Macaulay Culkin opened up about his experience working with the late actor John Candy, who played his uncle in the 1989 film Uncle Buck.
The former child star said John represented a fatherly figure on set and was able to sense that his biological father, Kit Culkin, was a “monster.”
Macaulay, best known for his role in Home Alone, shared his memories of John in the documentary John Candy: I Like Me.
The film premiered on Thursday (September 4) at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
In Uncle Buck, Macaulay played Miles Russell, a boy sent to live with his troubled uncle, a heavy drinker who made a living by betting on rigged horse races.
Macaulay Culkin revealed that John Candy looked out for him during the filming of Uncle Buck
Image credits: Amy Sussman/Getty Images
John passed away at 43 after suffering a heart attack in 1994.
Macaulay recalled that his co-star “always had that really great instinct” and could perceive his complicated relationship with his father.
Image credits: Universal Pictures
“I think he saw. Listen, even before the wave crested and the Home Alone stuff was happening, it was not hard to see how difficult my father was. It was no secret. He was already a monster,” the 45-year-old said.
“All of a sudden, the fame and the money came, and he became an infamous monster.
“He was already not a good guy. I think John was looking a little side-eyed, like, ‘Is everything alright over there? You doing good? Good day? Everything’s alright? Everything good at home? Alright.’”
Macaulay, who was a child when he starred in the John Hughes comedy, said John was able to notice that his father was a “monster”
Image credits: Prime Video
John’s constant concern for the then-boy’s wellbeing was “a testament to the kind of man he was,” Macaulay said.
The Richie Rich star described John as having a “paternal” presence, saying the late actor “was just looking out” for him when few others did.
“It doesn’t happen that often. It actually happened less as time went on,” Macaulay explained. “I wish I got more of that in my life. It’s important that I remember that. I remember John caring when not a lot of people did.”
Image credits: Universal Pictures
Reflecting on John’s performance in the John Hughes film, Macaulay praised the late actor’s connection with children. “I think that’s why that’s one of my favorite performances, because I think he put a lot of himself into it,” he said.
While many actors don’t like to share a set with children “because they’re tricky to work with,” John was always “really kind, and really good” with him and Gaby Hoffmann, his on-screen sister.
Macaulay previously alleged that his father, Kit Culkin, was physically and mentally ab*sive
Image credits: People’s Choice Awards
In March, Macaulay revealed on Kate Hudson and Oliver Hudson’s Sibling Revelry podcast that he hadn’t spoken to his father Christopher “Kit” Culkin in about 30 years.
The star previously alleged that his father, who was once an actor himself and managed his career early on, was “physically and mentally” ab*sive to him.
Macaulay believes that this behavior stems from “a certain amount of resentment” that Kit feels toward him.
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“[My dad] wanted to be an actor, and he kinda did some stuff. He never really got as far as, like, Horace on Broadway,” Macaulay explained. “And then he did some ballet too and all this kind of stuff. And so then all of a sudden, he has this kid that didn’t look anything like him, to be honest. And right out of the bat, I instantly got the lead stuff in the ballet company.
“I instantly booked all these things like that. And I think he resented me for that. I think he kind of hated me a little bit for that.”
John, who played Macaulay’s uncle, had a “paternal” presence, he said
Image credits: Ron Galella, Ltd./Getty Images
Macaulay came from humble beginnings. According to People, his family lived nearby in a railroad-style apartment where five children shared two bunk beds in a single room.
Kit was a taxi driver before working as a sacristan for a Catholic church on the Upper East Side. Meanwhile, Macaulay’s mother, Patricia Brentrup, was a telephone operator.
The New York-born actor said he “wanted nothing to do” with his father by the time his parents separated in the 1990s. Following the split, his parents began a custody battle over their seven children.
Image credits: Universal Pictures
Macaulay revealed that none of Kit’s seven children or four grandchildren speak to him, a reality he believes is justified by the pain he has caused his family.
“He deserves it, too,” he said. “I would know, as a man myself, I would know that I f***k up. I must have done something wrong. I have more than an inkling that he does not feel that way.
“Like [to him,] we’re wrong, and he’s right. He’s one of those narcissistic crazy people. Me and him were always butting heads. Like I said, he was a bad man.”
John passed away from a heart attack in 1994
Image credits: Paramount Pictures
In 2018, Macaulay revealed that he never got along with Kit. He recalled that once, when he hosted Saturday Night Live at age 11, his father forced him to memorize every single line instead of letting him use cue cards, something that seemed excessive even to adult hosts of the show.
He claimed that his father threatened to hit him if he didn’t “do good” and memorize his lines.
Kit gave a statement to The Daily Mail in 2016, saying of Macaulay, “I don’t consider him a son anymore.”
As for what his father taught him, Macaulay shared, “I knew from a very early age that I better take notes on him. Notes on how not to be, notes on how I don’t want to be when I grow up.”
The My Girl actor has built a family of his own. He’s engaged to actress Brenda Song, with whom he shares two sons: 4-year-old Dakota and 2-year-old Carson.
“John Candy was a national treasure,” one netizen said of the late Canadian star
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