Philip Seymour Hoffman didn’t want his children to be "trust fund kids".
The late ‘Hunger Games’ actor – who died of a drug overdose in February aged 46 – repeatedly rejected suggestions from his accountant that he set aside money for Cooper, 10, Tallulah, seven, and five-year-old Willa, court documents claim.
The remarks emerged after attorney James Cahill Jr. – who was appointed by Manhattan Surrogate’s Court to protect the children in his estate proceeding – interviewed the late actor’s accountant David Friedman.
According to the New York Post newspaper’s Page Six column, the documents state the accountant "recalled conversations with [Hoffman] in the year before his demise where the topic of a trust was raised for the kids and summarily rejected by him."
Instead, the ‘Doubt’ star wanted all his fortune – estimated at around $35 million – to go directly to their mother, his long-term girlfriend Mimi O’Donnell, because he believed she would "take care of the children."
The documents added: "Friedman also advised that he observed Hoffman treating his partner/girlfriend . . . in the same manner as if she were a spouse."
According to the attorney’s notes, Philip confided to his accountant that he "simply did not believe in marriage."
The couple met in 1999 and the costume designer had "substantial" joint bank accounts with her partner, who she first met in 1999.
The lawyer observed: "The size and nature of the jointly held assets support the position that [Hoffman] regarded [O’Donnell] as the natural object of his bounty."
Though it had been claimed Mimi had thrown the actor out of their apartment before his death because of his addiction, the attorney recommended the will be approved as there was nothing suspicious about it.
The will, which was written in 2004 before the birth of Philip’s daughters, also included an unusual request about his sons upbringing.
It reads: "It is my strong desire my son, Cooper Hoffman, be raised and reside in or near the borough of Manhattan [or] Chicago, Illinois, or San Francisco, California.
"The purpose of this request is so that my son will be exposed to the culture, arts and architecture that such cities offer."
Philip Seymour Hoffman rejected trust funds for kids
