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Al Pacino Donated His Paycheck from 1980's Cruising Because He Felt Movie Was 'Exploitative' of Gay Community

Al Pacino wrote in his new memoir, 'Sonny Boy,' that he put his paycheck from the 1980 movie 'Cruising' in an irrevocable trust fund and gave it to charities anonymously over a number of years using the interest it generated after he decided the film was 'exploitative' of the LGBTQ+ community.

In Sonny Boy, which is out now, the actor, 84, recalled that he was interested in "pushing the envelope" when he agreed to make Cruising with the late director William Friedkin. Pacino costarred in the film with Paul Sorvino, Karen Allen, Richard Cox, Don Scardino, Ed O'Neill and Joe Spinell, among others. Friedkin, who died in 2023 at 87, admitted to The Wrap in a 2013 interview that the movie "was not the best foot forward for the gay rights movement, but I never intended the film to be critical" of the LGTBQ+ community.

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