David Krumholtz is “frustrated, fed up, fried” after more than 30 years in Hollywood.
The “Oppenheimer” actor, 48, declared that he is taking an “indefinite break” from acting as he took issue with how actors are treated and fears that he could go “broke.”
“I kinda sorta put my acting career on hold the other day. It’s been something I’ve been petrified to do for years,” Krumholtz wrote in a now-deleted post on Threads Monday. “Specifically, the fear was that I’d go broke and not be able to handle being out of the game.”
Instead, the New York City-born star — also known for “The Santa Clause” and “Numb3rs” — said he “sent the definitive email” to call it quits and felt a sense of relief.
“A huge wave of relief washed over me,” he wrote. “Not sure what I’m going to do for money instead, or how I’m going to do it, but I just removed a humongous burden, one that I truly didn’t fathom the weight of until it was gone.”
“Frustrated, fed up, fried,” he added.
Krumholtz said he has spent the past year fighting for roles he believes offer less money and opportunity despite his decades of experience.
“Exploitative art isn’t art. And artists deserve a fair pay percentage for work that assists their employers in making profits,” he wrote.
Krumholtz also claimed the business has changed significantly since he started acting as a teenager in the early 1990s.
“Pay was fair. And the momentum could be built. And while talent was never a surefire marker of success … if you helped make a Studio money, you were guaranteed to get another opportunity to do so,” he wrote.
“But with conglomerate corporatizing of Hollywood, those unwritten rules of mutual respect have shifted … Drastically. I’m being asked to ‘hang in there’ by my own union and reps.”
The “Supergirl” actor admitted he is also tired of being expected to promote himself on social media to get work.
“[I’m] asked to reinvent myself on social media for likes and follows so that I can be considered for fan conventions and internet ads just so I can make the money that simply acting on a TV show or film or stage refuses to pay me anymore,” he wrote.
“I, along with many talented folks, not just actors, are being mass demoted. Imagine you excel in your career for 34 years, just to be drastically demoted for it.”
Krumholtz said he is still willing to act if the right opportunity comes along.
“If you want to work with me as an actor, I am interested. If you believe in what I can do as an actor, I believe in you,” he wrote.
“If you simply don’t, if you think you’ve seen all I can do and it’s just not enough for you, that’s fine, so I’ll just stop begging. I’m not above begging for financial security. But what’s the point of begging for none?”
“It’s a goddamn shame, but I have to be responsible for what I can control and change and that’s me and my heart,” he added.
“I can give of myself willingly, elsewhere. I can still act. I can act to make an impact, rather than a measly buck. And that’s my choice. And that’s exactly what I plan to do.”
Krumholtz also starred in “10 Things I Hate About You” and the “Harold & Kumar” franchise, and continued working this year with a role in the upcoming film “Mr. Irrelevant: The John Tuggle Story.”
He portrayed Isidor Isaac Rabi in Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster film, “Oppenheimer,” in 2023.
In June, Krumholtz told Page Six that his “The Santa Clause” residuals have dwindled to an estimated “$150 a year” from the franchise.
Krumholtz played head elf Bernard in the 1994 holiday hit starring Tim Allen, returned for the 2002 sequel, skipped the 2006 third film and came back for the 2022 Disney+ series.
“They’re minimal because the movie plays so much,” he said. “This is how residuals work: Every time it plays, you make less. It’s a grade scale.”
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