If you think that you have the best dad in the world, good. You should hold on to him, because apparently, not all dads want the best for you (even if he’s your real father). Take Macaulay Culkin for example. Who would’ve known that all this while, the Home Alone star was actually a victim of domestic abuse?
In an interview, the 37-year-old actor claimed his father, Kit, was mentally and physically abusive, jealous of him, and even made threats including, “Do good or I’ll hit you”.
Macaulay said that Kit Culkin — a one-time actor who drew notoriety in the press in the 1990s as an omnipresent stage dad — was intensely jealous of his success.
“Everything he tried to do in life, I excelled at before I was 10-years-old,” said Macaulay, who was in films such as The Good Son, Uncle Buck and My Girl. “He was a bad man, he was a bad man. I could show you the scars if I wanted to.”
The actor’s parents divorced after he filmed Richie Rich in 1994. Macaulay called their split “one of the best things that’s ever happened” because it led to him leaving the industry and remove himself from the role of being the family’s breadwinner.
“I even wanted to take a break for a while and eventually I was like, ‘I’m done guys, hope you all made your money because there is no more coming from me.'”
Moreover, the Saved! actor famously sued his parents over his $US17 million (RM43.4 million) earnings in a custody dispute when he was 15 years old. He had their names removed as his legal guardians so they could no longer control his fortune.
Kit, who suffered a stroke four years back, told the press that, “I don’t consider him a son anymore”. The father and son haven’t spoken to each other for about 25 years.
Although there’s no recent news about Macaulay’s mom Patricia Brentrup, we got word that back in the day, she had accused him in court affidavits of unfaithfulness and a violent ‘reign of terror’ in which, she claims, he punched her during two of her pregnancies and on other occasions.
“He punched me in the head and about the body, causing me substantial injury, and dragged me out to the balcony, threatening to push me over the railing. Several of the children witnessed this incident. I suffered two black eyes and substantial bruising.”
On the other hand, Kit Culkin has been labelled by the media as “the father from hell” and dreaded father of the most successful child performer in entertainment history. “He tried to pull a power play. He became outrageous and we had to shut him down.”
Five other Culkin kids became performers – in plays, movies, television commercials – but Macaulay was the one who took off and became an international sensation. His films, Home Alone and its sequel, had grossed $875 million around the world. These two films had elevated Macaulay to a level where he commanded $8 million a picture.
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