Oscar nominees who went bust
Kim Basinger
Nomination
Best Supporting Actress (1998)
Movie
'L.A. Confidential'
Win or lose?
Won
Credits and creditors
For some unfathomable reason, the transcendent beauty who starred in such 80s hits as 'Never Say Never Again' and 'Batman' decided in 1989 to buy a small town in Georgia called Braselton for $20M. Basinger's plan? To turn the sleepy hamlet — actually, what other kinds of hamlets are there? — into a tourist attraction, replete with movie studios and a film festival. The idea bombed, and Basinger started selling off parts of the town, later telling Barbara Walters 'that nothing good come out of' the investment. In 1993, the actress pulled out again — this time, bolting from the cast of controversial film 'Boxing Helena.' That little maneuver ultimately cost Basinger nearly $4M thanks to a lawsuit filed by the studio making the film. In 1993, the fiasco at Braselton and the settlement over 'Boxing Helena' pushed Basinger into a corner, and she declared bankruptcy.
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