Jodie Sweetin Had $190 in the Bank Before Filming Fuller House

Jodie Sweetin says she had $190 in her bank account when she started filming the Netflix reboot Fuller House in 2016. The actress, who played Stephanie Tanner on the original sitcom Full House, made the disclosure on a recent episode of the "We're Still Here, Babe" podcast.

"I had to borrow money the first week I was working on 'Fuller House,' and I [skittered] into my first paycheck with like $190 in my bank account," Sweetin said. "And nobody that I worked with knew that."

The revelation reframes the public image of a franchise that generated decades of television. Full House ran for eight seasons, from 1987 to 1995, and made Sweetin a household name as a child actor. Fuller House then ran for five seasons on Netflix, totaling nearly 80 episodes.

How did Sweetin get to that point?

Sweetin has been open about her struggles with addiction, and on the podcast she discussed how those habits left her with "no money" at a certain point in her life. The shortfall forced her to broaden her job search beyond Hollywood.

She said she took the work without embarrassment. "I didn't have [an] ego about it," Sweetin said. "I didn't care that I was, quote, unquote, working a normal job. I think other people again were like, 'What are you doing here?' And I was like, 'Paying my bills. Kids don't pay for themselves.'"

She described the experience in blunt terms. "And not like I was ever a materialistic person, but you learn humility when you are at Target, and you've got to turn around and, you know, put some shit back, because you don't have the money on your debit card."

The takeaway in plain words: child-television fame did not translate into financial security, and Sweetin worked outside the industry to cover her expenses before the reboot arrived.

Who returned for the reboot?

Fuller House reunited most of the original Full House cast. Returning series regulars and guest stars included:

• Candace Cameron Bure
• Andrea Barber
• Scott Weinger
• Bob Saget
• Lori Loughlin
• Dave Coulier
• John Stamos

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, who shared the role of Michelle Tanner in the original series, did not return. New cast members on the reboot included Juan Pablo Di Pace, Adam Hagenbuch, John Brotherton, Michael Campion, Elias Harger and Soni Bringas.

Sweetin's account adds to a growing body of testimony from former child actors about the gap between on-screen success and off-screen financial reality. Her disclosure, made years after the reboot wrapped, suggests the precariousness was invisible even to her own colleagues on set.