Macaulay Culkin reflected on John Candy’s care and kindness during his difficult childhood.
Candy, who co-starred with Culkin in Uncle Buck, showed a protective instinct toward the young star, offering genuine fatherly energy .
The Home Alone actor spoke about his time working with Candy in filmmaker-actor Colin Hanks' new documentary John Candy: I Like Me, which held its world-premiere on September 4 as the opening film of the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival.
The Richie Rich star now older than Candy was at the time of Uncle Buck, looked back on the positive experience he had playing Candy’s nephew in the movie.
"I think that's why that's one of my favourite performances, because I think he put a lot of himself into it," Culkin says in the documentary.
He added that a lot of actors "don't know how or don't like to work with kids" because they're "tricky to work with," but that "John was always really kind, and really good with" him and his on-screen sister, Gaby Hoffman.
He later added that he felt “parental” energy from Candy, specially while he was dealing with a difficult relation with his real father back at home.
"I think he always had that really great instinct. I think he saw. Listen, even before the wave crested and the Home Alone stuff was happening, it was not hard to see how difficult my father was. It was no secret. He was already a monster," Culkin remembers.
He continued, "I think John was looking a little side-eyed, like, 'Is everything alright over there? You doing good? Good day? Everything's alright? Everything good at home? Alright.'"
Culkin called that attitude a "testament of the kind of a man he was," and that he "was just looking out for" him on set.
The documentary also features interviews with many of Candy's family members (including his wife and children), childhood friends, and many collaborators, including Bill Murray, Tom Hanks, Catherine O'Hara, Dan Aykroyd, Eugene Levy, and Andrea Martin, and even Spaceballs director Mel Brooks.
John Candy: I Like Me debuts October 10 on Amazon Prime Video