Macaulay Culkin Sets Record Straight on Longstanding Rumors About ‘Home Alone’ Movie

Unlike Kevin McCallister, Daniel Stern is happy to stay home alone.The former Wet Bandit recently shared why he won’t be attending any of Home Alone’s 35th anniversary events. After all, Daniel, 68, who played robber Marv in the classic holiday film alongside Joe Peschi‘sHarry, admitted he’s “a bit of a homebody.”

“I don’t leave my farm,” Daniel told People in an interview published Dec. 2. “It’s no offense to the movie. I’m just … a phone call, Zoom call, I’m in.”

Years after starring in the iconic Macaulay Culkinfilms, Daniel left Hollywood and opted for a quiet life on a citrus farm in Ventura County with wife Laure Mattos, with whom he shares kids Henry, 43, Sophie, 39, and Ella Stern, 36. Although Daniel prefers life on his farm over the Sunset Strip, he is well aware of the 1990 movie’s success—but that doesn’t mean he’s used to fan interactions.

“I love knowing that everybody loves it but, like,” he explained, “actual people come at me and say, ‘We love it.’ It’s a little overwhelming sometimes.”

Indeed, the film has become a bona fide hit. And Daniel couldn’t have predicted the massive success of the project, but he did know “it was a gem of a movie” from the start.

“John Hughes wrote the funniest script I’ve ever read. I mean, I was rolling on the floor, laughing reading it,” he reminisced. “It was so funny, but it was also full of heart and you know—the kid and the neighbor saves him and he and the mother reunite … I mean it was so emotional.”

But while he’s largely stayed out of the public eye, Daniel still shares snippets of his life on TikTok, showing off his sculpting skills and giving an honest look at his citrus harvesting duties. Despite his online following, he knows the holiday season—a period he refers to as “Home Alone time”—is the biggest time of year for him.

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“My son said to me: ‘You’re a seasonal superstar,” he told the New York Times in an interview published in December 2024. “‘Every year you come around.’”However, even the online attention can be a little much for the Bushwhacked star.

“I need to take everybody’s love in that way, and it just gets a little overwhelming,” he said. “What a crazy way to walk through life—to be a little part of people’s lives.”Keep reading to see other stars who left the movie capital for a quieter life…