Barbie Star Margot Robbie Pays Off Her Mom’s $490,000 Mortgage

LONDON, ENGLAND – JULY 12: Cast and filmmakers light up London pink to celebrate the European Premiere of Barbie, in cinemas 21 July. At London Eye on July 12, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images for Warner Bros.)

The world is watching Margot Robbie right now.

The Barbie star has been making headlines for her killer Barbie red carpet looks and for her role in the history-making film.

But it wasn’t always fame and fortune for the 33-year-old star. In fact, growing up in Australia, things were hard for Robbie and her mom.

Supporting A Dream

LONDON, ENGLAND – JULY 12: Cast and filmmakers light up London pink to celebrate the European Premiere of Barbie, in cinemas 21 July. At London Eye on July 12, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images for Warner Bros.)
Growing up, Robbie always knew she wanted to act. She was only in Grade 12 when she broke the news to her mom, Sarie Kessler, according to Vogue Australia. Robbie’s mom was shocked because her daughter was so good at school.

Kessler was also worried that it would be hard to be an actor and make a good living, plus they had a big family to support, including three siblings. “We had to figure things out and work through the difficulties of having tight budgets,” Kessler told the publication.

Still, she was intent on supporting her daughter. Robbie wasn’t successful overnight, either. Early on in her career, she would rely on her mom to help keep her afloat. Sometimes, that meant her mom would take money from her mortgage.

“I have that piece of paper still. I kept it. Everything I owed my mom, I had it written down.”

MARGOT ROBBIE

Robbie kept track of all the times her mother helped her, though, and knew that one day she would pay her back.

“She’d take money out of the house mortgage and lend me money, so I always knew, ‘Oh, I’ve got to pay that back,’” she told CBS Sunday Morning.

Paying It Back

Eventually, though, Robbie did make it big. When she was 17 years old, she started out with a part in the popular Aussie soap Neighbours. It took a few years from there, but when Robbie was 22, she landed a game-changing role opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in The Wolf of Wall Street.

From there, she got parts in The Legend of Tarzan, I, Tonya, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, and The Suicide Squad, and she also started her own production company, LuckyChap Entertainment.

Now, she’s known globally as Barbie, a role that came with a $12.5 million payday.

“Honestly, anyone in my position, you’d do that for your mom. Of course, you would.”

MARGOT ROBBIE

The first thing Robbie did when she hit it big? She paid every single cent back to her mom.

“One day, when I made enough money, I just paid that whole mortgage off completely,” Robbie told CBS. “I was like, ‘Mom, don’t even worry about that mortgage anymore. It doesn’t even exist anymore. Honestly, anyone in my position, you’d do that for your mom. Of course, you would.”

Supporting The People You Love

This story is incredibly moving because it just goes to show you how important it can be for a parent to support their child’s dream. Imagine that Robbie’s mother hadn’t done what she did for her daughter. Robbie probably wouldn’t have gone on to play the world’s most famous doll.

It’s a nice reminder to all of us that even though you may not relate to someone else’s dream, it’s always important to support those you love however you can. Showing faith and trust in the people you love can be the thing they need in order to keep going, especially when things get rough.

Not all of us can put our finances on the line in these kinds of circumstances, but we can be supportive in other ways. Take these dreams seriously. Ask questions. Be a cheerleader. And don’t be the one to squash their hope. There are plenty of other people out there who can do that for you. As a loved one, our job is to just be there.