The story of Macaulay Culkin, the actor who managed to get rid of his authoritarian father, overcome depression and regain the public’s love

For hundreds of people, Home Alone is associated with Christmas. We all loved watching the smart little boy, played by Macaulay Culkin, devising various traps to defend his home from two persistent thieves. However, the life of the actor himself was not as radiant and joyful as the plot of the film. Kevin McCallister’s role made him famous, but outside of fiction, the young actor has had a much tougher time.

We, from awesome.clubwe decided to share with our readers the true story of the actor’s life, who managed to overcome all difficulties, overcome depression and addictions, putting his life back on track!

Macaulay Culkin with his father, Kit.

Macaulay’s career began well before the comedy Home Alone. By the way, the role of Kevin McCallister wasn’t even his number 1 protagonist: the first one was in the movie Who Sees a Face Doesn’t See a Heart, when the actor was 8 years old. His father was a Broadway actor, but he retired before the children were born. . In Macaulay’s early childhood, his family was poor: his father worked as a bell ringer at the local church, and his mother was a telephone operator. The role of Kevin McCallister could have gone to another boy who also auditioned. If he had starred in the film, the protagonist would have dark hair, like himself. young actor, John Mulaney, and Macaulay’s life would be very different. However, thanks to his experience in the feature Who Sees Face Doesn’t See Heart, Macaulay got the character.

The first part of the Home Alone franchise earned Macaulay the Young Artist Award for Best New Actor and $110,000. By the way, for acting in the sequel, the actor received 4.5 million dollars. However, Macaulay’s life was not easy at all. The actor revealed that he just wanted a little rest from a summer vacation for the first time in his life. In his parents’ apartment he didn’t even have his own bed, let alone a room. “My dad had a king size bed and a big screen TV and I slept on the couch,” admitted Macaulay.

Macaulay during one of his interviews.

At the height of his fame, Macaulay was considered the most famous child actor in the world and ranked second on the list of the 100 Greatest Child Stars. His father, Kit Culkin, always controlled him. The mother stayed at home with the other children, and Kit traveled with Macaulay for filming. It was he who guided the career of the young star. Macaulay remembers that during filming, he and his father would stay up every night, studying the lines for the scenes he was supposed to shoot the next day.

In this photo Macaulay was 13 years old. This is one of his last child roles, in the movie Settling Scores with Dad.

In 1994, Macaulay starred in his last film and retired from film acting. He intended to pursue his studies, which he abandoned due to work. The actor starred in 15 movies in seven years and not all adult actors can handle such a hectic schedule. Additionally, films released after Home Alone were not critically acclaimed. Especially The Evil Angel: The actor’s attempt to shake off the stereotype received devastating reviews.

Shortly after Macaulay stopped acting, his parents separated and filed for custody of their son. Rather than choose one of them, Macaulay emancipated himself at age 14. The process lasted 2 years, and the result was that the actor removed the names of his parents from managing his finances and replaced them with an accountant. Kit disappeared from his family’s life and the other children stayed with their mother. Until he was 18, Macaulay didn’t even know how much he really earned, as, “thanks to his parents”, he wasn’t aware of all the details of his contracts. On one occasion, he stated, “When I turned 18, I went to my accountant’s office. He put a piece of paper in front of me and said that was what I was worth. It was interesting: it felt like a little boy did a good job and that I, in a weird way, inherited all his money.”

Macaulay with his first wife, Rachel Miner.

In 1998, Macaulay got married for the first time. Both he and the bride were 18 years old. His wife, Rachel Miner, was also an actress. The marriage did not last long: in 2000 the couple separated and, 2 years later, signed the divorce. In 2002, Macaulay started dating actress Mila Kunis. The relationship lasted 8 years, but the couple did not advertise their love. After the separation, Mila admitted that it is not easy to keep a relationship a secret when dating someone so famous: when meeting the actor and his girlfriend on the street, Macaulay fans reacted vigorously. According to the actress, the separation was difficult for both.

In 2000, Macaulay attempted to revive his acting career and appeared in a play and several films, playing supporting roles. Some of his works received good reviews, but despite his talent, none of them were as vehemently praised as Home Alone. Between 2000 and 2019, the actor starred in just six films and cinema was no longer a priority in his life. In the mid-2000s, Macaulay faced legal problems, even serving a period of probation. Furthermore, in 2000, he lost a half-sister on his father’s side, and a few years later, his elder sister also passed away.

To this day, the actor is averse to interviews and tries his best to preserve his intimacy, focusing on the simple pleasures of his current life, and occasionally it is possible to find an interview with him, in which he talks about his pets or about delicious bread. that his girlfriend does.In 2013, Macaulay formed the comic rock band called “The Pizza Underground”, but his musical career, even if it started as a joke, did not go well: in one of the concerts, the public was very dissatisfied with the performance and booed the band. In 2018, Macaulay starred in a Google Assistant commercial, in which he reprises his role as Kevin McCallister and re-records several iconic Home Alone scenes. The ad quickly went viral and reached around 5 million views on YouTube.

Although Macaulay won’t reveal the details of his current life, it’s safe to say that he’s finally doing well. He and his girlfriend, Brenda Song, live in a house to which the actor himself paved a yellow brick road. They have cats, they wear pajamas, which match, and in 2021 they had a son. “People don’t realize how incredibly kind, loyal, sweet and smart he is,” Brenda said. — “What makes Macaulay so special is that he remains himself. He knows who he is, and he is 100% in agreement with that ”.In 2021, the actor took part in the filming of the hit series American Horror Story. In the 10th season of the production, he played one of the main roles and received high praise from critics.

Macaulay in American Horror Story.

In recent years Macaulay has not been in the limelight of the press and public, but he recently made a surprise appearance at the Gucci fashion show. At 41, he finally seems to be doing well. “Yes, I’m a homebody,” he confesses. — “My house is a place where two former child celebrities live. One of us still works as hard as he can, and the other just wants to enjoy life.”

Currently, the actor seems to be completely happy and we believe that he deserves a peaceful and harmonious family life.

Do you like Macaulay Culkin? Have you seen any movies with your participation besides Forgotten Me? Leave your comment!