from wealthy backgrounds, so they never have to deal with the challenges of regular life. But for some famous people, life was not always glitzy and glamorous; they frequently struggled to make ends meet because they were raised in poor conditions. Find out which famous people did not have a lavish lifestyle on a silver platter.

1. Leighton Meester

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Not many people realize Leighton's grandma cared for her when she was a kid. Because they were both imprisoned for drug crimes, Leighton's parents could not be actively involved in their daughter's upbringing. At 33, she has a net worth of $5 million and has been blissfully married to actor Adam Brody for the past six years.

2. Jay-Z

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Rapper Shawn Corey Carter, best known by his stage as Jay-Z, was born in the borough of Brooklyn. His mother was left to raise him and his three siblings after his father abandoned the family when he was young. He had a terrible upbringing, spending his formative years in a public housing complex full of drugs and gangs. Jay-Z sold drugs briefly during his high school years. He began his career selling CDs from the trunk of his car and has amassed a $560 million fortune in just 25 years.

3. Tom Cruise

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Tom Cruise endured a troubled upbringing. It was difficult for him to envision the prospect of the life he has now, with an abusive and unstable father beating him often and not much of a quality existence. His mother has always encouraged him to pursue his ambition of becoming an actor, which is wonderful. He left for New York when he was 18 to pursue his dream job, and he now has both the fame and the wealth to declare that he made it: $570 million and counting.

4. John Travolta

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ohn Travolta grew up in the New Jersey town of Englewood. The sixth and final kid, he never finished high school. Moving to New York and getting a job on Broadway marked the beginning of his career.
He eventually relocated to Los Angeles, where, after six years of trying, he broke through with the smash hit single Let Her In and landed a role in The Boy in the Plastic Bubble. As Danny Zuko in the 1978 film Grease, Travolta was cast. This was the turning point in his career that propelled him to fame. Travolta has an estimated current net worth of $170 million.

5. Jim Carrey

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Jim and his three siblings grew up poor in the Toronto suburb of Newmarket, Ontario. Soon after turning sixteen, Jim dropped out of high school to pursue a career as a stand-up comedian while also working as a janitor. His family's fortunes quickly deteriorated after that, and they became homeless and lived in a Volkswagen van for a while. Carrey's net worth today is $150 million, thanks to his talent and hard work, so those days are long gone.

6. Sarah Jessica Parker

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Sarah Jessica Parker is the seventh of eight children born to Sarah and Robert Parker. There were times when she and her family in Cincinnati didn't have access to power during her childhood. They couldn't afford the extravagance of celebrating holidays and birthdays.
She had a difficult upbringing, but her family was always there for her and encouraged her to pursue her passions. They were her primary inspirations when she was just getting started, and they all uprooted to New York. She has been married for nearly 23 years, is over $150 million, and has two happy children.

7. Jennifer Lopez

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Jennifer Lynn Lopez and her two sisters are Bronx natives. She came from a much more modest background than her current financial status would indicate. Lopez and her sisters were kept out of trouble by their parents, who supported their interest in dance from a young age and provided ample opportunities for in-house practice and performances.
She decided to pursue a career in dance instead of attending college. Lopez persisted in pursuing her goal despite facing homelessness and extreme financial hardship. She is now worth an estimated $400 million.