Macaulay Culkin is reportedly in talks with Disney to return as Kevin McCallister in a new Home Alone movie, marking his first appearance in the franchise in more than 30 years. Entertainment journalist Matt Belloni revealed on his podcast The Town that Culkin was recently spotted on the Disney lot and has been sharing a fresh concept for reviving the beloved series.
“Disney is, like, salivating,” Belloni said, noting the studio is actively courting Culkin and even offered to produce a separate passion project if he agrees to the Home Alone reboot. Belloni added that he’s spoken to people who have heard Culkin’s pitch, calling it a “really good idea for a Home Alone reboot”.
The concept reportedly flips the original premise on its head. Culkin previously shared his idea during the franchise’s 35th anniversary tour: a grown-up Kevin is now a single father, either widowed or divorced, who is so consumed by work that his son becomes resentful. The son then locks him out of the house and sets elaborate traps to keep him from getting back inside.
“The house is some sort of metaphor for our relationship,” Culkin said, describing the plot as a journey where Kevin must “get let back into his son’s heart”. The pitch transforms Kevin from the trap-setter into the one navigating a booby-trapped home, inverting the dynamic of the original films.
Culkin became a global sensation as Kevin McCallister in Home Alone (1990) and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), but he did not appear in any of the franchise’s subsequent installments. More recent attempts to revive the series, including 2021’s Home Sweet Home Alone on Disney+, received largely negative reviews.
No official announcement has been made by Disney, and the project has yet to be confirmed. Director Chris Columbus, who helmed the first two films, has expressed skepticism about revisiting the franchise, saying the original captured a “very special moment” that should be “left alone”. However, with Disney reportedly eager to move forward, Culkin’s return appears more likely than ever.
