Bug Hall, who starred as Alfalfa in beloved film The Little Rascals, has spoken out about his decision to flee Hollywood and live off-grid, becoming a self-described “radical Catholic extremist” in the process.
Hall, whose real name is Brandon Rowan, left Hollywood in 2020 along with his wife and five kids, moving to Texas, Michigan, and Ohio, before settling on an 80-acre plot of land near Mountain View, Arkansas.
The former child star has taken a vow of poverty, according to the Daily Mail, and has given away the fortune he made from his acting career. He’s even sold most of his belongings and has plans to build their family home complete with its own electric and plumbing systems. It’s all part of his desire to be off the grid.
“My goal is to maintain a life as free of any need for an income as possible,” he told the publication. “If there’s a financial need that comes up, I’ll go take some work or do an odd job, for cash to fulfill that need.”
Hall’s breaking point with Hollywood came after he was arrested for an incident while visiting his parents in Texas in 2020. He was allegedly found huffing air duster cans and charged with misdemeanor possession, according to documents obtained by People; however, he claimed he faced no charges and the publication could not locate a criminal record.
The former actor had been sober for 15 years at the time of his arrest, he told the Daily Mail. But he admitted to suffering several relapses that were brushed off in Hollywood’s “high energy” environment.
Hall’s 2020 arrest was a turning point, he said, as he realized he no longer wanted to live a life of “manipulation, of other people, in how I speak to them, in the stuff that I make or produce… including myself, as an addict.”
“I didn’t want to go work some job that was basically meaningless, making widgets to entertain people or distract people,” Hall told the Daily Mail.
Now, Hall is embracing a simpler life — but not without controversy.
He’s a self-described “radical Catholic extremist” and “medieval moralist,” per a video he posted to his public YouTube channel in April 2025. He’s even been praised by followers of the so-called “trad Cath” movement.
But Hall faced a ban from X in 2022 over comments made about punishing his children.
“We punish severely in my home for unacceptable behavior,” he wrote on the platform at the time. “Punishment begins at around 10 months. Before the age of reason it’s an immediate corporal/retributive justice. It then begins to shift to a privation/reparative model.”
He explained to the Daily Mail, saying it was “not the right choice of words,” adding: “We believe in severe punishment, meaning that it’s swift, it’s exacting.
“I do spank my kids, and I’m a firm believer in spankings as a means of creating right cogitative associations early.”
