Many instantly recognize him as Kevin McCallister from Home Alone. Macaulay Culkin was the ultimate child star of the 1990s and became an A-List actor in his own right at a very young age. He was known on-screen as a cute, mischievous kid but off-screen, lots of tension was building up. His life took a drastic turn and led this once-lovable Hollywood wunderkind to a dark lifestyle nobody expected. From his strange relationship with Michael Jackson to his strained relationship with his family, here are all the details of Macaulay Culkin’s unusual childhood
01.A star is Born
Macaulay Culkin was destined for the limelight ever since he was born on August 26, 1980. His father, Kit, was a Broadway star and his aunt, Bonnie Bedelia, was an actress. He learned from a young age how to captivate an audience. Even his younger brother Kieran Culkin had a flair for acting.
Movie Pilot
Macaulay Culkin first stepped into the limelight when he was just a young boy four, years old. Though his professional career seemed promising, he was also too young to comprehend the tough Hollywood life that awaited him.
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2. From Theater to the Big Screen
His first roles were largely theater productions. However, he moved on to television, taking a role in the ’80s drama The Equalizer. After that, he appeared in a made-for-TV movie called The Midnight Hour.
OuchPress
Culkin finally reached the big screen in 1989, when he starred in the successful comedy Uncle Buck . In the film, he portrayed the middle son of the Russels. At that point, Culkin could call himself a real movie star. His star power was rising but not everything was perfect.
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3. Dad, the Manager
For someone who falls into stardom at such a young age, it is expected that parents will still play a huge role. That is exactly what Macaulay Culkin’s father did. However, Kit Culkin did more than just cheer from the sidelines. He was Macaulay’s manager too.
glamourmagazine.co.uk
Kit Culkin could be fairly tough on his son. Macaulay revealed in one interview that his father had an extreme method for memorizing lines. Kit made his son memorize the most complex monologues a script had to offer. Surprisingly, this helped Macaulay shine at every audition. All the hard work would soon pay off too.
4.The Rise to Fame
In 1990, Macaulay hit it big. He scored the role of Kevin McCallister in the now-classic Christmas film Home Alone. But there is much more to this story. Macaulay Culkin was not only a perfect pick for the role; the role was designed for him.
Vice
The character of Kevin McCallister was carefully crafted to fit Macaulay’s personality and showcase his best talents. The film put him back on set with many of the same people from
Uncle Buck , including director John Hughes. But most importantly, it put him on the map as a true Hollywood Star.
5.Home Alone…and a Hit
CHUD.com
At only the age of 12, Macaulay solidified his star power once again with Home Alone 2: Lost in New York . The film was released in 1992, just two years after the first film took the world by storm. It was also commercial success grossing over $350 million against a $20 million budget. With all the fame, he made many famous friends, but not without controversy.
6. Family Turmoil
As Macaulay Culkin’s childhood career blossomed, his family life seemed to deteriorate more every day. Not only was Macaulay beginning to feel burdened by his father’s demand, but all of it was taking a toll on his parents’ relationship too.
Daily Mail
With so much drama going on off-screen, Macaulay tried his best to focus on acting. His was moving at a breakneck pace with new TV shows and movies. The coming years would prove to be a time of experimentation and growth for the young actor. Could he handle it all?
7. Wunderkind of the Screen
In 1992, Macaulay became the voice of Nick McClary in the Saturday morning cartoon Wish Kid, which is about a lucky young boy who catches a shooting star in his baseball mitt. Like Kevin McCallister from Home Alone , the character was molded heavily to fit Macaulay’s best attributes. The show lasted one season and had a total of 13 episodes.
Vix
Macaulay seemed to be showing up everywhere. He seemed to be able to do it all and the audiences ate it up. Behind the scenes, though, Macaulay was longing more than anything to live a normal life. This would soon cause conflict with his manager father.
8. Serious Roles
Things got serious in Macaulay’s next role, the 1993 drama The Good Son. He played Henry, a troubled boy whose grisly behavior strikes fear in his cousin. Indeed, the role was quite dark compared to the fun comedy atmosphere of Home Alone.
Alchetron
The movie fared well enough at the box office. Its budget was just $17 million, and it managed to rake in $60 million. Critics, however, were not so enthusiastic. Famed critic Roger Ebert awarded the film a reluctant half star and warned that the film is not suitable for children. Still, Macaulay Culkin trekked on.
9. A Dancer at Heart
Macaulay Culkin happened to be quite the skillful ballet dancer. He started dancing at a young age and eventually enrolled at the School of American Ballet in 1993, something that proved to be quite rewarding for him.
The same year, he scored the leading role in a film adaptation of the famed ballet The Nutcracker . This role signaled a new beginning for Macaulay. His life became jam-packed with rehearsals, filming, interviews and all the other trappings of fame. Was this the kind of life Macaulay wanted to live forever?
10. A Productive Year
r surgery, bone ry, emergency. Click The year 1994 was a busy year for Macaulay. He starred in three movies that year: The
Pagemaster, Richie Rich, and Getting Even with Dad. Hopes were still high for Culkin, even if his last outing with Good Son was less than encouraging. Sadly, none of these films fared too well critically or commercially.
The AV Club
Getting Even with Dad was something of a box office flop, earning just over $18 million of its $30 million budget. The Pagemaster saw similarly grim results, making a little over $13 million against its $27 million budget. Richie Rich did slightly better, nearly making back its $30 million budget. However, critics lambasted the film, citing Macaulay Culkin’s performance as hollow and boring. Alas, Culkin’s early ’90s success seemed to be winding down.
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11. Retired as a Teen
When it came to family—his father in particular—not everything was so rosy for Macaulay Culkin. In 1995, the actor’s parents entered a fiery custody battle. His mother, Patricia, argued that Kit’s excessive drinking and questionable behavior made him an unfit parent and family man. Ultimately, Kit lost.
Tedium
Although his father proved to be an excellent manager for a while, it became to be too much for Macaulay. After appearing in movie after movie without break, the young actor burnt out fast. This put another strain on the relationship with his father. Macaulay found himself estranged from his father and retired as an actor at only 14 years old.
12. Taking a Break
After a rather questionable run in 1994, Macaulay Culkin slowly faded into the backdrop. He did not appear to be bitter or upset because he was more than ready to take a break and just live a normal life for a bit.
For the first time he could remember, he was no longer subject to prodding directors, tight schedules and brooding critics–at least for a little while. He would eventually return to the screen in shocking roles hoping to throw off his cute-kid image. But not before a bit of personal drama first
13. The King of Pop
Macaulay Culkin was pretty close with the King of Pop himself, Michael Jackson. In fact, you can spot him in Jackson’s video for “Black or White,” which was released during Culkin’s Home Alone glory days. They became incredibly close friends, to the point of odd speculations.
In 2005, when the news was abuzz about sexual abuse allegations against Michael Jackson, Macaulay revealed to a court that as a child, he had actually spent time at Michael Jackson’s place several times, even sharing the bed with him.
14. Neverland Ranch
Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch was raided in 2003 amid claims that the pop star had stockpiles of child pornography and had molested children at the location. Over 70 police officers searched the premises and what they found was beyond disturbing. Authorities confiscated numerous items, including a “collection of pornography that included images and footage of naked children and adults, as well as animal torture, bondage, and sadomasochism.”
And this wasn’t the first time that such allegations had been brought against the pop star. In 1993 the father of a 13-year-old boy accused Jackson of sexual abuse. The two parties eventually reached a financial settlement of $23 million. Michael Jackson’s relationship with the boy was eerily similar to that of Macaulay’s…
15. “Don’t Leave Me Alone in the House”
Inside the Neverland Ranch, police found a chilling photo of Macaulay Culkin, signed with the message- “Don’t leave me alone in the house.” However, what could be seen as a desperate cry for help, was simply a Home Alone reference. Macaulay stated in an interview with Larry King that Jackson called him up randomly one day after seeing him on Home Alone and asked him to hang out at the ranch. He said that the two mainly played video games or rode carnival rides, he even slept over on occasion.
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Macaulay has emphasized that he was never abused or ever felt uncomfortable or unsafe during the times they were together. Through and through, he refused to let his friend’s reputation be tarnished. At Jackson’s trial in 2005, the singer was acquitted of all 14 charges with the help of his formidable team of lawyers.
16. Growing Up Fast
Although he chose to lie low during his years of inactivity, Macaulay Culkin still had a life to attend to. And there was indeed a lot for him to deal with off screen. In 1998, at the age of 18, the actor married actress Rachel Miner.
Sadly, the marriage did not last. The two ultimately divorced in 2002. For much of their marriage, Macaulay shyed away from acting. Nonetheless, the world was anxiously waiting to see what the Home Alone boy would do next.
17. Trouble with the Law
While Macaulay was glad to lay low following a stressful childhood, it seemed that darker times were on their way. In 2004, the actor would gain media attention for a run-in with the law that would certainly erase his formerly squeaky-clean
The Smoking Gun
Police caught Macaulay Culkin in Oklahoma City with a slew of illegal substances on hand. In total, police found 16.5 milligrams of Xanax, 32 milligrams of Klonopin, as well as a little over 17 milligrams of marijuana. Could he go any lower at this point?
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