McNamara is best known for his prolific run in independent-minded ’90s cinema staples like “Chasers,” “Sweet Jane,” and “Texasville.”

*Copycat *star William McNamara reveals why he spent all of his savings after leaving Hollywood: ‘My reason for being’

McNamara is best known for his prolific run in independent-minded '90s cinema staples like "Chasers," "Sweet Jane," and "Texasville."

By Ryan Coleman

Ryan Coleman

Ryan Coleman is a news writer for with previous work in MUBI Notebook, Slant, and the LA Review of Books.

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May 27, 2026 7:04 p.m. ET

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William McNamara in 1998 and 2026. Credit:

Ron Galella, Ltd/Ron Galella Collection via Getty; Paul Archuleta/Getty

- '90s film star William McNamara is detailing why he left Hollywood, and what prompted him to spend through the earnings from his prolific career.

- "You don’t get paid," for the kind of animal activism McNamara later devoted his life to, he told *The Los Angeles Inquisitor*. "You end up going through your savings."

- McNamara also opened up about his "ongoing drug problem" at the time and what he considers his "reason for being."

William McNamara was one of the most prolific rising stars in the cinema of the 1990s, and then he seemed to disappear. From five film credits in 1998 to just one the following year, the standout of films like *Copycat *and *Chasers *in fact left Hollywood of his own accord, a decision he detailed (along with its painful aftermath) in a recent interview with *The Los Angeles Inquisitor*.

"I had an ongoing drug problem, and that really gets in the way," McNamara explained, proudly announcing that as of 2026 he's "21 years sober... no drugs, no alcohol."

McNamara's struggle with substance use formed a cloud over his Hollywood career. But it wasn't what ultimately prompted his flight from TV- and filmmaking; that was a passion for animal activism that he simply could no longer ignore.

"It becomes the only thing in the world to you," McNamara said, a fact he soon learned had a hidden dark side.

'Copycat' star William McNamara.

Warner Bros. Pictures/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty

McNamara's travels around the world with the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society led him to being arrested in Taiji, Japan, he explained, where he traveled to put an end to a routine practice of slaughtering dolphins for their meat, and capturing the animals to sell to aquariums. Footage captured of McNamara's pro-dolphin activism helped lead to the Oscar-winning documentary *The Cove*, which chronicled the controversial dolphin hunt.

There was one problem with McNamara's activism: "You don't get paid," he shared. "You end up going through your savings." McNamara continued to appear in small film and TV roles here and there throughout the 2000s, like in 2007's *The Still Life *and on a 2005 episode of *NYPD Blue*. Acting would always be there, he thought, "But as you get older… not so."

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Beginning in the mid-2010s, McNamara did stage a significant and successful comeback, leading to a steady string of starring roles in TV movies —five alone in Vivica A. Fox's *The Wrong... *series for Lifetime.

But his passion for animals never waned. He described a particularly strong relationship with a pitbull named Boo, who was eventually diagnosed with cancer. Chemotherapy bills ticked up to as much as $1,200 per week, posing an existential threat to McNamara. He resorted to trading in his car for a beater that could idle for extended periods with AC on in order to keep the dog cool. McNamara said the experience plunged him into such a dark place he even considered suicide.

"I stayed alive for her," he explained. "That was my reason for being."

McNamara's mission to save the animals proved a boon to Los Angeles residents who were impacted by the devastating wildfires of Jan. 2025. The 59-year-old actor became an animal-rescue hero during the tragedy, posting over 1,000 videos of animals left behind in the Palisades and Altadena neighborhoods and reuniting many with their worried owners.

"I made a decision to try and help some animals. If I'm dumb enough to do this then what happens, happens," he told his followers at the time.

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