“It’s been like that my whole adult life”: how thinking in the third person saved Macaulay Culkin
When it comes to child stars, Macaulay Culkin sets the mould, who, after the monumental success of Home Alone, was catapulted into the spotlight, becoming not just a famous kid but also one of the most famous people in the world.
The 1990s were a bumper time for Culkin, who followed up Home Alone with a number of other hits like Richie Rich and My Girl, but unfortunately, the good times were not to last.
As is often the case with child stars, Culkin’s life was far from the star-studded party it appeared on the outside, and he has spoken about feeling conflicted over his personal success and desire to live a normal life, which led to his retiring from acting at 14 in an effort to preserve his sanity, but it was already too late. His marriage to Rachel Miner ended in 2002, when he was just 22 years old, and two years later, he was arrested for drug possession, plus there’s his highly-publicised friendship with Michael Jackson, which is a whole other story.
In a rare interview with The Guardian in 2016, Culkin spoke candidly about the impact fame has had on his life, recalling having to constantly look over his shoulder for paparazzi, an issue that has only increased with the advent of smartphones. While the public’s obsession with him peaked during the 1990s, he explained that it’s never fully gone away.
“It’s been like that my whole adult life. You take on a prey-like attitude, always scanning the horizon. It’s strange on dates, as it looks like you’re not paying attention. But I’ve stopped trying to think of myself in the third person, because that’s just gonna drive me nuts… Macaulay Culkin is out there, and I’m Mac. You guys can play with the first one.”
This kind of dissociation might sound unhealthy, but you’d be surprised how many people do it, because once a person enters the public domain, they give over a little piece of themselves to their fans, the media, and everyone else; it’s no wonder so many celebrities use stage names or aliases.
The real shame here is that Culkin still loves to act, once describing his career as a version of The Shawshank Redemption: in order to get to freedom (acting), he has to crawl through a long tube of shit (everything that comes with it).
Thankfully, he has been able to enjoy something of a career renaissance in recent years, appearing in a handful of episodes of American Horror Story in 2021 and recently lending his voice to a character in the insanely successful Zootopia 2. The road back hasn’t been easy, but he has seemingly now found a balance.
The treatment of children in the public eye is a long-standing problem and one that seriously needs addressing, and while Macaulay Culkin turned out alright in the end, there are countless examples of kids who didn’t. It’s something that’s going to have to change if Hollywood is going to continue to make young people into stars.
