5 Fascinating Things You Didn't Know About Home Alone 2: Lost In New York

In 1992, Chris Columbus returned with screenwriter John Hughes to follow up the 1990 holiday hit Home Alone with its equally beloved sequel, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, a 90s yuletide classic that's engrossed audiences over the Christmas season for over 30 years and counting.

Indeed, fashioning a sequel of such renowned quality was no easy feat; taking Kevin McCallister from the suburbs of Chicago to the streets of Manhattan was a cinematic gamble, and one that risked treading into absurdist, over-the-top waters (of which, the film's brick-chucking sequence most certainly fits into, but that's neither here nor there).

The fact of the matter is, Hughes, Columbus, and Culkin all worked tirelessly to pull off a rare feat in the arena of Hollywood—creating a sequel many argue is superior to the original, despite both films covering similar tropes and beats.

While the rest of the Home Alone sequels can't quite say the same (according to both Macaulay Culkin and Chris Columbus), for those of us who aren't quite ready to leave behind the holiday season just yet, a glimpse into five fascinating things about Home Alone 2: Lost in New York is just what's needed.

5 POTUS Reportedly Let Filmmakers Use The Plaza Hotel In Exchange For A Cameo

One of the most famous sequences in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York comes when Kevin (Macaulay Culkin) enters the Plaza Hotel for the first time, a dazzling building brimming with glamor and festivities; here, as Kevin walks the decadent halls of the hotel, who else but Donald Trump points him toward the direction of the lobby in a brief, blink-and-you-miss-it cameo.

According to director Chris Columbus, however, filming a scene with Trump was a non-negotiable condition for shooting in the historic Midtown hotel, as the New York businessman was the then-owner of the building and seemingly insistent on making an appearance in the picture.

In the years since, Columbus has expressed his regret over including Trump in the final picture, describing how he initially planned to cut the scene but left it in after performing well with test-screen audiences. Despite this, however, the scene remains today, as it did in the 90s, a glimpse of the zeitgeist surrounding Manhattan's elite, with Trump and the Plaza as mere parts embedded in a greater tableau of luxury.

4 Joe Pesci Suffered Serious Burns On The Set

One of the most memorable scenes in the first Home Alone is the iconic blow torch gag that sets Harry's (Joe Pesci) head alight, burning a hole through his cap and forcing him to jump headfirst into the Chicago snow to extinguish the flames. Thus, when it came time for the sequel, Hughes and Columbus wanted to usurp the gag with a bit that went dangerously too far.

In Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, Harry's head is once again set alight in a series of inflaming dominoes that leads the gold-capped crook to handstand into a toilet that Kevin's filled with kerosene, causing a massive explosion that leaves the thief blackened with soot while sporting a singed, painfully red scalp.

While Harry walks away from this event mostly unharmed thanks to the film's PG rating, Joe Pesci reported sustaining serious burns to the crown of his head from this scene, whilst in the same breath praising the stuntmen who filled in for the other precarious feats in the film.

All's to say, much that we see on the silver screen isn't possible without the brave men and women willing to put themselves in harm's way for our entertainment.

3 Macaulay Culkin Was Paid An Enormous Amount To Return In the Sequel

When Home Alone first hit theaters in 1990, Macaulay Culkin was not the child superstar he would become in the years following, having most famously starred as young Miles Russell in John Hughes' 1989 film Uncle Buck.

Following the Home Alone mania that erupted from the success of Culkin's breakout performance as Kevin McCallister, however, it was clear to all that the child star would be taking home far more "dinero" come time for the sequel. Whereas in the first movie, Culkin had been paid a six-figure salary, for Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, Culkin's payday reportedly included a $4.5 million check plus 5% of the film's gross.

Today, after more than three decades, that salary is likely chump change compared to the take-home from gross, which is likely in the tens of millions. In truth, it's easy to forget the star power that Culkin carried in the 1990s and continues to carry each Christmas season thanks to the Home Alone series' reputation as premier holiday classics.

2 Not All The Manhattan Sequences Were Shot In NYC

Despite its reputation as an NYC Christmas movie, there are several notable sequences in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York not shot in the Big Apple. Perhaps the most significant on the list is the fictional toy store "Duncan's Toy Chest," where Kevin goes Christmas shopping and meets E.F. Duncan (Eddie Bracken), the man who Lloyd (Daniel Stern) and Harry attempt to rob before Kevin thwarts their plans.

Though Duncan's Toy Chest is made to look like a bustling Midtown shopping destination, in reality, its exterior belongs to the Rookery Building in Chicago (no surprise there, considering the Midwest native John Hughes was uniquely fond of his hometown, "The Windy City").

Another location not shot in New York City belongs to the Uptown Theater in Chicago, which was redesigned to be the interior of Duncan's Toy Chest. Finally, the suite in which Kevin reunites with his family was also shot in—you guessed it—a Chicago Hilton hotel located on the city's iconic Michigan Avenue.

1 Kevin's Talkboy Became A Real Toy After Home Alone 2

Finally, one of the most noteworthy gadgets Kevin McCallister bears is his trusty "Talkboy," a cassette player and recorder capable of recording, altering, and playing back audio to the chagrin of Kevin and the audience alike.

This simple voice recorder perfectly exemplifies what makes Home Alone 2: Lost in New York such a powerful sequel, since its addition elevates Kevin's ability to brew mischief in such an entertaining fashion that its plausibility remains a minor factor to the audience and overall plot.

Now, for those at home who remember playing with a device similar to the one Kevin wields in the film, I'm happy to report that you are correct and that this is not, in fact, an instance of "The Mandela Effect." Following the film's release, Tiger Electronics released a version of the Talkboy that proved incredibly popular with holiday shoppers and even led to several other devices in following years like the "Deluxe Talkboy" and the "Talkgirl."

In truth, its popularity isn't that surprising; Kevin's spellbinding journey across the island of Manhattan is the stuff of any kid's dreams—toys, junk food, limo rides, all accomplished through the ingenuity of a plot device just futuristic yet believable enough to unlock the luxury we all wished for—and lived vicariously through—thanks to Home Alone 2.

Sources:

Irish Post

People

The LA Times

Movie Locations

Thrillist