Macaulay Culkin got candid about his ‘complicated relationship’ when it comes to Father’s Day in a new Instagram post uploaded on Wednesday.
The Home Alone star, 43 – who recently enjoyed a family outing with fiancée Brenda Song and their two sons – reflected on the holiday after receiving a special gift box from production company Lucasfilm.
He was given a variety of goodies ahead of Father’s Day – which will take place later this month on Sunday, June 16.
‘If you know a little about me then you’d know I’ve had a complicated relationship with Father’s Day in the past,’ the actor penned. He notably was embroiled in family drama in the past, including with his father Kit Culkin.
‘But since becoming a papa myself I’ve decided to reinvent the wheel,’ Macaulay positively added.
Macaulay Culkin, 43, got candid about his ‘complicated relationship’ when it comes to Father’s Day in a new Instagram post uploaded on Wednesday
The Home Alone star reflected on the holiday after receiving a special gift box from production company Lucasfilm
The actor notably shares son Dakota, three, as well as a second son, one, with Song – whom he became engaged to in January 2022.
‘Other than getting an hour or two of extra sleep I try to make the day a celebration of my boys more than me,’ he explained, and jokingly added, ‘After all, they are the ones who made me a father (no offense to Brenda).’
‘In our house Father’s Day isn’t held in as a 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.’
Culkin explained that, ‘I try to do fun things for the boys on Father’s Day. It’s a special day.’
‘All of this is a way to say thank you to @lucasfilm or sending me a care package full of things that are more meant for my children to enjoy (with the exception of the hot sauce).’
The star concluded by typing out, ‘Father’s Day isn’t for me, it’s for the people that make me feel like a father.’
Macaulay has previously opened up about his estrangement from father, Kit Culkin – which took place after he removed his parents’ names from his trust fund at the age of 16.
He has also previously accused his father of both physical and emotional abuse while growing up in the industry.
‘If you know a little about me then you’d know I’ve had a complicated relationship with Father’s Day in the past,’ the actor penned. He notably was embroiled in family drama in the past , including with his father Kit Culkin
‘Other than getting an hour or two of extra sleep I try to make the day a celebration of my boys more than me,’ he explained; seen in 2018
As soon as Macaulay was skyrocketed into the spotlight at an early age, his dad, Kit, quit his job to focus on managing his career full-time.
But the star later revealed that Kit would ‘deny him certain things’ – including a bed, which meant he had to sleep on the couch – and often forced him to stay up all night sometimes to study lines, despite the young actor feeling exhausted.
‘I think it was just a way of him wanting to break my spirit,’ he later told ABC News. ‘He wanted me to know to know that he was in charge and if he didn’t want us to sleep on a bed, we weren’t gonna sleep on a bed.’
He also remembered his dad threatening physical violence if he didn’t perform well during an appearance on the WTF podcast with Marc Maron in 2018.
‘[He said], “Do good or I’ll hit you.” He was a bad man,’ Macaulay admitted. ‘He was abusive, physically and mentally – I can show you all my scars if I wanted to.’
He told New York Magazine in 2001 that as he grew more and more tired of acting, he begged his dad to let him take a break, but he wouldn’t let him.
Macaulay said: ‘My father was jealous of me. He was a bad man. He was abusive. Everything he tried to do in life, I excelled at before I was 10 years old.’
To the outside world, Macaulay – who is brother to Kieran Culkin – seemed like a happy-go-lucky kid who was in for the ride of his life, but behind-the-scenes, he recalled feeling desperate for a break.
He also remembered his dad threatening physical violence if he didn’t perform well during an appearance on the WTF podcast with Marc Maron in 2018; seen with his parents and brother Kieran in 1990
His dad also kept his earnings a secret from him, while unbeknownst to Macaulay, taking a big chunk of the profits for himself. His parents took around 15% of his earnings per film.
When Kit and his mother, Patricia, split in 1995, there followed a bitter legal battle over who would get custody of the kids, including Macaulay and his fortune.
Rumors swirled he had ended up ‘divorcing’ his parents, with Culkin telling Esquire in 2020: ‘We didn’t want to go with my father. It’s always misconstrued, that I “emancipated” myself from my parents.’
‘I legally took my parents’ names off of my trust fund and found an executor, someone who would look over my finances, just in case anyone wanted to stick their f***ing pinkie in the pie.’
‘But the next thing you know, the story was that I divorced my parents. I just thought I was doing it cleanly – taking my father’s name off, taking my mom’s name off, so my opinion is unbiased. And when I did that, the whole thing kinda ended a lot faster.’
He also said: ‘Basically, I had millions and millions of dollars in the bank and my mother couldn’t pay the rent because she was spending all of her money on lawyers.’
‘We were about to get evicted from our apartment. The only way I could get access to that money was to take my father’s name off it, but I didn’t want to make it messy, so I figured I’d take both their names off.’
After the bitter fight was over Kit, a highly charged character, appeared to accept defeat and moved to the West Coast while Patricia remained in NYC.
Rumors swirled he had ended up ‘divorcing’ his parents, with Culkin telling Esquire in 2020: ‘We didn’t want to go with my father. It’s always misconstrued, that I “emancipated” myself from my parents; seen in 2023
But the actor now credits his father with helping him to become a good dad himself while talking to New York Magazine once again in 2006; seen in December 2023 in Hollywood
Macaulay and his dad have been estranged ever since. In 2016, while speaking to DailyMail.com, Kit said he ‘doesn’t consider Macaulay a son anymore.’
But the actor now credits his father with helping him to become a good dad himself while talking to New York Magazine once again in 2006.
‘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.’
He also reflected on it to Esquire, explaining, ‘Look, I mean, it sucks. But: It coulda been worse, you know? I wasn’t working in a coal mine. I wasn’t a child soldier. My father was not sexually abusing me.
‘Certain f**ked-up things happened, but f**ked-up things happen to kids all the time and they don’t come out the other end.
Last month in May, Macaulay also celebrated Mother’s Day and penned a sweet tribute to Brenda Song; couple seen in March in L.A.
‘I’ve got something to show for it, man. I mean, look at me: I got money, I got fame, I got a beautiful girlfriend and a beautiful house and beautiful animals.
‘It took me a long time to get to that place, and I had to have that conversation with myself and go, like, “Honestly, Mack? It’s not so bad.” I want for nothing and need for even less. I’m good, man.’
Last month in May, Macaulay also celebrated Mother’s Day and penned a sweet tribute to Brenda Song. He also uploaded a photo of roses that spelled out ‘Wow’ and joked that the florist ‘misspelled MOM.’
‘Happy Mother’s Day for the best mama our boys could ever ask for. When you’re working or tired or sick you are still always there for us. You make me a better father. You’re the best and we love you so much @brendasong.’
