Aurora Starchild
The Culkin family name is unmistakable: There is Macaulay Culkin, the famous child actor from Home Alone. But he’s only one of seven children of Broadway actor Kit Culkin and his long-time former partner Patricia Brentrup. These days, you’re sure to have come across some of the brood’s other famous members. Here’s the lowdown on the Culkin siblings and who is the most famous today.
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Broadway Actor Kit Culkin Had 8 Children
Kit Culkin was a New York City native and former Broadway actor, trained in song and dance at an early age. He performed on stage alongside Hollywood greats such as Richard Burton and Laurence Olivier. In the film, he took on two minor roles in West Side Story (1961) and Hamlet (1964). Kit and his siblings (sisters Bonnie Bedelia and Candice, and brother Terry) were all involved in the performing arts at a young age and their mother, Marian, managed them.
Kit Culkin’s career was eventually put on the back burner after he fathered numerous children who found early stardom. He had one child, daughter Jennifer Adamson, with Adeena VanWagoner, in 1970. In 1974, Culkin began a long-term romantic partnership with Patricia Brentrup. Although the two never married, together they welcomed seven children between 1976 and 1989.
The Culkin Children Were Managed by Their Parents
Kit Culkin and Patricia Brentrup became famous by default as they managed their children’s Hollywood careers. Despite the income brought in by their kids, the couple lived frugally — in a one-bedroom apartment that was made for two, not nine people.
Culkin and Brentrup officially split in 1995. Because they weren’t married, they had a lengthy and complicated custody battle over all of their children. One hotly contested subject was their son Macaulay Culkin’s trust, which was worth between about $15 and $20 million at the time. Macaulay eventually sued and cut both of his parents out of his trust when he was 15 so they could stop arguing. Allegedly, Kit was often absent from his family’s lives, and Patricia formed a closer bond with the children as she stayed and raised them.
Jennifer Adamson: The Culkins’ Half-Sister
Tragedy struck twice for Kit Culkin, specifically with two of his three daughters. His eldest daughter and his other children’s half-sister, Jennifer, died of a drug overdose in 2000 at the age of 29.
Dakota Culkin
Kit’s next oldest daughter, Dakota Culkin, died after she was struck by a car in Los Angeles in 2008 — also at the age of 29. While Jennifer had never met her famous half-siblings, Dakota was very close with her brothers. Macaulay later named one of his children after his late sister.
Shane Culkin
Shane is the eldest son of the Culkin clan. Born in 1976, he dabbled in acting at a young age but eventually veered clear of the spotlight. He is known for his role as Wally Webb in Our Town, a Broadway production produced at the Lincoln Center Theater in New York City in 1988. The production was later included in a film released as Great Performances in 1989. Nothing else is known about Shane, but his IMDb biography does mention who he was named after. Shane was a 1953 film and a favorite of his father, Kit. His middle name, Arliss, was the character in Old Yeller (1957).
Macaulay Culkin Was the 1st Child to Make $1 Million From a Film
Macaulay Culkin was born in 1980 and quickly became a world-renowned child actor. His earliest introduction to acting included on stage and in film, with his first film appearance uncredited in The Midnight Hour (1985). His big breakthrough role was as Kevin in Home Alone in 1990. The next year, he starred as Thomas in the cult classic My Girl. In 1994, Macaulay played the titular character in Richie Rich. He was the first child actor to ever receive a $1 million paycheck (for My Girl). While he likely could have retired from the royalties of those three films alone, Macaulay has continued to actively work in Hollywood, on and off camera.
He’s appeared in American Horror Story, The Jim Gaffigan Show, and most recently voiced Downtown Pat in Entergalactic. Other notable roles include as Henry in The Good Son and as the Kid in Michael Jackson’s “Black or White” music video.
Macaulay Was Close with Michael Jackson and His Kids
Macaulay formed a close friendship with Michael Jackson over the years and defended him against claims of sex abuse. Macaulay is also Michael Jackson’s children’s Godfather. That’s right, Macaulay is the Godfather to Paris, Michael Jr, and Prince, and he allegedly shares a matching tattoo with Paris.
Macaulay was in a couple of high-profile relationships when he was younger. At the age of 18, he married actress Rachel Miner. They separated in 2000 and divorced in 2002. From 2002 to 2011, Culkin dated actress Mila Kunis. In 2018, the actor revealed on the Anna Faris Is Unqualified podcast that he was dating his Changeland co-star Brenda Song. Three years later, the couple welcomed their son, Dakota (named after Macaulay’s late sister). They are currently engaged and welcomed their second son, Carson, around Christmas of 2022.
These days, the Golden Globe-nominated actor also works as a producer and director. He has a forthcoming film as an executive producer called Macaulay Culkin’s Midlife Crisis. He also served as an assistant producer on Adam Green’s Aladdin. His net worth is estimated to be about $18 million today.
Kieran Culkin
Kieran Culkin’s superstardom didn’t come on the same trajectory as his older brother, but he’s certainly making a name for himself these days. Born in 1982, Kieran is only slightly younger than Macaulay. He also played the supporting role of Fuller in Home Alone and Home Alone 2 alongside his famous brother. Kieran played Matty Banks in Father of the Bride 1 and 2 (and later 3) and had an impressive acting resume by the time he was a teenager.
Over the years, Kieran has continued to work in film and TV, many projects which are notable. He was in The Cider House Rules, Igby Goes Down, Scott Pilgrim vs the World, and Saturday Night Live. He’s currently on everyone’s radar as Roman Roy in the TV series Succession. Kieran has been married to his wife Jazz Charton for nearly a decade. The couple has two children: daughter Kinsey Sioux and a son. Kieran reportedly makes about $350,000 per episode these days and has an estimated net worth of $5 million.
Quinn Culkin
Quinn Culkin is the only living Culkin daughter. She was born in 1984 and, according to her IMDb biography, expressed an early interest in acting. However, she then decided to pursue different interests. Quinn was named after Kit’s friend Anthony Quinn and because she is the fifth child.
Quinn played Macaulay’s sister in The Good Son and also appeared in Home Alone. In 1991, she played the voice of Katie McClary in the animated series Wish Kid. These days, Quinn stays out of the spotlight. While not much is known about her, she did tell Vanity Fair that she gets judged a lot as Macaulay’s sister.
“I’ve even been called ‘MacCulkin,’ like I’m a collection of Culkins,” she said. “As much as we may look alike, we’re all very different. Mac has his way that he carries himself, and Kieran, and Rory. You see it even in the way they stand. It’s very telling of who they are individually.”
Christian Culkin
Christian Culkin was born in 1987. Like most of his family, he had early experience in film. He appeared in My Summer Story in 1994 but decided not to pursue acting. In 2009, he graduated with a B.A. in Creative and Professional Writing from Manhattanville College. In 2015, Christian graduated with a Master of Fine Arts in Film from Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema. His LinkedIn profile states that he works as a contributing writer at Waverly Press.
Rory Culkin
Rory Culkin was born in 1989. The youngest of his siblings, Rory is currently very involved in Hollywood. His first film credits were in The Good Son and Richie Rich (in the latter, he played a younger version of Richie Rich). He played a 10-year-old Igby in Igby Goes Down and has appeared in films such as Mean Creek, Scream 4, and Lord of Chaos. Rory has an extensive TV acting resume which includes Black Mirror, Swarm, Outliers, Castle Rock, The Twilight Zone, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and Waco. His appearance in Swarm involved a full-frontal nude scene, which has been a hot topic in the world of celebrity gossip in past weeks.
Despite his fame — both inherited and self-made— Rory himself has managed to maintain a relatively low profile. He married cinematographer Sarah Scrivener in 2018. He has a net worth of about $2.5 million today.
As far as fame goes, it seems that Macaulay’s is hard to surpass. However, his brothers Kieran and Rory are probably in a close tie for second and third on the fame spectrum. Everyone else seems to prefer to stay out of the spotlight, and that’s okay, too!
