Hollywood and high-stakes poker collided this week as actor Tobey Maguire took the stand in a criminal tax trial, revealing details of an alleged multi-million-dollar poker debt involving billionaire banker Andy Beal. The testimony came during the third week of the trial of prominent attorney Tom Goldstein and shed new light on an elite poker world where enormous sums routinely change hands.
Maguire, appearing as a prosecution witness in a Maryland courtroom, testified that he hired Goldstein to help recover a $7.8 million gambling debt — his share of a $15.6 million loss Beal allegedly suffered during a high-stakes poker match in Dallas in December 2019. Bloomberg Law later identified the “Texas businessman” referenced in court documents as Beal, a well-known billionaire banker and legendary poker enthusiast.
According to Maguire’s testimony, Beal did not immediately pay what he owed following the game. Reuters reported that Maguire said he met Goldstein through poker circles and ultimately paid him $500,000 in legal fees for successfully helping collect the debt.
Court filings paint a detailed picture of the dispute. The indictment against Goldstein claims that Beal failed to promptly settle not only Maguire’s share of the losses, but also hundreds of thousands of dollars owed to side bettors. While Beal allegedly proposed a settlement that would have reduced the total amount owed, Maguire declined and instead retained Goldstein to pursue full payment.
Once the funds were recovered, Maguire testified that he paid Goldstein his legal fee, which was then wired to California real estate developer Bob Safai to help settle Goldstein’s own poker-related obligations. Under cross-examination, Maguire acknowledged that informal arrangements and undocumented transactions are not unusual in the high-stakes poker scene.
Beal’s presence in the poker world is far from new. His legendary heads-up battles are chronicled in The Professor, the Banker, and the Suicide King, which recounts his clashes with an all-star lineup including Doyle Brunson, Phil Ivey, Jen Harman, and Ted Forrest. He has also reportedly played massive private games against fellow billionaire Alec Gores, who testified earlier in the same trial.
The courtroom drama didn’t stop with Maguire. High-stakes poker pro Vivek Rajkumar also testified this week, stating he won between $200,000 and $300,000 playing against Goldstein and later provided him with a $200,000 short-term loan in early 2020. Rajkumar boasts more than $8 million in recorded live tournament earnings, including a $3.6 million score at the Triton Million for Charity.
Meanwhile, prosecutors have issued subpoenas to New York Times journalists Jeffrey Toobin and Rudy Lee over a December 2025 profile of Goldstein. Their attorneys pushed back, arguing the subpoenas threaten journalistic independence and could discourage future reporting.
Goldstein faces multiple charges, including tax evasion, filing false tax returns, failing to pay taxes, and making false statements to mortgage lenders. The trial is expected to conclude in mid-February, but the revelations have already pulled back the curtain on a secretive poker ecosystem where fame, fortune, and legal peril often intersect.
