Patrick Ball, a prominent actor in HBO Max’s “The Pitt” who was $80,000 in student loan debt before landing a lead role, expressed his fear that he would die with the debt and considered making a career pivot to something more stable. Ball, who currently performs on Broadway in “Becky Shaw” attended the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and received a Master of Fine Arts from the Yale School of Drama. He also had a series of failed relationships and considered joining the Merchant Marines. Despite the financial struggles, Ball insisted that he was out of debt before "The Pitt" and that if successful, he wouldn't lose his debt.