The Albuquerque actor also admitted to impersonating a veteran to get work in a new interview.
Todd Latourette, a one-armed actor in Albuquerque, New Mexico, is coming clean about his past and it turns out the true story is a real whopper.
He spoke with the city’s local news station KOB-TV recently where he admitted that he did not lose his arm while serving in the armed services. In reality, he says he sawed it off during a “psychotic episode.” Since then, he began claiming to be a veteran, which certainly helped him gain acting work in films like George Clooney’s The Men Who Stare At Goats, as well as appearing on shows like Longmire and in Better Call Saul.
“I severed my hand with a Skilsaw,” he explained in the interview. “The state of my mind was a psychotic episode.”
He later explained that he cauterized the wound himself. He also revealed that he is bipolar and this violent act occurred 17 years ago, while he wasn’t taking his medication. But now he's back on his meds and wants to tell the truth.
“The film industry took a different angle… that I was different, and so they liked that,” Latourette shared. “They trusted me that I was exactly who I said I was. I was a war veteran. I was hired because I lied.”
He also freely admits that coming clean may destroy his chances of acting anytime soon, but it's a sacrifice he's willing to make in order to clear the air.
“I was dishonorable. I’m killing my career by doing this, if anyone thinks this was for personal edification, that’s not the case,” he said. “I’m ousting myself from the New Mexico film Industry. And gladly so, just to say what I’ve said.”
Once, Latourette inspired people because they believed he was a veteran. Now, he wants to inspire people who suffer from mental illness to get help.
“The power is in your hands to take your medication in the morning, or at night. So that, this, this discourse of my life doesn’t need to necessarily be yours. Because it happens quick… it happens quick.”
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