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- Sharon Stone, 66, says she lost $18 million in savings after her stroke when people took advantage of her.
- "My refrigerator, my phone — everything was in other people's names," Stone told The Hollywood Reporter.
- But even though her health improved, her acting career did not, Stone said at a 2023 event.
Sharon Stone, 66, is opening up about how she dealt with the aftermath of a stroke in 2001.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, published on Tuesday, the actor spoke about how the health crisis changed her perspective on life.
"I had a death experience and then they brought me back. I bled into my brain for nine days, so my brain was shoved to the front of my face. It wasn't positioned in my head where it was before. And while that was happening, everything changed. My sense of smell, my sight, my touch. I couldn't read for a couple of years. Things were stretched and I was seeing color patterns," Stone told The Hollywood Reporter.
The "Basic Instinct" actor said that a lot of people thought she was going to die.
It took her seven years to recover from the debilitating stroke, and Stone shared that people ended up taking advantage of her during that time.
"I had $18 million saved because of all my success, but when I got back into my bank account, it was all gone. My refrigerator, my phone — everything was in other people's names," Stone said. "I had zero money."
In July 2019, Stone told Variety about the struggles she experienced while recovering from her stroke, including having to remortgage her house and losing custody of her son during her divorce.
"I lost everything I had. I lost my place in the business. I was like the hottest movie star, you know?" she said. "It was like Miss Princess Diana and I were so famous — and she died and I had a stroke. And we were forgotten."
But even though her health improved, her acting career did not, Stone said at The Hollywood Reporter's "Raising Our Voices" event in June 2023, per Page Six.
"Something went wrong with me — I've been out for 20 years," Stone said, per Page Six. "I haven't had jobs."
According to her IMDB page, Stone has had acting credits in TV, film, and music videos every year since 2003, but none can compare to her '90s fame.
Four years after the iconic scene in "Basic Instinct," involving a peek up her skirt, Stone went on to secure an Academy Award nomination for her role in Martin Scorsese's "Casino" in 1996.
Stone's latest project, "What About Love," was released in February, featuring Andy Garcia. While the film received poor ratings from critics, it implied that Stone isn't ready to take her final bow just yet.
Like Stone, it's not uncommon for older Americans to continue working even as they age.
This is especially so if they've been scammed out of their retirement savings or simply just don't have enough money to support themselves when they stop earning a paycheck.
A 2024 survey of 4,588 adults found that US Gen Xers think they need about $1.56 million to retire comfortably. However, on average, Gen X has $108,600 saved for retirement.