Macaulay Culkin was best known as a cute and mischievous kid in Home Alone, but off-screen, things weren’t quite so rosy. Macaulay’s life later took a drastic turn and led this child star down a dark path. Click to find out all the details of Macaulay Culkin’s unusual life.
Macaulay Culkin was born on August 26, 1980, in New York City. His father, Kit, was a Broadway star, and his aunt, Bonnie Bedelia, was an actress. Macaulay Culkin was drawn to the limelight as early as four years old.
Macaulay Culkin started his acting career in various theater productions, but soon transitioned to television and film. He starred in the ’80s drama The Equalizer as well as a made-for-tv movie, The Midnight Hour. Macaulay finally reached the big screen in 1989, when he starred in the successful comedy Uncle Buck.
In 1990, Macaulay scored the lead role of Kevin McCallister in the now-classic Christmas film Home Alone. The film was a huge success and put him on the map as a true Hollywood star. Interestingly enough, the character of Kevin McCallister was specifically written to fit Macaulay’s personality.
In 1991, Macaulay became the first child actor ever to earn $1 million for a single film for his role in My Girl. The next year, he proved his star power once again with Home Alone 2: Lost In New York. The sequel earned $359 million while costing only $20 million to make.
Macaulay starred in 15 films when he was between seven and fourteen years old. That’s particularly mind-blowing for a child actor. After wrapping up filming for Richie Rich in 1994, he decided to take a break from his acting career. Soon, however, he would find himself in headlines once again, but this time for his friendship with Michael Jackson.
Macaulay became friends with the then-middle-aged superstar Michael Jackson during the timeframe that the Home Alone movie was released. The two became pretty close and spent lots of time together. The public couldn’t help but think that the odd friendship was inappropriate, considering the stark age difference between the pair.
In 2003, when Michael Jackson was accused of sexual abuse and child molestation, Macaulay admitted at Jackson’s trial that as a child, he had spent time at Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch on several occasions, but that the bedroom was arranged over two stories and nothing inappropriate ever happened.
Jackson was eventually acquitted, but rumors swirled that he had bribed Macaulay to keep quiet about their inappropriate relationship. During an interview in 2018, Macaulay said, “He enjoyed my youthfulness. He liked being a kid with me. It never struck me as odd. I never felt uncomfortable. That was just the way he was.”
Macaulay stayed friends with Michael Jackson until Jackson’s death in 2009. When Jackson’s daughter Paris was born, he named Macaulay the godfather. Macaulay and Paris are so close that they even have matching tattoos.
In 1998, at the age of 18, the actor married actress Rachel Miner. Sadly, their relationship didn’t last long and the two divorced in 2002. However, something worse was on its way.
After having been out of the spotlight for years, in 2004, he made headlines for being arrested after being caught in the possession of a slew of illegal substances. Originally, he pleaded not guilty to the crime. However, he later pleaded guilty. Consequently, he was slapped with a one-year suspended prison sentence.
Macaulay returned to television in 2003, making a guest appearance on the popular sitcom Will & Grace. Soon after, he landed a supporting role in Saved!. His performance in Saved! received rave reviews and proved that he was more than just a child star.
As Macaulay worked hard to make a name as an actor once more, he fell in love with actress Mila Kunis. The two started dating and remained together for several years. Sadly, the pair finally broke up in 2011.
Rumors surfaced that Macaulay was addicted to drugs when the public saw a particularly harrowing photo of him in 2012. In that photo, he looked eerily gaunt, bones jutting from beneath paper-thin skin. Although the star was 32 at the time, he appeared much older. Many speculated that the actor turned to drugs after his breakup with Mila Kunis, but Macaulay denied the allegations.
In 2013, a quirky video of Macaulay went viral on YouTube. The video was just footage of the actor eating a slice of pizza. At the end of the clip, he said, “My name is Macaulay Culkin, and I just finished the pizza.” Viewers thought the whole thing was just a joke, but it turned out it was not.
In 2014, along with five friends, Macaulay started a comedy rock band called The Pizza Underground. The deliciously crazy group went on tour the very next year. Their first stop was Brooklyn and hilarity ensued. But in reality things weren’t going quite so well as they seemed.
During the band’s performance at Rock City, all of their songs were largely parodies of rock band The Velvet Underground, but with all the lyrics changed to be about pizza. The audience was not pleased with its music and ended up booing the group. Due to its poor reception, The Pizza Underground had to disband.
In October 2017, Macaulay was pictured with his Changeland co-star, actress Brenda Song, and the two appeared to be more than just friends. Their romantic relationship was confirmed later and the couple remains together till today.
Macaulay made a surprising appearance at the 2018 American Music Awards, where he presented the Favourite Male Artist Award to Post Malone. He looked smart in a blue suit and patterned shirt, and fans were delighted to see him looking so good after going through a difficult patch a few years ago.
Home Alone is one of the classic holiday movies in America, but one person who doesn’t watch it during the holidays is Macaulay himself. He said on The Ellen Show, “I don’t really watch them all that often. We did the 15-year anniversary DVD commentary, and I realized I hadn’t seen it in 15 years.”
Today, Macaulay appears happy and healthy and he has a net worth of $15 million. He’s still working as an actor. Most recently, he has been working on an upcoming comedy-drama written and directed by Seth Green, called Changeland.
