For years, Natasha Rothwell carried around a $40,000 check in her wallet.
It wasn’t real money. It was a promise.
“I wrote a check to myself for like $40,000, because that would pay off my student loans or at least a chunk of them. And I just carried it around with me while I was broke, picking up Metrocards in New York, hoping one of them could get me home.”
The Emmy-nominated actress, now beloved as Belinda in HBO’s The White Lotus, said the symbolic check was her way of staying hopeful at a time when her bank account was empty and her debt felt crushing.
“One day, I knew I was gonna cash that check,” she said.
That day finally came. With her first big Hollywood paycheck, Rothwell called Sallie Mae and closed out her student loan account, check in hand.
“It was emotional, because money is emotional,” she said. “Especially if you’ve been preoccupied with how you’re going to get it and how you’re going to live. I graduated with a theater degree during a recession and it was scary.”
Rothwell laughs now about the visualization trick, calling it “pretty delulu,” but insists it worked.
“A little delulu never hurt nobody,” she said. “I believe in the law of attraction. I think it helps.”
Her candid story has struck a chord at a time when the student debt crisis looms over millions of Americans. More than 43 million people hold federal student debt, with the average borrower owing around $28,000, according to the Federal Reserve.
For Rothwell, it’s also a full-circle moment: she’s nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series at next month’s Emmys; one of The White Lotus’ 23 nominations this year.
And for the actress who once scavenged subway fare, walking the Emmys red carpet now feels like proof that sometimes, a little delulu really can pay off.
Rothwell isn’t alone in her journey. Other stars have opened up about how loans shaped their careers:
Viola Davis: Said she only finished paying off her student loans in her 40s, after her Oscar win.
Kerry Washington: Spoke about how debt influenced her early career and partnered with student loan refinancing campaigns.
Oprah Winfrey: Shared her own financial struggles post-college, while also helping others manage educational debt.
