Big Lebowski’s The Dude is an iconic movie character, but his finances are a complete mystery. This is how you can really afford your lifestyle.
The Dude constantly says that he is unemployed in The big lebowskiSo how did you pay for your apartment and living expenses? The Coen brothers’ cult neo-noir film follows Jeffrey “The Dude” Lebowski (Jeff Bridges), a stoner bowling enthusiast who drinks white Russians and becomes embroiled in an elaborate kidnapping scheme after he’s mistaken for millionaire Jeffrey. Lebowski. The Dude is tasked with delivering the ransom to Lebowski’s wife’s kidnappers, but his bowling friend Walter (John Goodman) devises a disastrous plan for the duo to keep the money.
The opening scene of The big lebowski shows The Dude buying milk for 69 cents with a check, so he obviously had no cash. The Dude’s lack of finances is most obvious when the landlord has to scold him for the rent up front. At the same time, he wasn’t as focused on stealing the Big Lebowski’s money as Walter, he actually just wanted him to replace his carpet. Given that you were able to do drugs recreationally, pay for bowling, and live in a Southern California apartment without having a job, how could you afford all of that?
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One of the first drafts of The big lebowski included a segment where The Dude explains that he was an heir to the inventor of the Rubik’s Cube, which also makes him Hungarian. The Dude likely would have survived on his inheritance money since his invention in the mid-1970s, so he didn’t have to actively work on his career. Given that Erno Rubik is still alive today and was active in 1991 when the film was set, it is unclear why The Dude would have run out of money so quickly during the film’s timeline unless he cut it off.
Director Joel Coen decided to remove the Rubik’s Cube trivia from The Dude’s past, which was probably better for the film because it adds to The Dude’s sense of mystery. The Dude works best as a stoner guy who doesn’t actively care about making money or contributing to capitalism, which highlights why he didn’t really care much about getting Jeffrey Lebowski’s millions anyway. Even though the Coen brothers cleverly removed the data, it would have been fun if they had included a small Easter egg in their finances from a Rubik’s cube in The Dude’s apartment.
It is suspected that The Dude was likely living on welfare or disability benefits considering he was able to avoid military service, but this would not explain how he can afford all his luxuries without even looking for a job. It also seems like it wouldn’t be in The Dude character to take the time to gain disability and well-being and live off of it for so long because he’s not actively against working or having a career. When The Dude explains his past activities of being a roadie for Metallica, working briefly in the music business, and being a part of the Seattle Seven, he mentions that his career has “slowed down“Since then, it’s not that I don’t want to work. Either way, being an heir to the Rubik’s Cube fortune wasn’t necessary for The big lebowski to include in the story of The Dude.
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