Brenda Fricker starred as the homeless woman living in Central Park with her pigeons in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
The woman who famously starred as the ‘pigeon lady’ in Home Alone 2 has made a heartbreaking admission about her acting career.
It’s hard to believe that it’s been 32 years since Kevin McCallister’s parents lost their child for the second time in quick succession.
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York sees Kevin (Macaulay Culkin) accidentally board a plane to New York City while his family head to Florida for Christmas.
‘Home Alone 2025’ parody trailer
Credit: VJ4rawr2 via YouTube
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After checking in to Donald Trump’s The Plaza hotel with his dad’s credit card, the 10-year-old must yet again deal with the Wet Bandits, Harry (Joe Pesci) and Marv (Daniel Stern) who have escaped from prison.
Along the way Kevin comes across a kind-hearted pigeon enthusiast (played by Brenda Fricker and not Piers Morgan), who helps him to defeat the criminals once and for all.
Fricker reached the pinnacle of Hollywood in 1990 after becoming the first Irish actress to win an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, starring alongside Daniel Day-Lewis in biopic My Left Foot.
Brenda Fricker starred as the homeless woman living in Central Park with her pigeons in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (20th Century Fox)
After featuring in Home Alone 2 in 1992, she went on to star in So I Married an Axe Murderer, Angels in the Outfield and A Time to Kill.
However the now 79-year-old has suggested in a recent interview with The Times that her career has taken an unfortunate turn since turning 70.
“They don’t write for old women,” she said. “Shakespeare wrote for old women, but none of the young writers do. None.
“There are so many wonderful people around … interesting women with history and stories. Remember these words when you turn 70: you become invisible.
“Richard Harris said that to me while sitting on the rocks looking out over the Atlantic Ocean and it stuck in my head. On my 70th birthday I thought, ‘He’s wrong, I feel great.’
The Irish actor made a heartbreaking admission about her acting career (20th Century Fox)
“A week later I knew exactly what he meant. It’s weird. You have to shout to be heard. So it’s not that I’m out of work for any other reason — there are no parts to do.”
That being said, Fricker joked that she is happy to not be involved in the new ‘sober’ Hollywood.
On how the industry has changed, the actor said: “I was thinking back to the days when we were all pissed in the BBC bar, but the work was ten times more creative because we were all losing our inhibitions and picking up the courage to say things.
“That’s all gone. It’s all sober people, just sitting around tables.
“I sound like an alcoholic, I’m not. There’s just a looseness about it.
“Do you know what wasn’t around as much, actually? Ambition. I never heard anyone using that word.
“There was no greed about work, or competitiveness. There was just joy and fun.”Featured Image Credit: 20th Century Studios/Tommy Tiernan Show
Topics: Home Alone, Christmas, Film, Macaulay Culkin
Anish Vij
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Updated 17:44 8 Dec 2024 GMTPublished 17:43 8 Dec 2024 GMT
Piers Morgan shares three-word statement after people think he appeared in Home Alone 2
Morgan has taken to social media to defend himself against claims that he looks like a certain character from the flick
Piers Morgan had a priceless response after people called him out for looking like a particular character from Home Alone 2.
The British journalist and broadcaster seems to go through the same thing every time Christmas swings around, and whether you like him or not, you have to admit that it’s quite funny.
It’s to do with one of the family favourite festive films, which was first released in 1992 and even had a cameo from President-elect Donald Trump.
Piers Morgan and Pigeons in 2018
Credit: ITV
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Home Alone 2 is a well-loved title and is the successful sequel to the 1990 classic, both of which star Macaulay Culkin.
However, there is one character who a lot of people draw similarities to Morgan.
After Kevin (Culkin) bumps into Donald Trump, he also becomes friends with someone known as the ‘pigeon lady’.
She isn’t really given another name, so that’s how we’ll refer to her.
People have dubbed the character “Morgan in disguise,” taking to X to express their shock at how similar they look, with one even comparing her to ‘Piers Morgan with a wig on’.
Morgan has defended himself on social media (Jason Mendez/Getty Images)
One viewer even joked on X: “@piersmorgan I just have to applaud you for your stellar acting work in Home Alone 2.”
Another put: “Annual reminder that Piers Morgan got his start as the pigeon lady in Home Alone 2.”
This resulted in him taking to social media on December 1, responding to a tweet that read: “Not sure how many acting credits he has but this is @piersmorgan’s finest work.”
Morgan simply said: “It’s. Not. Me.”
People are so persistent with saying the bloke played the role that he ended up having to publicly deny it on TV.
Back in 2020, when he still presented Good Morning Britain, his co-host Susanna Reid claimed she could prove it.
Reid said: “Can we just have a look at Home Alone 2 because, frankly, it is the best picture.
“Because lots of people watch Home Alone 2 and wonder if this is you.”
Can you honestly tell the difference? (20th Century Studios)
Morgan responded: “Why does this keep coming around? That is not me. I am not the bag lady in Home Alone 2.”
Reid then showed ‘proof’ with a snap of him covered in pigeons for an episode in 2018, as even his own son brought it to light.
Brenda Fricker, who actually played the pigeon lady, apparently finds this whole thing hilarious too.
Although one user wrote on X: “I’d call Piers Morgan the Pigeon Lady from Home Alone but that’d be insulting to her … and to the pigeons.”
Ouch.
Meanwhile, others joked that the set of the film was where he first met Trump.
I mean, he can deny it all he likes but it really does look like him.Featured Image Credit: Karwai Tang/WireImage/Getty Images / 20th Century Studios
Topics: Piers Morgan, Christmas, Social Media, Film, Twitter
Joshua Nair
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Updated 17:21 17 Dec 2024 GMTPublished 17:14 17 Dec 2024 GMT
Why Hollywood legend was paid just £325 to star in Home Alone
A film that made $476 million at the box office only paid one of its biggest names a few hundred dollars
One of the biggest names to star in Home Alone was only paid a few hundred pounds, despite the movie’s $18 million budget and $476 million box office performance.
Released back in 1990, the Christmas flick stars Macaulay Culkin in the iconic role of Kevin McCallister, who is tasked with defending his home from two rather rubbish thieves looking to steal his family’s belongings while they’re away in Paris.
Kevin is accidentally left behind while his family jets off to Europe from Chicago, much to the horror of his mother Kate (Catherine O’Hara) and the annoyance of thieves Harry and Marv (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern).
Home Alone trailer
Credit: 20th Century Fox
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Directed by Chris Columbus, what comes next is more than 90 minutes of pranks and tomfoolery as Kevin does his best to secure the McCallister mansion from the Wet Bandits.
Away from the goings on in the Chicago suburb where the McCallisters’ call home, Kevin’s mum Kate flies back to the US on the next available flight.
She ends up in Scranton, Pennsylvania, where she is told there are zero flights with seats to Chicago.
Out of the blue comes Kate’s very own Father Christmas, granting her one wish of getting back to Chicago and to Kevin.
O’Hara and Candy in one of their iconic scenes (20th Century Fox)
In the airport, she meets Gus Polinski, the lead member of a traveling polka band which is on its way to Milwaukee.
Polinksi, played by Hollywood legend John Candy, offers Kate a spot in the back of their crowded and less than luxurious moving van – something she greatly receives.
While not the main man, Candy’s supporting role in Home Alone is still substantial. Despite this, and despite his career to date, he was only paid $414 (£325) for his appearance in Home Alone.
Prior to Home Alone, Candy – who is probably best known for 1993’s Cool Runnings – appeared in comedy films such as Stripes, Splash, Armed and Dangerous, Spaceballs, and Planes, Trains and Automobiles.
The travelling polka band helping Kevin’s mum out (20th Century Fox)
The definition of a household name for many, especially those residing in the US.
Candy’s time on set lasted for just one day. But why the small fee?
Well, it was basically a favour to a friend.
“He was on the movie for only one day, but it resulted in so much great improvisation,” Chris Columbus said in a previous interview. “None of that stuff was in the script.
Candy was paid pennies in comparison to some (20th Century Fox)
“The funeral parlour story – that was all improvised at 4.30 in the morning. We could barely keep a straight face on set just listening to John.”
Columbus said there was a ‘little resentment’ from Candy but that the pay was ‘was a deal between him and [writer and producer] John Hughes at the time’.
“We did a movie together after that, Only the Lonely, and there were a couple times on set when he would make a cutting remark about Fox and what he was paid,” Columbus said.Featured Image Credit: 20th Century Fox
Topics: Home Alone, Film, Christmas, Money, Celebrity, Entertainment, Macaulay Culkin
Tom Earnshaw
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Published 12:47 18 Dec 2024 GMT
Macaulay Culkin pocketed extra £14,000,000 for Home Alone 2 after securing unique contract clause
Home Alone was a box office smash, with the sequel also bringing in millions
Iconic child actor Macaulay Culkin found himself more than £14 million richer after the release of Home Alone 2 due to a unique clause inserted in his contract for the sequel.
Arguably the most famous and successful child star of all time, Culkin starred in the first Home Alone back in 1990 before its successor, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, two years later.
With other films to his name including Richie Rich, he came a certified Hollywood star by the age of 14, before he took a hiatus from acting at the aged 15 returning eight years later.
How Kevin got left behind in Home Alone
20th Century Fox
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Home Alone saw the New Yorker star as eight-year-old Kevin McCallister as he defends his family’s Chicago mansion from two rather awful criminals known as the Wet Bandits.
Harry and Marv, played by Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern, target the McCallister home after the family fly to Paris to celebrate Christmas.
The problem for everyone involved is that Kevin is accidentally left behind by mum and dad Kate and Peter, played by Catherine O’Hara and John Heard. And for those still curious, the reason for him being forgotten about was recently clocked by avid fans.
Macaulay Culkin and brother Kieran both starred in Home Alone (Dave Benett/Getty Images)
Home Alone was an instant success, bringing in $476.7 million at the box office during its theatrical run; an amount equivalent to roughly $1.15 billion in 2024 with inflation factored in.
It meant that when discussions started about a holiday-themed sequel to the blockbuster, the actors involved knew their worth more than ever.
That included one half of the Wet Bandits, with Daniel Stern initially rejecting his contract for the film because he felt he was worth more.
Culkin earned $110,000 (£86,500) for the original film; an amount that ballooned to a whopping £5 million (£3.93 million) for the sequel set in New York.
Macaulay Culkin in Home Alone (20th Century Studios)
But his real earnings from the film came after its release, pocketing almost £20 million extra on top of the initial five for the actual acting.
That’s because he had a special clause inserted in to his contract for the sequel. And it was all to do with the success of the first film.
According to Stern’s new 2024 memoir, Home and Alone, he revealed that Culkin was given five percent of the box office takings for Home Alone 2.
Despite the sequel earning less than the initial film, it still grossed a humongous $359 million (£282.5 million).
Home Alone is a classic (20th Century Fox)
This meant that Culkin’s five percent cut of the takings came in at a cool $17.95 million, which equated to £14.1 million.
Inflation factored in, that’s worth a whopping £31.71 million in 2024.
Back in the 1990s, Culkin ended up with a trust fund worth $50 million. Operated by his parents, he ended up taking both their names off of it for one very particular reason.Featured Image Credit: 20th Century Fox
Topics: Macaulay Culkin, Home Alone, Film, Celebrity, Money, Entertainment, Christmas
Tom Earnshaw
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Published 16:37 23 Dec 2024 GMT
Woman who lived in Home Alone house during filming reveals what it was like
A real house that had a real family living there during the filming of Home Alone
A woman who grew up in the real life Home Alone house during the creation of the 1990 Christmas classic movie has revealed what it was really like at the time of filming.
For many, it is the greatest festive film ever made and embodies everything about the festive spirit (paint cans and irons to the face aside, maybe). And the warm fuzzy feeling that the film gives many is personified in the house at the centre of filming.
Home Alone follows Macaulay Culkin, who plays eight-year-old Kevin McCallister as he defends their family home in suburban Chicago from the Wet Bandits, Harry and Marv (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern).
Why Kevin was left behind in Home Alone
Credit: 20th Century Studios
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It sees Kevin turn their huge, idyllic home into a boobytrapped jungle of painful goings on for the hapless criminal duo.
And the home is a very real property worth £4 million just outside of Chicago, Illinois.
Currently in the process of being sold for millions of dollars, it has had a huge makeover since its 1990 days.
But go back 34 years and you had an actual family living in the property. Among those living there, in the wealthy neighbourhood of Winnetka, was Lauren Abendshien.
Lauren Abendshien, whose parents owned the famous McCallister house when the movie was filmed (ITV)
Now 40 years old, she was six at the time of the film being made.
Recalling what life at the house was like during the months of filming that took place there, she told ITV’s This Morning that they actively lived in the house while filming was happening.
She said: “We stayed in the house pretty much the entire period, which was about four or five months.
“In order to avoid appearing onscreen, we would have to crawl around the window line from room to room.”
The Home Alone house in the film (20th Century Fox)
The house regularly hosted crew and cast during downtime, too, with Macaulay Culkin and younger brother Kieran spending a lot of time indoors.
Abendshein said: “They would spend time in the house when they weren’t filming their scenes.
“Macaulay Culkin used my room to study with his tutor and his brother [Kieran], wasn’t filming as much, so he would just hang out in my room.”
On the success of the film, the Abendshien family said it was ‘something special’ but that they couldn’t have imagined just how big it has become.
The Home Alone house (20th Century Fox)
“It was very surreal when the movie came out and all of a sudden it’s holiday season in 1990 and it was an endless row of cars and people wanted to see the house and take photographs and that was very new to us, but we grew to love it and we shared the magic of the movie,” she said.
While external shots of the house were the real deal, a lot of the internal shots were actually from somewhere two miles down the road.
The film’s indoor scenes were shot at New Trier Township High School, an abandoned property that was big enough for the production to create the appropriate sets and a sound stage, with director Chris Columbus unable to do the stunts inside the house due to the space needed for the film crew.