"I can't believe he was like that": Macaulay Culkin opens up about estranged father and family rift

Macaulay Culkin has opened up about his ‘complicated relationship’ with his estranged father, Kit Culkin, and the rift he and his family have with him.

On a March 31, 2025, episode of the Sibling Revelry podcast hosted by Kate and brother Oliver Hudson, the Home Alone actor revealed that he has not spoken to his father in about 30 years. He said that he

“had seven kids and now has four grandkids, and none of them want anything to do with him.”

On listening to this, the hosts went into shock, as reported by Entertainment Weekly.

The 44-year-old actor reportedly shares two kids with his fiancée, Brenda Song. They are parents to sons – Dakota, 4, and Carson, 2.

"One of my earliest memories of him was [thinking] when I grew up, this is how I'm not gonna be with my kids. Now that I have kids of my own, it's like, you know, it kicks up some dust. I kinda go, you know, like, 'I can't believe he was like that.' He had all these lovely kids. And talented kids, too. It's crazy."

He said, referring to his father, who was reportedly physically and mentally abusive towards him. Culkin elaborated more on the rift between him and his father during the podcast.

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Why did Macaulay Culkin have a fractured relationship with his father, Kit Culkin?

While speaking to Kate and Oliver Hudson on the Sibling Revelry podcast, Macaulay Culkin shared some depressing moments with his father while growing up.

He revealed that his father resented him in some way, seeing him reach new heights in his career. He added he felt this way,

“Because he wanted to be an actor. He never really got as far as chorus on Broadway, and then he did some ballet too.”

He also shared that when his father and his mother, Patricia Brentrup, separated in 1995, he wanted nothing to do with his father during that time.

"I said, Great, I quit, 'cause now he's out of the picture," he said. "I hope you guys had a good time and made as much money as you possibly could because there's no more coming from me."

He added,

"He was just the worst. The judge was like, well, you have to do visitations with him. I told my lawyer, 'Yeah, I'm not doing that.' He said, 'Well, you'll be in contempt of court' and this and that."

According to a report in Hello magazine, in his 2007 memoir, Macauley claimed that his father was "physically and mentally abusive" toward him, and they have not been in contact since his teens.

He accused his father of denying him a bed, he noted in an interview with ABC News. "I think it was just a way of him wanting to break my spirit," he said. The report further added that his father managed his son’s career.

In 2018, on the WTF podcast with Marc Maron, he revealed that his father threatened him with physical violence if he failed to perform well. He said:

"He was abusive, physically and mentally – I can show you all my scars if I wanted to."

These events reportedly strained their relationship to such an extent that he has now broken contact with his father and has shown no interest in reconnecting with him.