Gene Wilder House Falls Victim To Elon Musk
Who would have thought that Gene Wilder’s name would be in the news almost ten years after his death? And for real estate reasons, no less. Elon Musk has started foreclosure proceedings on Wilder’s former house in order to, if necessary, evict Wilder’s nephew, who currently inhabits the 2,800 square foot home in the elite Los Angeles neighborhood of Bel Air.
WIlder’s Home
Gene Wilder bought the home in 1976 and owned it for three decades. The original purchase price was around $300,000. In 2007, Wilder sold the house for a whopping $2.75 million.
As if that wasn’t enough, one of Elon Musk’s trusts purchased the property for $6.75 million in 2007 and held onto it for many years. One of his most pressing concerns has always been that the property remains true to the way Wilder kept it.
Musk Sold The Home To Wilder’s Nephew
In 2014, Musk was looking to unload properties and started the real estate process to sell Gene Wilder’s home. At the same time, a man named Jordan Walker-Pearlman, Wilder’s nephew, and his wife, Screenwriter Elizabeth Hunter, wanted to purchase the home from Elon Musk.
Musk had the sale price at $9.5 million, but the couple couldn’t afford that steep price. Likely due to sentimental reasons, Musk not only lowered the price to $7 million, but he also lent the couple $6.7 million in order to buy it.
The Requiem Boogie
With the loan from Musk, Walker-Pearlman and Hunter were able to fund an autobiographical movie, The Requiem Boogie. Walker-Pearlman wanted to tell the stories from his childhood, from his memories, and fill in parts of the lives of Gene Wilder and his wife, actress Gilda Radner that those who loved the actors never got to see (Films like Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Young Frankenstein, and The Woman in Red will go down in history as among the greats).
Sadly, the couple was unable to keep up with the loan payments to Elon Musk. They place a large portion of the blame on the actors’ and writers’ strikes that devastated a lot of lives in Hollywood for a period of several months in 2023.
No Hard Feelings
Still, though Gene Wilder’s nephew may technically be in the middle of foreclosure, Walker Pearlman does not blame Elon Musk for the steps he has had to take to protect his investment. Walker-Pearlman has said he feels only gratitude toward Musk and that he has enjoyed a “very special and magical four years” in the home.
Musk has indeed filed a notice of default, which is the first step in the foreclosure process. He has notified the couple that they have 90 days to pay or vacate the premises.
Selling It Before Elon Can Foreclose
Instead, it looks like Gene Wilder’s nephew is taking the third option, and perhaps one Musk had not planned for. They have listed the home as for sale with the Westside Real Estate Agency for $12.95 million.
Depending on how much the couple owe Elon Musk, they stand to make a pretty penny if the house sells before their 90 days are up. Not a bad deal, and certainly no skin off the nose of the wealthy billionaire owner of Tesla and SpaceX.
