‘Home Alone 2’ Director Regrets Trump Cameo and Wishes He Could Remove It

Director Chris Columbus regrets Donald Trump’s appearance in Home Alone 2 and wishes he could cut it out.

Chris Columbus, director of Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, recently expressed his desire to remove the brief cameo of Donald Trump from the 1992 film. In an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, Columbus described the seven-second scene as a “curse” and an “albatross” that has haunted him for years. However, he sarcastically admitted he wouldn’t dare to cut it: “If I do that, I’ll probably be kicked out of the country.”

Trump appears in a scene where Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) enters the Plaza Hotel—then owned by the businessman—and asks him for directions. According to Columbus, Trump insisted on being in the film as a condition for allowing filming at the hotel.

Although the cameo was initially well received, its context shifted after Trump’s presidency. Even Culkin supported a viral campaign to digitally replace Trump in the film. In response, Trump claimed in 2023 that Columbus “begged” him to appear, and that his cameo contributed to the film’s success.

Today, the debate over the cameo’s inclusion continues, highlighting how politics can influence even beloved Christmas classics.