Dan Bilzerian, the playboy gambler often hailed as the 'King of Instagram', has spoken out about why he has taken a step back from posting on his infamous Instagram account.
The former marine first rose to fame around a decade ago, following a semi-successful professional poker career, and first gained recognition in 2010 after being voted one of the funniest poker players by Bluff magazine.
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He then turned this semi-fame into social media stardom by documenting his controversial lifestyle of sex, drug-fueled parties and money to his tens of millions of followers.
His Instagram fame quickly turned into infamy, however.
In 2014, he was accused of kicking a woman in the face at a nightclub in Miami.
In the same year, he was also sued by adult actor Janice Griffith after she broke her foot during a dangerous photoshoot with Bilzerian at his home in Hollywood Hills.
But the former 'King of Instagram' hasn't posted on the app since November 2021, with his last post being a repost of an upload from 2018.
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Speaking to InsideHook in January, Bilzerian opened up about his break from social media: "I just lived in the circus for so long that I kind of just — I really needed a break."
He then added: "I’ve said this before, but I feel like it’s like a video game that I beat five years ago and I’m tired of playing it."
He has also opened up on his motivation for achieving this infamy: "I just wanted to see if I could become famous.
"It was like a mountain I wanted to climb. I was getting out of poker and I felt like this would be a good transition to open doors, to do other things.
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"I feel like I’ve done everything. I feel like I did all the things that I wanted to do that people would find impressive.
"So I’ve been more focused recently on just kind of living in the moment and having fun versus trying to show everybody that I’m having fun," he said.
In 2021, Bilzerian self-published his first book, The Setup, which is part memoir - part guide to achieving the 'Dan Bilzerian lifestyle'.
The book, like Bilzerian himself, has quite predictably caused something of a controversy, with one Twitter user stating that: "Dan Bilzerian releasing a book makes me want to unlearn English and gouge my eyes out"
Others have further criticised the book saying that a good chunk reads like fiction and not a remotely believable memoir.
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Although some users on Goodreads appear to have enjoyed the book, with one writing that: "Dan is a Genius that keeps evolving and every Man out there must read this for perspective on how life's dynamics especially with women works."
Topics: Celebrity, Social Media
Isobel Pankhurst