Donald Trump Fires Back At Claims He Bullied His Way Into Home Alone 2
Donald Trump is in the holiday spirit. No, we don't mean his Christmas Day Truth Social post that implored his critics to "rot in Hell." Nor are we talking about the limited-edition wrapping paper emblazoned with Trump's mugshot, available in exchange for at least $47 in campaign donations. Instead, the former president is looking back fondly at his cameo appearance in the Christmas classic "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York."
Well, "looking back fondly" might be, to use the parlance, an alternative fact. In a lengthy post on Truth Social, Trump went after director Chris Columbus for claiming that Trump had "bullied" his way into the 1992 film. "30 years ago (how time flies!), Director Chris Columbus, and others, were begging me to make a cameo appearance in Home Alone 2," Trump wrote. "I was very busy, and didn't want to do it. They were very nice, but above all, persistent. I agreed, and the rest is history!"
The former "The Apprentice" host gave himself a pat on the back for "[making] the movie a success," thanks to his 10-odd seconds of screen time. He also accused Columbus of using a fake name — an accusation he had previously leveled against special prosecutor Jack Smith. "If they felt bullied, or didn't want me, why did they put me in, and keep me there, for over 30 years?" Trump continued, addressing comments Columbus made about him in 2020.
The cameo has incited plenty of controversy
For the 30th anniversary of "Home Alone" in 2020, Chris Columbus revealed some behind-the-scenes stories to Business Insider. According to the director, the Donald Trump cameo in the sequel came about because the film was shot at The Plaza Hotel, then a Trump property. In the movie, Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) runs into Trump in the hotel and asks for directions.
"Trump said OK," said Columbus, adding that the real estate mogul had one stipulation. "He also said, 'The only way you can use the Plaza is if I'm in the movie.' So we agreed to put him in the movie, and when we screened it for the first time the oddest thing happened: People cheered when Trump showed up on-screen. So I said to my editor, 'Leave him in the movie. It's a moment for the audience.' But he did bully his way into the movie."
For whatever reason, Trump waited three years to make his online retort. But the scene has been a subject of controversy for a few years. In 2019, Trump caught wind of the fact that a Canadian broadcast had edited out his cameo. Trump blamed Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for the "Home Alone" snub, claiming it had to do with geopolitical disputes. The broadcasting company, meanwhile, confirmed that the edits had been made in 2014 to save time. The cameo came up again in 2021 when, after the January 6 insurrection, someone suggested digitally replacing Trump with an adult Macaulay Culkin. The actor replied on X (formerly known as Twitter,) "Sold."