Mark Wahlberg was reportedly paid $1.5 million to re-shoot scenes in "All the Money in the World" when Kevin Spacey was fired. (Reuters)
Mark Wahlberg was recently in Columbus, Ohio, to talk about his new Chevrolet dealership. While there, the actor met with media and shared his lifelong passion for cars. In fact, one of his first jobs was as an auto mechanic.
As a teenager, Wahlberg did oil changes and tune-ups and even drove a tow-truck. Wahlberg also started fixing and flipping cars when he got his license. Wahlberg explained: "I had quite a few cars on my first policy when I was 16 1/2—my insurance policy—because I bought a car for $200, fixed it up a little bit, sold that car, bought another car. And my mother was like 'What is going on? How are you getting all these cars?' "
Wahlberg opened the Chevrolet dealership with business partner Jay Fieldman. Adding a Chevy dealership makes good sense for the actor. He's worked with Chevy on a number of his films, most notably as a star in the "Transformers" franchise.
Wahlberg has also been making the rounds of the television talk shows, where he has tried to sell the hosts new cars. The story of his teen auto mechanic work has also been a topic of discussion on the talk shows.
As for the first new car Wahlberg purchased when he started to make money with a recording contract as Marky Mark, he says it was a bad idea. While he could afford the Mercedes-Benz, he couldn't afford to insure the car. He still lived in a tough Boston neighborhood, and the locals enjoyed vandalizing the fancy ride. That included cutting open his roof and stealing his radio.
That's less than ideal even with a proper insurance policy.
Eventually Wahlberg could afford insurance, though, as his career took off rapidly from there. The rapper became a global sensation and also served as a model for Calvin Klein. Eventually he transitioned to acting, and he's been banging out feature films ever since. His latest is called "Mile 22" and is in theaters now. In it, Wahlberg plays an American intelligence officer on a dangerous mission.
We don't think any Chevrolets are featured in the movie, but Chevy has an in for product placement in future Wahlberg films.