Apr 13, 2026
Chances are, if you’re out for dinner with a handful of friends, at least one person will ask you if you’re watching HBO’s medical drama The Pitt.
Despite its ubiquity in the current television zeitgeist, however, Patrick Ball — one of the show's main actors, portraying the character Frank Langdon — was facing financial ruin not long ago.
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In a recent interview with Cultured (1), Ball told writer Sophie Lee about how booking the show changed his life: “I paid off my student loans like three months into The Pitt, and that was a really profound moment ‘cause I thought I was gonna die with it. It’s a huge burden to carry, and a lot of people carry it. I was $80,000 in debt” he said.
From debt to debut
The Pitt is Ball’s breakout television role, and now he is making his broadway debut in Becky Shaw.
But it hasn’t always been bright lights and big cities. Like many Americans, Ball struggled with carrying student debt.
According to the Education Data Initiative (2), the outstanding federal student loan balance was $1.693 trillion as of February 2026. Its data also showed that the average federal student loan debt balance was $39,547 and the total average balance (including private loan debt) could be as high as $43,333.
Ball told Cultured: “I had been through a series of failed relationships where my financial insecurity was a real problem. I had just thought that was going to be my life forever, and that is a really heavy thing to live with. Paying off those student loans and getting back to zero, I remember being like, ‘Man, if this show works, great. If it doesn’t work, they can’t take that away from me. I am out of debt.’”
While you may not be an aspiring actor with your big break just an arm’s length away, that doesn’t mean paying off large debts — whether student loans or otherwise — is impossible.
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Can you do the same?
If your student debt is feeling especially burdensome, there are some things you can do to optimize your repayment process.
Consolidate. If you have federal student loans, you can consolidate them through the Direct Consolidation Loan program offered by the U.S. Department of Education (3). This allows you to consolidate loans at a fixed rate rather than paying off multiple loans of variable rates. As a result, you will only have to focus on a single bill for your loans, which can give you some added peace of mind when it comes to managing your finances. You can choose from multiple repayment plans with various terms to repay your consolidation loan.
Pay more than the minimum. By paying even just $20 more than the minimum amount required for your loans, you can speed up the process and be debt free faster. This might mean taking on a side gig, or just cutting your weekly takeout order from your spending.
Whether you can get your loans completely paid off in three months like The Pitt star did is beside the point. What’s important is that you tackle your debt with intent so the finish line is in sight.
Article Sources
We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our ethics and guidelines.
Cultured (1); Education Data Initiative (2); Central Research, Inc. (3)
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Em Norton is a Staff Writer for Moneywise. Em holds a B.A. in Professional Writing from York University and has been writing professionally since 2019. Em's work has previously been published by Room Magazine, IN Magazine, Our Canada and more.
