The cast of ‘Home Alone,’ then and now

Macaulay Culkin (Kevin McCallister)

Macaulay Culkin became a household name with the release of Home Alone. The child star, who had previously made TV appearances and had a supporting part in 1989’s Uncle Buck, nabbed the starring role in the movie playing Kevin McCallister, a young boy who is accidentally left home alone by his family and faces the ensuing shenanigans of his solo time.

Culkin had a busy few years after the comedy hit theaters, continuing his big-screen career in 1991’s My Girl, 1992’s follow-up Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, and 1994’s Richie Rich. After a bit of a hiatus in the late-’90s and early-2000s, Culkin returned to acting with appearances in 2004’s Saved!, on NBC’s Kings, and doing voice work for Adult Swim’s Robot Chicken.

While Culkin turned his focus to music from 2013 to 2018 — fronting the pizza-themed Velvet Underground tribute band, the Pizza Underground — he also played fan-favorite Mickey in season 10 of American Horror Story and Lacerta Legate in the second season of Amazon Prime Video’s Fallout.

Culkin has two children with his partner, actress Brenda Song. He admitted in December 2024 that he sees Home Alone differently now that he has kids. „I watch it through a different lens — I watch it with them,“ Culkin told a crowd at an Illinois screening of the film. „And they have no idea who they’re sitting next to.“

Joe Pesci (Harry Lime)

Already a huge star, Joe Pesci made a hilarious turn in Home Alone as the burglar Harry Lime. His character worked with Marv (Daniel Stern) and faced off against Kevin as they attempted to rob the McCallister house. Just months before the comedy’s release, Pesci starred as another criminal: mobster Tommy DeVito in Goodfellas — a part that earned him an Academy Award in 1991 for Best Actor in a Supporting Role.

After appearing in 1992’s My Cousin Vinny, Pesci returned to the role of Harry for 1992’s Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. „It was a nice change of pace to do that particular type of slapstick comedy,“ Pesci told PEOPLE in November 2022. „But the Home Alone movies were a more physical type of comedy, therefore, a little more demanding.“

He went on to fill his résumé with parts in 1995’s Casino, 1997’s Gone Fishin’, and 1998’s Lethal Weapon 4, before largely retiring from Hollywood in 1999.

He popped back up briefly in 2010’s Love Ranch alongside Helen Mirren and Bryan Cranston, but it was his Goodfellas director, Martin Scorsese, who was able to get Pesci to come out of retirement for 2019’s The Irishman, for which he received an Oscar nomination. In 2023, Pesci played a fictionalized version of Pete Davidson’s grandfather on the Peacock comedy series Bupkis.

Pesci has a daughter with ex-wife Claudia Haro.

Daniel Stern (Marv Murchins)

Daniel Stern joined the flick as Harry’s cohort, Marv Murchins. One half of the Wet Bandits burglary team, Stern picked up the gig after a decade in the industry. His previous film credits included 1982’s Diner, 1986’s Hannah and Her Sisters, and 1988’s D.O.A.

„There’s so much heart in it. It’s so funny,“ Stern told Entertainment Tonight in December 2024, of why he thinks Home Alone continues to hold up. „I think we’re really funny…and it’s got a great holiday, Christmassy feel to it. But I think the thing that really stands out is the kid getting us. Everybody wants that kid to win. It’s a kid-empowerment movie.“

Stern reunited with his costars in the 1992 sequel in the midst of another major role. The actor served as the narrator for The Wonder Years from 1988 to 1993, voicing the adult counterpart to Fred Savage’s Kevin Arnold. He’s made appearances in 2009’s Whip It and episodes of Workaholics and Getting On, and picked up regular roles on WGN’s Manhattan and the Hulu series Shrill. Stern then joined the Apple TV+ drama For All Mankind in its fourth season.

Stern has been married to his wife, Laure Mattos, since 1980. They have three children together, including Henry Stern, a California State Senator.

In January 2026, Stern was charged with soliciting prostitution stemming from an alleged incident on Dec. 10 in Camarillo, Calif.

Catherine O’Hara (Kate McCallister)

Catherine O’Hara played Kate McCallister, the mother who tries to get home to Kevin once they realize he’s all alone.

Before landing the part, O’Hara was best known for the sketch series Second City Television (SCTV) and her movie roles in 1986’s Heartburn, 1988’s Beetlejuice (the first of multiple collaborations with Tim Burton), and 1990’s Dick Tracy.

Much of O’Hara’s career was ahead of her when Home Alone hit theaters. She went on to voice Sally in The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), and collaborate with director Christopher Guest in films like Waiting for Guffman (1996) and Best in Show (2000). She earned her first acting Emmy nomination for her supporting turn in the HBO original movie Temple Grandin in 2010.

After reuniting with Burton for 2012’s Frankenweenie, O’Hara landed a plum role on Schitt’s Creek from 2015 to 2020, and went on to win the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 2020 for playing Moira Rose. She went on to reprise her role as Delia Deetz in 2024’s Beetlejuice Beetlejuice and nabbed key parts on two of 2025’s buzziest shows, The Last of Us and The Studio.

The actress spoke at Macaulay Culkin’s Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony in December 2023, stating, „I know you worked really hard, but you made acting look like the most natural thing in the world to do.“

O’Hara died at age 71 on Friday, Jan. 30, her manager confirmed to PEOPLE. No cause of death was provided. She is survived by her husband, Bo Welch, and their two sons.

John Heard (Peter McCallister)

John Heard appeared in Home Alone as Peter McCallister, the father to Culkin’s Kevin. He played the forgetful patriarch after hitting the big screen in 1980’s Heart Beat, 1981’s Cutter’s Way, 1985’s Heaven Help Us, and 1988’s Big.

In addition to his role in Home Alone 2, Heard made appearances in Awakenings (1990), The Pelican Brief (1993), Before and After (1996), and Snake Eyes (1998). Heard expanded his résumé with guest appearances on series such as CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Modern Family, Person of Interest, Elementary, and MacGyver.

Heard died in 2017 at the age of 71. He is survived by three children.

Kieran Culkin (Fuller McCallister)

Macaulay Culkin’s brother, Kieran Culkin, picked up a small role in Home Alone playing Fuller McCallister, the dorky younger cousin to Kevin. The part earned Kieran his first feature film credit.

„I had no idea what that movie was about when I saw it, and I was in it,“ Kieran said in a December 2024 interview with the Los Angeles Times. „I was at the premiere, and I was dying laughing. It was the funniest thing I had ever seen. I had no idea what the movie was about.“

Much like his brother, Kieran was busy throughout the ’90s before taking a bit of time off in the mid-’00s. He made a name for himself outside of his older sibling’s shadow with roles in Father of the Bride (1991), She’s All That (1999), The Cider House Rules (1999), The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys (2002), Igby Goes Down (2002), and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010).

Kieran’s career hit a royal flush when he was cast as Roman Roy on HBO’s Succession in 2018, a role that earned him an Emmy, a Golden Globe, and two Critics ‘Choice awards. But Kieran’s awards streak didn’t stop after Succession ended in 2023. The very next year, he costarred with Jesse Eisenberg in the indie dramedy A Real Pain and swept awards season for his acclaimed performance as Benji, winning Best Supporting Actor at the Golden Globes, Critics Choice, BAFTA, the SAG Awards, and finally, the Oscars.

The actor is set to have a splashy role as Caesar Flickerman in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, which is set for release in November 2026.

Kieran Culkin has been married to his wife, Jazz Charton, since 2013. They have two children.

Roberts Blossom („Old Man“ Marley)

An industry veteran, Roberts Blossom played the McCallister family’s neighbor „Old Man“ Marley in Home Alone. A surprising ally to Kevin, the character followed decades of roles for Blossom. His pre-1990 credits include Slaughterhouse-Five (1972), The Great Gatsby (1974), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), and Escape From Alcatraz (1979).

Blossom continued to act for a few years after Home Alone, appearing in 1991’s Doc Hollywood and Death Falls, and hitting the small screen with roles on Northern Exposure and Chicago Hope in the ’90s.

The star died at the age of 87 in 2011 after suffering a stroke. He had two children with his ex-wives.

Devin Ratray (Buzz McCallister)

Devin Ratray made one of his most famous appearances as Buzz McCallister in Home Alone. The actor played the bullying older brother to Kevin, coming into the gig after roles in 1989’s Little Monsters and on the CBS series Heartland.

Ratray slowly but surely built up his filmography in the decades since, reuniting with the cast in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York before appearing in 1993’s Dennis the Menace. In 2004, he acted alongside Julia Stiles in The Prince and Me, and returned to the big screen with Nebraska (2013), R.I.P.D. (2013), Hustlers (2019), and Kimi (2022).

From 2017 to 2018, Ratray had a role in Steven Soderbergh’s HBO miniseries Mosaic, and has racked up appearances in shows like The Good Fight, Chicago Med, Russian Doll, The Tick, and At Home With Amy Sedaris. He reprised his role as Buzz in the 2021 Home Alone reboot Home Sweet Home Alone.

In 2021, Ratray was accused of attempting to strangle his girlfriend. He pleaded guilty to one count of domestic assault and battery by strangulation and a second count of domestic assault and battery in February 2024. He was also accused of rape by a former friend in 2022.

Michael C. Maronna (Jeff McCallister)

Michael C. Maronna earned his first acting credit as Home Alone‘s Jeff McCallister. The child star, who played Kevin’s older brother, picked up his second for 1992’s Home Alone 2.

The same year he starred in the Home Alone sequel, Maronna arrived at Nickelodeon on The Adventures of Pete & Pete. He spent the following years booking small roles on Law & Order, Gilmore Girls, and in 40 Days and 40 Nights (2002), before turning to behind-the-scenes opportunities.

Maronna has worked as a rigging electrician for dozens of major projects including the Sex and the City movie (2008), The Normal Heart (2014), and the Reese Witherspoon-starring rom-com Your Place or Mine (2023), as well as on shows like Marvel’s Luke Cage, Marvel’s Iron Fist, The Plot Against America, Dickinson, and Fleishman Is in Trouble — among many other titles.

Maronna hosts the podcast The Adventures of Danny and Mike with his Pete & Pete costar Danny Tamberelli. He returned to acting in 2024 with a small role in the acclaimed horror drama I Saw the TV Glow.

Hillary Wolf (Megan McCallister)

Hillary Wolf had a role in Home Alone as McCallister daughter Megan. She picked up the gig as Kevin’s older sister after making cameos on American Playhouse, Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color, and I’ll Take Manhattan in the ’80s.

After Home Alone, Wolf starred in Big Girls Don’t Cry… They Get Even (1991) before making her final big-screen appearance in Home Alone 2. She kept busy, however, pursuing an illustrious career in martial arts. The former child star went to the 1996 and 2000 Olympics for judo.

Wolf married her husband, Chris Saba, in 2002. They have two children and own a wrestling club in Colorado.

Angela Goethals (Linnie McCallister)

Angela Goethals appeared in Home Alone as Kevin’s older sister Linnie McCallister. She played one of the family’s many children after booking roles in 1988’s Rocket Gibraltar and Heartbreak Hotel.

Goethals followed up the comedy with a mid-’90s turn on ABC’s Phenom and a role in 1996’s Jerry Maguire. She went on to appear on Six Feet Under, Without a Trace, 24, and Grey’s Anatomy in the mid-2000s. Following parts on Law & Order and Royal Pains in 2010, she’s been mostly seen at the theater, although fans were able to catch her performance in Long Day’s Journey Into Night online via BroadwayHD in 2017.

In 2020, Goethals appeared on Stars in the House to reprise her role as Miranda Bigelow from the 1987 Tony-nominated play Coastal Disturbances alongside her costar Annette Bening in a reading benefitting the Actors Fund.

Gerry Bamman (Uncle Frank)

Gerry Bamman played Uncle Frank to Macaulay Culkin’s Kevin. The actor took on the role of the wily older relative after racking up TV gigs, including American Playhouse (1984), Crime Story (1987), and The Equalizer (1987).

Bamman revisited the role of Uncle Frank for Home Alone 2, continuing his film career in The Bodyguard (1992), Lorenzo’s Oil (1992), Great Expectations (1998), Superstar (1999), and Runaway Jury (2003). He picked up some TV work, including a 2014 episode of The Good Wife and a 2015 turn on The Following, before committing mostly to theater work, as he appeared in the Off-Broadway play Imaging Madoff about disgraced financier Bernie Madoff in 2019.

He returned to onscreen acting in 2025 for an episode of the Netflix crime drama The Waterfront.

Bamman has a son with his ex-wife, director Emily Mann.

John Candy (Gus Polinski)

Already a huge force in the comedy world, John Candy nabbed a small role as Gus Polinski in Home Alone. He played a fellow traveler to Kate McCallister, picking up the gig after spending years in the ’70s on The David Steinberg Show and SCTV, and arriving on the big screen in the ’80s in The Blues Brothers, National Lampoon’s Vacation, Spaceballs, Planes, Trains & Automobiles, and Uncle Buck.

Candy continued to act after Home Alone, appearing in Only the Lonely (1991), JFK (1991), Once Upon a Crime… (1992), and Cool Runnings (1993). The beloved star made one of his final appearances in 1994’s Wagons East before he died that same year at the age of 43. He is survived by his wife, Rosemary Hobor, and their two children.