From ‘Elf’ Star to Rock Bottom: Faizon Love’s Shocking Fall — Homeless, Broke, and $250K in Child Support Debt
Embattled “Elf” star Faizon Love revealed in a Florida courtroom on Friday that he is broke, has no permanent home, drives an old car, and depends on a friend to help cover his expenses.
Attorneys for the 58-year-old actor, who was booked in Hillsborough County on Tuesday on an outstanding warrant, argued that he has fallen on hard times despite appearing in the 2003 Will Ferrell-led blockbuster and nearly six dozen other films, according to 10 Tampa Bay News.
His lawyer cited Love’s homelessness, empty savings account, and reliance on a 1999 vehicle as evidence that he has reached rock bottom.
Court documents obtained by TMZ show that Love claimed he earned no income in 2025 and that his highest annual earnings over the past five years were only $13,000.
The “Friday” comedian is facing two contempt-of-court charges tied to a child support dispute involving his ex, Tiffany Lee, who alleges that he owes her $250,000.
During Friday’s hearing, Love told the judge that he had recently seen his daughter and given her money. However, when his attorney asked whether he could afford to pay $2,500 a month in child support, the “Couple’s Retreat” actor responded, “Right now? No,” according to 10 Tampa.
Lee, who appeared via video during the hearing, disputed his claims, saying Love had previously told her she “wasn’t going to get a dime” and that he would stop working and cancel shows to avoid paying child support.
Love’s attorney argued that keeping him incarcerated was preventing him from working and harming his reputation in Hollywood.
“This sentence is preventing him from working and ruining his name in Hollywood,” the lawyer told the court.
The judge ordered Love, who appeared in court handcuffed and in a wheelchair, released from custody. He was given until July 1 to submit a financial statement demonstrating that he cannot afford the child support payments.
Love’s Hollywood career includes numerous memorable roles in major studio comedies and independent films, beginning with his feature-film debut in the 1999 animated comedy “Bébé’s Kids.”
He later appeared alongside James Earl Jones and Don Cheadle in the 1993 superhero comedy “The Meteor Man” before starring with Ice Cube and Chris Tucker in the cult classic “Friday” two years later.
Although Love is best known for portraying the disgruntled Gimbels manager in “Elf,” he has also appeared in films such as “The Replacements,” “Couple’s Retreat,” and “The Last Stop in Yuma County.”
According to IMDb, his most recent film credit came in 2023.
The “Friday” actor was arrested in Florida on Tuesday and appeared weary and expressionless in his mugshot following the arrest.
He had previously been arrested in California more than two weeks earlier and served 16 days in jail, according to 10 Tampa.
Love’s attorney, Glen R. Lansky, told ABC News on Thursday: “To my knowledge, he was picked up in Riverside County, California, and transported some days later to Hillsborough County on orders of contempt from the Honorable Judge Mark Kiser.”
Following Friday’s hearing, Lansky told The Post: “We are very pleased with the result and I have taken over representation on all outstanding matters related to his case and will be filing a supplemental petition to modify child support.”
Love has had several previous encounters with law enforcement, including multiple arrests for assault.
In 2017, he pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge stemming from a recorded assault on a valet at John Glenn Columbus International Airport in Ohio. He was fined $500 and received a 180-day suspended jail sentence.
Last year, he was accused of felony assault after allegedly throwing a credit card machine at a hotel clerk in San Diego when she informed him that she could not provide the room he had booked.
