Macaulay Culkin has “unfinished business” with Catherine O’Hara.
The Running Point actor opened up about how the death of his Home Alone co-star has impacted him in a new profile with the Gentleman’s Journal. The Emmy Award winner died Jan. 30 from a pulmonary embolism, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. Rectal cancer was listed as the underlying cause of death.
O’Hara portrayed Kate McCallister, the mother of Culkin’s Kevin McCallister, in the beloved Home Alone films.
“When Catherine passed away in January, that hit me,” Culkin said. “That hit me pretty good, ’cause, you know, it was just too soon. And I felt that we had unfinished business. I definitely feel like I had unfinished business with her, you know? I feel like I owed her a favour — and I don’t like having an outstanding debt.”
O’Hara’s death shocked Hollywood, leading many of her former co-stars, collaborators and more from the industry to pen tributes in her honor. At the time, Culkin shared an emotional post on Instagram, writing, “Mama. I thought we had time. I wanted more. I wanted to sit in a chair next to you. I heard you but I had so much more to say. I love you. I’ll see you later.”
Also in his interview with Gentleman’s Journal, the outlet noted that many of the actors Culkin worked with in Home Alone have also died. Culkin reminisced on the losses, noting that they stem from his past as a child actor.
“I’m not the tip of the sphere,” he said. “I’m the butt of the sphere. I’m the caboose. I’m bringing up some of that old Hollywood guard kind of thing — I’m going to be one of the last people standing when it comes to that kind of stuff.”
The Studio actress and Culkin formed a bond offscreen, with O’Hara notably attending and delivering remarks at his 2023 Hollywood Walk of Fame star ceremony. There, she recounted their time working on Home Alone.
“I know you worked really hard, I know you did,” O’Hara said of his performance, continuing, “But you made acting look like the most natural thing in the world.”
