Trump Remembers His Home Alone 2 Cameo Differently Than Director
"Home Alone 2: Lost in New York," released in 1992, capitalized on the wild success of the first "Home Alone" movie, which came out in 1990. Both movies are among the highest-grossing holiday films ever, and watching them has become a beloved holiday tradition for many families. Fans of the films know that Donald Trump has a cameo in "Home Alone 2," and Trump recently posted to Truth Social about his memories of the movie and how he came to be in it: "30 years ago (how time flies!), Director Chris Columbus, and others, were begging me to make a cameo appearance in Home Alone 2. They rented the Plaza Hotel in New York, which I owned at the time. 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!"
This wasn't just a trip down memory lane for Trump; it seems to have been posted specifically in response to a resurfaced interview with Columbus talking about the "Home Alone" movies, and the two men's recollections seem significantly different. Trump said he was begged to do it, while Columbus told Business Insider that Trump "bull[ied] his way into the movie."
Donald Trump required cameos from filmmakers using his buildings
Chris Columbus, director of "Home Alone" and "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York," explained why Donald Trump was in the movie at all. It was because they wanted to include a shot of Kevin McCallister, played by Macaulay Culkin, in The Plaza Hotel. The director revealed that Trump told him, "The only way you can use the Plaza is if I'm in the movie." When the movie was first screened, the audience loved Trump's brief appearance, Columbus told Business Insider. He ultimately decided, "Leave him in the movie. It's a moment for the audience."
Columbus's take on Trump's behavior around the cameo is supported by actor Matt Damon. Damon told The Hollywood Reporter about Trump's reputation in the movie industry, "If you wanted to shoot in one of his buildings, you had to write him in a part. ... You waste a little time so that you can get the permit, and then you can cut the scene out. But I guess in 'Home Alone 2," they left it in.' Who knows how many Trump cameos hit the cutting room floor?
Donald Trump credits his appearance with the movie's success
Donald Trump went on in his Truth Social post to take credit for the enduring popularity of "Home Alone 2," and he denied forcing his way in: "That cameo helped make the movie a success, but if they felt bullied, or didn't want me, why did they put me in, and keep me there, for over 30 years? Because I was, and still am, great for the movie, that's why!"
Trump's "Home Alone 2" cameo has been cropping up in the news every couple of years recently. In 2019, a Canadian broadcast of the movie on CBC cut the scene entirely, and Trump noticed. He tweeted, "I guess Justin T[rudeau] doesn't much like my making him pay up on NATO or Trade!" It also caught the attention of Donald Trump Jr., who posted about it, calling it "pathetic." A representative for CBC stated that the cut wasn't politically motivated but a TV edit first made in 2014.
It came up again in 2021, when Macaulay Culkin wrote "sold" in response to a tweet that read, "petition to digitally replace trump in 'home alone 2' with 40-year-old macaulay culkin." Some fans went ahead and made their own edits to the scene, including replacing Trump with Obama and cutting Trump out entirely. We look forward to seeing if Trump's "Home Alone 2" cameo comes up in the news in 2025.