Macaulay Culkin Addresses His ‘Complicated Relationship’ With Father’s Day
Macaulay Culkin might be estranged from his dad, but that’s not stopping him from celebrating Father’s Day on his own terms.
The Home Alone star, now 43, took to Instagram on Wednesday, June 5, to post a photo of a “care package” from Lucasfilm stuffed with Star Wars merchandise, including a teddy bear apparently inspired by Darth Vader. There, he opened up about how he’s choosing to enjoy Father’s Day as a dad of two despite his personal history.
“If you know a little about me then you’d know I’ve had a complicated relationship with Father’s Day in the past,” Macaulay wrote in the caption, seemingly referencing his estrangement from his father, Kit. “But since becoming a papa myself I’ve decided to reinvent the wheel. Other than getting an hour or two of extra sleep I try to make the day a celebration of my boys more than me. After all, they are the ones who made me a father (no offense to Brenda).”
Macaulay and his fiancée, Brenda Song, 36, have been engaged since January 2022. They began dating in 2017 after meeting on the set of their film Changeland. They welcomed their first child, Dakota, in April 2021 and their second, Carson, in December 2022.
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“In our house Father’s Day isn’t held in as high regard as birthdays or Christmas but it does mop the floor of such holidays as St. Patrick’s day, Valentine’s Day, and the 4th of July,” Macaulay continued. “I try to do fun things for the boys on Father’s Day. It’s a special day.”
He then gave a shout-out to the production company behind the Star Wars franchise, writing, “All of this is a way to say thank you to @lucasfilm for sending me a care package full of things that are more meant for my children to enjoy (with the exception of the hot sauce). Father’s Day isn’t for me, it’s for the people that make me feel like a father.”
Macaulay was just 10 years old when he skyrocketed to fame as precocious Kevin McCallister in 1990’s Home Alone, which made $477 million worldwide. He went on to achieve success with Home Alone 2: Lost in New York and My Girl, while his parents, Christopher Cornelius “Kit” Culkin and Patricia Brentrup, managed his career as well as those of his younger brothers, Kieran and Rory, who followed in his footsteps. (In addition to Macaulay, Kieran and Rory, Kit and Brentrup are also the parents of Quinn, Shane, Christian, Jennifer and the late Dakota, after whom Macaulay named his firstborn. She died in 2008 at age 29 after she was struck by a car while crossing the street.)
Kit and Brentrup separated in 1995 following a long partnership. Macaulay and Kieran were teens when they first distanced themselves from their dad.
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Earlier this year, Kieran, 41, praised Brentrup “for giving me life and my childhood, which was great” as he accepted an Emmy Award for his role as Roman Roy on Succession.
According to Page Six at the time, he continued the praise afterward, saying, “She’s just an absolutely wonderful woman who took on raising seven kids in a studio apartment, by herself.” He added: “There was a guy there — he didn’t do anything.”
The outlet reported that when Macaulay received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in December 2023, Brentrup was not able to make the ceremony due to health issues.
