The Netflix series, The Movies That Made Us , is spilling behind-the-scenes secrets from some of your favorite movies, but it appears that the set shockers revealed about the Christmas classic film, Home Alone , deliver some of the most stunning revelations of all.
Some surprising tidbits of information were spilled for movie fans that were absolutely stunning throughout the documentary, which packed a whole lot of information into its 45 minute run time.
The film, which starred Macaulay Culkin , detailed the trouble young Kevin McCallister found himself in after being left home alone by his family, who forgot him when they left for their Christmas vacation in Paris, France. They did not realizing he was missing as the rest of the clan rushed to make their plane.
While Kevin initially enjoyed being alone and able to do whatever he wanted, he soon became afraid after discovering that two burglars, Harry and Marv, were scoping out his family’s home — which was located in an affluent neighborhood — to be ready to rob the place on Christmas Eve. In order to keep the burglars at bay until help could arrive, Kevin devised a series of outlandish ways to fight to protect his home in this family movie classic.
Here are four of the biggest takeaways about the filming of Home Alone that will blow your mind.
The Interior Of The Home Was Actually Filmed In A Gym
This stunning bit of information will forever change the way fans view the film. The expansive brick McCallister home, which was seen on an impressive lot, was not where the interiors of the film were shot. The home fans know so well in the film is located in Winnetka, Illinois, and was only used for exterior shots. The home’s interior was actually filmed inside a high school gym.
Entertainment Weekly reported that the film’s crew built a prototype of the home on the grounds of New Trier Township High School. Two other John Hughes movies — Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and Uncle Buck — were also filmed at that same location.
Joe Pesci Came Up With His Own Way Of Cursing For The Family-Friendly Movie
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gQMXOs156I
Due to the fact that Home Alone was a family-friendly movie and starred a child actor, the cast and crew had to watch their mouths during filming. Pesci, who has made a career out of playing characters who use colorful language, came up with his own take on swear words for the film for his character, Harry, a thief who worked alongside Marv.
Pesci would use gibberish in place of the curse words that would have typically come out of his mouth whenever his character became angry or hurt, as was the case in many of the scenes that pitted Harry against Kevin.
John Candy Was Paid Way Less Than His Usual Salary For His Work In The Film
Although the Home Alone scenes that included John Candy were iconic, his salary for the film was not. Reportedly the actor was paid a lot less than other character actors for his brief role in the film as Gus Polinski, the leader of the polka band from whom Kevin’s mom, Kate (Catherine O’Hara ), hitched a ride to get back to her 8-year-old son who was left alone in their home.
Candy was paid less than the actor who portrayed the pizza delivery guy in the film, reported Entertainment Weekly .
Daniel Stern Almost Lost The Role Of “Wet Bandit” Marv To Actor Daniel Roebuck
Daniel Stern, who appears in the Netflix documentary, almost lost the “wet bandit” Marv role to actor Daniel Roebuck. Initially, Stern did not want to take the role because the pay was lower than his usual fee.
After that, actor Daniel Roebuck screen tested for the part with Pesci as his scene partner. The process did not go well with this combination of actors so the film’s producers returned to Stern to asked if he would reconsider the job, thus creating one the most bumbling set of criminals in film history.
After watching the Home Alone segment of the four-part series, The Movies That Made Us , fans were stunned about what they learned, turning to Netflix’s official Twitter to reveal their shock.
The Movies That Made Us taught me that the majority of Home Alone – everything *inside* the house – was actually filmed on a set built inside of a high school gymnasium, and this information has changed me. Never even once questioned that being a real house. Movies are magic.
— John Squires (@FreddyInSpace) December 2, 2019
I’m enjoying this series! Two things I learned about Home Alone I didn’t know….1- Warner Brothers dropped it because they refused to increase the already low budget by a few million. 2- John Candy did the film as a favour & got paid $414.
— drinking my coffee (@ThisAintEZ) December 3, 2019
The Movies That Made Us also takes fans behind the scenes of Ghostbusters , Dirty Dancing , and Die Hard .