‘Home Alone’ Director Chris Columbus Admits Some Sequels Were ‘Really Bad’

Chris Columbus has made it clear that he is not a fan of how the Home Alone franchise has continued over the years. The director, who worked on the first two films, says the later movies failed to live up to the original.

Columbus spoke about the series while reflecting on the 35th anniversary of the 1990 holiday classic during a conversation with Macaulay Culkin for The Hollywood Reporter. Looking back, the director did not hide his frustration with the sequels that came after his involvement.

“Sorry to insult anybody, but they’ve completely f**** it up,” Columbus said. “It started with Home Alone 3, and then it just went downhill from there; Home Alone 3 is sort of the best of the bunch of the bad movies.”

After Home Alone and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, the franchise continued without Columbus or Culkin. Several follow-up films were released over the years, including Home Alone 3, Home Alone 4, The Holiday Heist, and most recently Home Sweet Home Alone in 2021.

This is not the first time Columbus has shared his opinion. Earlier this year, he told Entertainment Tonight that trying to bring the story back was a mistake. “I think it’s a mistake to try to go back and recapture something we did 35 years ago. I think it should be left alone,” he said.

Culkin, who played Kevin McCallister in the first two films, seemed more open to the idea of returning. He shared a possible storyline where Kevin is older and dealing with family problems. “I like the idea that maybe Kevin’s older,” Culkin said, explaining a version where Kevin ends up on the other side of the traps. He added that it could turn into a story about reconnecting with his child.

Despite hearing many ideas over the years, Columbus remains doubtful. He said the movie would only work if the original cast came back. That includes Joe Pesci and Dan Stern, who played the burglars. Columbus questioned whether that would ever happen due to their ages.

“The problem is when you’re doing a film like this, a lot of it is really based on cast,” he said. “I don’t think you can duplicate that.”

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