Kieran Culkin facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kieran Culkin
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Culkin in 2024
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Kieran Kyle Culkin
September 30, 1982 New York City, U.S.
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| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1988–present |
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Works
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Full list |
| Spouse(s) |
Jazz Charton
(m. 2013) |
| Children | 2 |
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| Awards | Full list |
Kieran Kyle Culkin (born September 30, 1982) is an American actor. Known for portraying distasteful yet sympathetic characters across stage and screen, his accolades include a British Academy Film Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a nomination for an Academy Award.
Culkin began his career as a child in theater productions for the Light Opera of Manhattan. He made his feature film debut alongside his older brother, Macaulay, in the Christmas comedy Home Alone (1990); he later reprised his role in its sequel Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992). Culkin had ranging roles in the Father of the Bride franchise (1991–2020), followed by his first leading role in the coming-of-age drama The Mighty (1998) and appearances in mainstream films such as She's All That and The Cider House Rules (both 1999). He played a sardonic teenager in the comedy-drama Igby Goes Down (2002), which earned him his first Golden Globe Award nomination.
Following his breakthrough, Culkin took a break from the screen due to personal conflicts. He began a collaboration with dramatist Kenneth Lonergan in 2002, starring as multiple characters in the West End and Broadway productions of the play This Is Our Youth. Among his intermittent film roles, Culkin played Wallace Wells in the action comedy Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010). He gained wider recognition for his portrayal of Roman Roy in the HBO drama series Succession (2018–2023), for which he won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. His role as a free-spirited drifter in Jesse Eisenberg's comedy-drama film A Real Pain (2024) earned him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
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Early life and family
Kieran Kyle Culkin was born on September 30, 1982, in the Manhattan borough of New York City. He was the fourth of seven children born to Christopher "Kit" Culkin, a former stage actor, and Patricia Brentrup, a native of North Dakota. His parents met in 1974 while Brentrup was working as a road traffic controller in Sundance, Wyoming. Culkin was raised Catholic, and is of part Irish descent. He has six siblings: Shane (b. 1976), Dakota (1978–2008), Macaulay (b. 1980), Quinn (b. 1984), Christian (b. 1987), and Rory (b. 1989). His paternal half-sister, Jennifer Adamson (1970–2000), was a supervisor at a group home for adults with disabilities. Actress Bonnie Bedelia is his paternal aunt.
For the first nine years of his life, Culkin and his family lived in a railroad apartment in Yorkville and struggled financially. The tenement was "barely suitable for a couple," Culkin explained to Vanity Fair. "It was just a hallway, and there were no separating doors, except for the bathroom, which didn't have a lock. [His parents] raised seven kids in that apartment—for years! They just kept bringing babies home to this little space." Because his father served as a sacristan at the St. Joseph's Church of Yorkville, Culkin attended its Catholic school for free until the third grade. He then studied theater, film and television at the Professional Children's School, but dropped out.
Culkin was "loved unconditionally" by his mother, and considers her to be his only parent. He was neglected by his father throughout his childhood and only remembers him as being a "constant, unwelcome presence" in the household. Brentrup handled all of the children's necessities while balancing night shifts as a telephone operator for a theatrical casting agency. According to the family's longtime talent manager, Emily Gerson Saines, Brentrup maintained "strong family values, like the family having a meal together, the Christmas tree, Thanksgiving. These are all important things to [Brentrup], and she instilled that in her kids." After living together for more than twenty years, Culkin's parents separated in March 1995. Brentrup was awarded sole custody of five of their seven children following a two-year, highly publicized custody battle. Culkin maintained a "great" relationship with his mother, but has been estranged from his father since.
Career
1988–1995: Early work
Culkin was raised as a performer and started acting at the age of two. Some of his earliest memories involve being led by his father's hand into Central Park and posing for headshots. His career began when a neighbor, a stage manager who worked for the repertory theatre Light Opera of Manhattan, heard the company needed some children for a production. The neighbor relayed the message to Culkin's parents, who happily offered their children. Culkin started auditioning for roles with his older siblings when he was six years old. His first professional gig was through a television commercial based on learning disabilities; he was repeatedly berated by the unnamed director in a failed attempt to make him method act.
At age seven, Culkin made his feature film debut as Fuller McCallister, the youngest cousin of the protagonist Kevin McCallister (played by his brother Macaulay) in the Christmas comedy Home Alone (1990). He had "no idea" what the film was about while he was filming; the only notes he received from the filmmakers was, "Drink this Coke, wear the glasses, say the thing you memorized, look cute, and go home." Devin Ratray, who played Buzz McCallister, successfully convinced Culkin to believe that the film was actually about his character. Home Alone was originally met with mixed-to-positive reviews from critics; Culkin's small role was deemed memorable for its Pepsi product placement. It later became the second highest-grossing Christmas film of all time, and was hailed as a Christmas classic.
In 1991, Culkin had minor roles in the romantic comedies Only the Lonely, which received mixed reviews, and Father of the Bride, which earned positive reviews. He was nominated for a Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor Co-Starring in a Motion Picture for his performance in the latter. Culkin reprised his role as Fuller McCallister in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), the poorly received sequel to Home Alone. His later appearances in Nowhere to Run (1993), My Summer Story (1994), and Father of the Bride Part II (1995) also received negative-to-mixed reviews.
1996–2002: Breakthrough with Igby Goes Down
Culkin alternated between lead roles in independent films and small parts in mainstream films as he entered adolescence. In 1996, he starred as a farm boy who overcomes his fear of animals in Bobby Roth's Amanda and was a guest caller on the fourth season of the television sitcom Frasier. He earned a nomination for the Young Artist Award for Best Leading Young Actor in a Feature Film for his performance as a boy suffering from Morquio syndrome in the coming-of-age film The Mighty (1998).
The following year, Culkin appeared in Wes Craven's Music of the Heart, a biographical film about violinist Roberta Guaspari. He also had supporting roles in the teen comedy She's All That, which grossed over $100 million worldwide against a production budget of $7–10 million, and Lasse Hallström's drama The Cider House Rules, which grossed over $88 million worldwide. Culkin returned to the stage in 2000 with James Lapine's off-Broadway play The Moment When.
Culkin starred in his first regular role in a television series with the short-lived NBC sitcom Go Fish (2001). He appeared in two feature directorial debuts the following year: Peter Care's The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys as a mischievous Catholic schoolboy and Burr Steers's Igby Goes Down as the rebellious and sardonic teenager Jason "Igby" Slocumb Jr. Film critic Stephen Holden for The New York Times praised both comedy-dramas, but found Culkin's breakthrough performance in the latter to be "even richer" than the former. For his work on Igby Goes Down, Culkin won the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Young Actor/Actress and was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy.
2003–2017: Screen hiatus and theatre work
Igby Goes Down was the first gig that profoundly impacted Culkin's personal life. He realized in the midst of the film's success that acting had become his career, which was "terrifying" because he was never granted the decision to pursue it. As he needed time to figure out whether he genuinely wanted to be an actor or not, he took a break from the film and television industries and only focused on the acting jobs that interested him the most.
Culkin mostly gravitated towards theatre during his hiatus, starting as a replacement for Jake Gyllenhaal in Kenneth Lonergan's West End production of This Is Our Youth (2002–2003) at the Garrick Theatre. The "dream play" was the second gig that deeply affected Culkin, as he spent eight years convincing Lonergan to let him play the co-lead role of Warren Straub. For Gina Gionfriddo's After Ashley (2005) at the Vineyard Theatre, he played a young man dealing with his complex relationships with his parents. The role won him an Obie Award for Distinguished Performance. In 2006, Culkin starred in Eric Bogosian's off-Broadway revival of SubUrbia, and made his on-Broadway debut by appearing in Julia Cho's one-act play First Tree in Antarctica. He reunited with Lonergan for The Starry Messenger (2009) at the Acorn Theatre. Culkin headlined multiple revival runs of This Is Our Youth as Dennis Ziegler for the Sydney Opera House, the Steppenwolf Theatre Company, and the Cort Theatre.
Culkin made his intermittent return to the screen with Derick Martini's Lymelife (2008), a teen comedy film executive produced by Martin Scorsese. His next release was Kieran and Michele Mulroney's comedy-drama Paper Man (2009), which disappointed critics. In Edgar Wright's action comedy Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010), Culkin portrayed the titular character's "cool gay roommate" Wallace Wells. He was frequently described as one of the film's scene stealers amidst its positive critical reception. Culkin played a small role in Lonergan's psychological drama Margaret (2011), before starring in the critically panned comedies Movie 43 (2013) and Quitters (2015). On television, he had a guest role in the second season of the crime drama series Fargo (2015). The following year, he starred in the ensemble cast of Todd Solondz's anthology film Wiener-Dog (2016). Culkin recalled feeling comfortable with acting while he was filming the science fiction comedy Infinity Baby (2017), and began settling into it being something he would do for a living.
2018–present: Succession and A Real Pain
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From 2018 to 2023, Culkin received renewed recognition from mainstream audiences for his lead role as Roman Roy, the immature and irresponsible media executive, in the HBO black comedy-drama series Succession. He credits the series for solidifying his desire to be an actor. Culkin's performance, especially in the final season, earned critical acclaim and numerous accolades, including the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Television Series – Drama, two Critics' Choice Television Awards, and two Screen Actors Guild Awards.
Set during the COVID-19 pandemic, Culkin reunited with the Father of the Bride cast for its legacy-sequel short film (2020). He played a supporting role in Steven Soderbergh's crime thriller No Sudden Move (2021), and hosted the November 6, 2021 episode of the variety series Saturday Night Live; marking thirty years since his brother Macaulay anchored. In 2022, Culkin narrated the documentary miniseries Gaming Wall Street and joined the adult animated sitcom Solar Opposites as a main character. He returned to his role as Wallace Wells for the anime series Scott Pilgrim Takes Off (2023).
The 2024 Sundance Film Festival marked the release of Jesse Eisenberg's comedy-drama film A Real Pain, Culkin's first major project post-Succession. He played Benjamin "Benji" Kaplan, a free-spirited and mentally ill drifter who travels to Poland with his cousin David (played by Eisenberg) to honor their late grandmother and connect with their Polish-Jewish heritage. Culkin's performance was highly praised by critics. Owen Gleiberman of Variety called it a "sensational piece of acting," while The Washington Post's Ty Burr found it "both liberating and touched by a deeper, more inarticulate sadness." Culkin earned several accolades for his work, including the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role and the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture, and nominations for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role.
Culkin will next return to the stage as Richard Roma in Patrick Marber's Broadway revival of Glengarry Glen Ross, opposite Bob Odenkirk and Bill Burr.
Personal life
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Culkin has a complicated relationship with celebrity culture, having been exposed to his brother Macaulay's fame at a young age. He mistrusted mainstream media outlets following the release of Home Alone because of how the press treated his family. During his parent's separation and subsequent custody battle in 1995, a 13-year-old Culkin delivered a handwritten note to the New York Supreme Court requesting to bar the media from entering the courtroom. His plea to "spare [his] family from any further embarrassment" was denied by a judge. To this day, Culkin refuses to speak to Access Hollywood and the New York Post due to their respective coverage of his family.
In 2005, Culkin briefly dated his After Ashley co-star Anna Paquin. He was in a relationship with his Paper Man co-star Emma Stone from 2009 to 2011. They remained good friends following their split and continued to work together on Movie 43 and A Real Pain. In 2012, Culkin met British advertising specialist Jazz Charton. They eloped on June 22, 2013, during a cross-country road trip in Iowa. The couple have two children together: a daughter born in September 2019, and a son born in August 2021. Culkin's Succession co-star Sarah Snook is the godmother to their son. As of 2023, the family resides in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.
Two of Culkin's biggest hobbies are playing retro video games and watching professional wrestling. His She's All That co-star Freddie Prinze Jr. described him as an "encyclopedia" in the latter. Culkin has attended an estimated ten editions of WrestleMania, the annual flagship event held by WWE.
Acting credits and awards
According to the review-aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, Culkin's most critically acclaimed films include The Mighty (1998), The Cider House Rules (1999), The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys (2002), Igby Goes Down (2002), Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010), Weiner-Dog (2016), Infinity Baby (2017), No Sudden Move (2021), and A Real Pain (2024).
Culkin won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Television Series – Drama for his role in Succession. His performance in A Real Pain earned him the BAFTA and Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor, and made him the third actor after Jack Nicholson and Willem Dafoe to sweep the "Big Four" critics awards in a supporting performance category (LA, NBR, NY, NSFC).
See also
In Spanish: Kieran Culkin para niños
